Violin Maker and Restorer

Through regular contact with musicians, Tibor draws inspiration to create individual instruments. Each personality requires a special companion; the challenge to find this harmony is his main motivation. Tibor's instruments received medals and distinctions at international competitions ( Salt Lake City VSA competition 1998; Cremona Triennial 2000;)

Members of orchestras including Age of Enlightenment, National Youth, Philharmonia, Covent Garden Opera, Halle and Budapest Festival, enjoy playing on his instruments, as do many members of chamber music ensembles.

Email: tibors@btinternet.com

Roger Rose is a specialist in the making of Baroque and Renaissance bows for violin and viola da gamba families. Most of his bows are made from snake wood that was widely used in the late 17th and the first half of the 18th Century.

He has a wide experience as a maker and restorer of viola da gamba.

Email: rogernjrose@gmail.com

Stephen studied instrument repair at Merton College before finding work at J P Guivier & Co Ltd in London in 1996. During his ten years there he changed from instrument repair to bow repair. In 2006 he set up his own business in south east London where he divides his time between bow repair and restoration and bow making. He also sells old bows.

Email: info@thebowbusiness.com

Website: www.thebowbusiness.com

Instagram: @the_bowbusiness

Kun is exclusively focused on developing the most ergonomic, innovative, comfortable and affordable products for stringed instrument players. Kun products are made in Canada, using exceptional materials to exacting technical and aesthetic standards.

Email: aran@kunrest.com

Website: kunrest.com

Instagram: @kun_rest

Andreas is searching for spruce and maple in the forests of Bosnia, Tirol and Italy to find the best stems for the making of violins. He is very delighted that many international making competitions have been won with wood from his saw mill.

Makers from around the world come to the large wood store in Altomünster just 40 minutes from Munich airport

Email: info@alpentonholz.de

www.alpentonholz.de

IJmkje is a violin maker and restorer working in Cambridgeshire.

In her workshop at home she makes new instruments, mostly violins, and carries out restorations. IJmkje enjoys looking for the character of an instrument and searching for its optimal sound.

She has more than fifteen years professional experience of which seven in a workshop specialised in cellos. She is part time employed by the workshop of the Royal Academy of Music and also works regularly at Philip Brown Violins in Newbury. She graduated from NSVM in 2008.

Email: ijmkjevanderwerf@hotmail.com

Website: vanderwerfviolins.com

Recently I have been making more bows in Larch based on an Italian Renaissance model, Fluted bows which are Copies of a Pierre Tourte and of the fluted Tononi bow. Also I have been working on an unusual Tourte/Cramer model in Pernambuco. circa 1770. I am mostly interested in making historic bows where I can study for a long time the original bow and have been lucky enough to acquire a few. Hopefully this helps keep my bows true to the originals.

Email: philip@philipbrownviolins.co.uk

Website: philipbrownviolins.co.uk

Instagram: @georgfrederichaendel

Thank you to our volunteers for helping with Makers' Day!

Our volunteers include students and recent graduates from West Dean, Merton College and Newark.

 Visit Table 8 and find examples of their work on display.

We’re always looking for help, so please reach out if you’re interested in volunteering.

Specialists in Insurance for Fine Art, Collectibles and Musical Instruments- Dealers and Makers, Collectors and Musicians and Orchestras.

Musical Instruments- Dealers and Makers, Collectors and Musicians and Orchestras

Email: clairesanders@hwint.com

Website: www.hwinternational.com

Daniela was fascinated by the Violoncello da Spalla as soon as she tried one. “Unconventional” but perfectly fitting in the violin family, not standardized but with a strong personality. Used by the most important composers of the baroque period, the Violoncello da Spalla later lived a rich but mysterious life until the sparkly renaissance it is experiencing today. Its versatility makes it the perfect companion for today’s musician: bass, viola and violin all-in-one, it appeals to all musical genres, from classical to folk music. Don’t miss your chance to try one!

Email: info@violoncellodaspalla.it

Website: WWW.LINKTR.EE/VIOLONCELLODASPALLA

Instagram: @violoncellodaspalla

The Violoncello da Spalla is the most versatile instrument you can encounter. With the open strings of the cello and the violin, you can easily play bass lines as well as the melody, and all that is in between. It's the perfect companion of today’s violinist and violist: playing a missing part in a chamber music group, doubling a choir part, accompanying students, recording one-man orchestras in studio or at home. Fitting all genres of music, from classical to folk, indie, jazz, electronic, soundtracks… All this on top of its original baroque repertoire! Don’t miss your chance to try one!

Email: info@violoncellodaspalla.it

Website: violoncellodaspalla.it

Instagram: @violoncellodaspalla

Violin maker Atilla Okan brings over 35 years of experience in violin making and restoration. He has participated in a number of international workshops and exhibitions.

In 2014, he worked at the Julie Reed Yeboah Restoration and Consultation Workshop in New York, focusing in traditional Italian violin-making and restoration techniques.

He is currently a lecturer at Ege University STMC, Department of Instrument Making.

