Zanchi

Zanchi (later spelled "Zanki") is an Italian brand of cymbals. The tell-tale signature stamp reads: "F & F Zanchi, Made in Italy". "F & F" stands for "Fiorello e Figli" (Fiorello and Sons).

History

Italian cymbal-maker, Fiorello Zanchi, reputedly started out working for the Tronci family of cymbal/pipe organ makers in the 1920s, according to Pinkstoerber. Per the same source, it is said that Fiorello started his own workshop, Zanchi, in 1947, and began producing handmade, hand-hammered cymbals. However, to date none of these pre-50's Zanchis have shown themselves on the market (see below). Zanchi cymbals were marketed primarily in Europe.

Some of their earlier series included the "Vibra Cymbals" line; for a number of years, Vibras were believed to have been produced in the 60's or 70s. Recent information provided by an owner of some hi-hats in Connecticut confirms that his were purchased in 1958....so this is the oldest attribution anyone has contributed thus far. A few F & F Vibra cymbals have appeared on the market which also show the "Revere" embossment...interesting because Revere was an early stencil brand of Pearl, Japan in the '60's...so one may presume that, for some period of time, Zanchi had a business relationship with Pearl. Vibras were B20 Alloy, usually thin, and are described by some as trashy sounding. Yet, their sizzle and icy-ness are considered by some musicians to be quite unique, even by today's standards.

In the 70's, the company name was changed to Zanki, perhaps because the Italian "CH" is pronounced as a "K"; or, perhaps, simply as a marketing device. During the 70's, Zanki's usually had large ink logos with the 'Zanki' name. Sometimes the character font was hollow, sometimes bold. The embossed stamp was changed to read "ZANKI Italy". These cymbals were still handmade, but were heavier, and more conventional-sounding, and are considered by some to be comparable to a late 60's or early 70's Avedis Zildjian. Zanki occasionally still used the name Vibra on some of their 70's series cymbals, but they do not resemble the F & F Vibras from earlier, in either hammering or lathing.

Perhaps Fiorello's biggest contribution to cymbal-making history was his development of the "rotocasting" technique, in which molten bronze is poured into a cymbal cast that is mounted on a centrifuge, and rotated as the liquefied metal is being cooled inside the cast. This new technique created a brand new sound in Italian cymbals, much brighter than the previous Zanki's. It is reputed that Fiorello used the larger workshop at UFIP to do his rotocasting. These rotocast cymbals bore a new embossed stamp, "Zanki Rotocasting". Some of these cymbals also show an additional embossment that reads: "Music Industries". Still others show an ink stamp by the Italian distributor "Mario Corso". It would appear from the varying stamps of this period that Zanki was associating with different distributors in an attempt to keep the cymbals on the market.

According to Pinkstoerber, Fiorello died in the 80's; and his sons, Mariano and Roni, continued the company. Ultimately, however, at some point in the late '80's or early '90's, F & F Zanki (like many other small, independent cymbal/gong-making families in Italy at the time, including Tronci and Tuscano) could no longer compete with the larger cymbal-makers. Amid concern that the Italian tradition of cymbal-making was at risk of becoming extinct, many of the smaller operations joined under the banner of the largest/oldest Italian union/workshop, UFIP, and ceased independent production. Thus, Fiorello and Sons brought to UFIP the technique of rotocasting, which is a UFIP trademark today.

As F & F Zanki was more or less targeting the mid-price range of the market, some of its cymbals are considered to be mediocre at best, while others ranged from "exceptional" to "not too good at all". The varying quality of these remaining cymbals may well be why they remain relatively obscure.

However, Zankis are an important piece of cymbal-making history and the persona of Fiorello takes his rightful place on the list of legendary cymbal artisans.