Guarnierius Tenor Banjo

Presented to Maurice Chevalier c1926

Maurice Chevalier was a star of musical comedy in the theatres and clubs of Paris, appearing as a singer and dancer from an early age, before going to America and becoming a filmstar.

The finest French banjos of the jazz age were made by Garnierius in the 1920s. Guarnieri was an instrument maker in the tradition of his violin-making ancestors in Italy. He ran a shop in Rue Forest, Montmartre in the heart of the Paris theatre district where Maurice Chevalier worked from childhood.

The tenor banjo is Guarnieri's finest, a presentation-grade Le Non Plus Ultra, complete with its velvet lined mahogany case. It was in the collection of Akira Tsumura and is illustrated in his book 'ONE THOUSAND AND ONE BANJOS.'

The presentation harp banjo is a one of a kind instrument and came from the family of Maurice Chevalier. An inscription under the resonator reads 'Anette M. Chevalier Rue 14 but the rest is faded and I cannot read it.'