Piero e Francesco Ruffati
Piero and his brother Francesco, born in Padua in 1943 and 1945 respectively, are the sons of Antonio Ruffatti, who with his brothers Alessio and Giuseppe founded the organ building firm Famiglia Artigiana Fratelli Ruffatti in 1940, specializing in the construction of new instruments and the restoration of antique ones.
Piero has been designing new organs since 1968, while Francesco, since the same year, has had the role of ‘tonal designer’, responsible for the parameters used in the construction of the stops and their tuning. Both are very active in the restoration of antique organs. Piero Ruffatti had a seat on the board of governors of the I.S.O. (International Society of Organbuilders) from 1994 to 2002 and was its vice-president from 1996 to 2002. He was also president of the A.I.O. (Associazione Italiana Organari) from its foundation in 1994 until 2000, while his brother Francesco was president of the A.I.O. from 2005 to 2010. Both are sought-after speakers at international conferences and contribute to numerous Italian and American magazines specializing in the sector. For several years they have taught at the Scuola Organaria in Crema.
Over the years the Padua-based firm has carried out innumerable works of great prestige, and now does so all over the world: in the demanding US market it has built more than 50 medium-sized and large instruments, a record in the European field, and over 500 in Italy. The Ruffatti brothers were among the first in Italy to undertake the construction of organs using the mechanical system, but without ever ceasing to perfect their electrically operated instruments. Every component is produced in the workshop, from the wind chests to the flue and reed pipes, with attention paid to the tiniest details for the maximum customization of each instrument. The Miami International Organ Competition is a biennial event sponsored by Fratelli Ruffatti and the Church of the Epiphany, with the aim of encouraging talented young organists.
