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Birth : 1818 in Mirecourt (Vosges ) Death : 1882 in Angers (Maine et Loire)

Biography

Career
We know very little about Louis-Nicolas SOUCHETTE as the violin displayed on our website is the only SOUCHETTE instrument that we have seen or heard about until now.
Thanks to Mr. Jacques BAUER, a violin maker in Angers, and through a review about the violin makers who worked in Angers that appeared in a GLAAF (Groupe des Luthiers et Archetiers d'Art de France / French Violin and Bow Makers Association) newsletter, we know that Louis-Nicolas SOUCHETTE was born in MIRECOURT and was the son of Nicolas SOUCHETTE.

Works
We still do not know where Louis-Nicolas SOUCHETTE completed his apprenticeship, however, on the business paper that he used in Angers he is cited as a "previous pupil of J.B. VUILLAUME."
 
Upon examination of the workmanship, model, and varnish quality of the violin dated 1847, the influence of the VUILLAUME family can be identified as follows:
1) The model, workmanship, and main features such as the scroll, clearly reflect the influence of J.B. VUILLAUME, and in some ways, the influence of Honoré DERAZEY.
2) The texture and color of the varnish indicate the influence of Nicolas VUILLAUME, Jean-Baptiste's brother.

It is also interesting to link Louis-Nicolas SOUCHETTE to Charles PLUMEREL, the latter of whom was a violin maker also working in Angers during the 19th century. Like SOUCHETTE, PLUMEREL was a native of MIRECOURT. In 1835, he was living on Rue Croix des Petits Champs, in Paris. At that time, Rue Croix des Petits Champs was an important center of violin making, where the workshop of J.B. VUILLAUME was located, among others.
In our opinion, there is a strong chance that SOUCHETTE and PLUMEREL met during this period, possibly in J.B. VUILLAUME's workshop, and that, once established in Angers, Charles PLUMEREL maintained contact with SOUCHETTE.

Workshop
14 Place des Halles. Angers.

Source
Jacques BAUER in the Bulletin du Groupement des Luthiers et Archetiers d'Art de France  2006 (a newsletter published by the French Violin and bow Makers Association).

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