Email: luthierati@hotmail.com

Website: www.okanviolins.com

Instagram: @okanviolins

Specialist distributor of bowed stringed instruments, strings, fittings & accessories. Exclusive supplier of Larsen Strings, Despiau bridges, Oldwood1700 varnishes, Leatherwood rosin and Bam cases.

Instagram: @thesoundpostuk

Website: www.thesoundpost.co.uk

At Oldwood, we offer a wide range of high-quality products for luthiers, including special bases, oil varnishes, natural colours, and other essential finishes for stringed instruments. Our products are handcrafted using traditional, time-honoured formulas, carefully adapted to meet current safety and non-toxicity standards. Trust our expertise to achieve durable, premium finishes for your instruments.

Website: www.oldwood1700.com

I make soloist and orchestral bows for violin, viola, cello and bass according to designs of old French and English bowmakers. I also make restorations to antique bows and my speciality is camber restoration. After over 45 years of bowmaking and restoration, I have formulated the Technical and Tonal Optimisation Protocol (TTOP), a safe and effective method for perfecting the camber of any bow. I will exhibit some of my latest bows and offer free diagnosis for musicians who own antique master bows and would like to know if their bow is functioning at its optimal condition of playability.

Email: keith@sleemanbows.com

Website: sleemanbows.com

Costruzione e restauro strumenti del quartetto.

Nato a Palermo nel 1974

Diplomato alla scuola di liuteria di Gubbio

Ha lavorato in svizzera nella bottega di Claude Lebet

Lavora a Palermo in Piazza Olivella 15

Email: nicotrafabioviolin@gmail.com

Website: www.nicotraviolin.com

Instagram: @fabionicotraviolin

In Budapest, I discovered an atelier where tradition breathes through every carving and curve. Guided by master artisans, I embraced Hungarian craftsmanship—a legacy that crowned the Austro-Hungarian Empire as a beacon of musical excellence. My journey became a dialogue with history as I mastered the Old Italian style of Cremona, Brescia, and Venezia. Each instrument I create blends Baroque elegance, intricate 16th- and 17th-century inlay, and a hint of Hungarian nuance. They are vessels of soul and story, preserving an art beyond time.

Email: faragomarci@yahoo.ie

Website: facebook.com/inlaidviolin

Instagram: @faragothokoly

Tim Baker graduated from the Newark School of Violin Making in 1981 and worked for W.E. Hill & Sons and J & A Beare as a bowmaker and restorer. He has been a regular jury member for international bow making competitions for over 30 years, and was a major contributor to ‘The British Violin’ and 'Musical Instruments in the Ashmolean Museum'. He is currently short course coordinator for the BVMA, working with colleagues to run a variety of professional development courses at different venues throughout the year. Since 2000, Tim has worked independently as a bowmaker in Oxford.

Instagram: @bakerbows

A collection of instruments and bows by members of the BVMA collaborating at Westhope College and Halsway Manor.

The money from the sale of these instruments and bows will support our short courses. This includes buying tools and materials, bursaries to help those in the early stages of their career and to keep courses as affordable as possible.

The BVMA short courses are a place where experience and knowledge are exchanged between different generations of makers, raising the general standards of skills in this country and world wide.

Website: www.bvma.org.uk

Instagram: @the_bvma

Kai-Thomas Roth came to the UK from Germany to study violin making at Newark from 1986-89, where he also met his wife Caroline Crowley.

He has been making western bowed stringed instruments of all descriptions professionally since 1990, from piccolo violins to double basses, viols and viole d'amore, of any historical period, as well as being a specialist for 'five-string' cellos, including 'da spalla' research. He is a founding member of the BVMA remaining active in its organisation to date.

Instagram: @kaithomasrothcellos

Website: www.kai-thomas-roth-cellos.co.uk

Adam is a freelance restorer and maker based in North London. Since graduating from Newark in 2013 Adam focused predominantly on restoration and has built a reputation for excellence, regularly trusted to carry out complex work on important instruments. Adam's experience in restoration inspires and informs his passion for making and antiquing, and he has in recent years dedicated more time to a steady production of new instruments.

Email: adamwinskill@hotmail.com

Website: winskillviolins.co.uk

Instagram: @adamwinskill

Christopher J Halstead

Archetier

Trained in the French tradition Chris' bows are inspired by makers of the transitional and early modern periods and combine traditional woods with more unusual decorative materials: Whitby Jet, Lapis Lazuli, Black Oyster.

Working with musicians he has created bespoke bows tailored to their specific requirements.

Besides modern bows Chris makes period bows, copied and adapted from surviving examples.

He also does sympathetic, minimally invasive, restorations of old bows.

Email: halsteadcj@yahoo.co.uk

Instagram: @halsteadbows

Stefano and Valerio have been collaborating since 2015 in the construction of stringed instruments. They put care and dedication in sound performance: each part of the instrument is measured, checked and catalogued, in order to have a detailed archive of parameters such as density, elasticity and sound transmission. Their instruments have been awarded in several international competitions, and are played and appreciated by musicians and collectors around the world. At the latest VSA competition (2024) their quartet received, amongst others, a gold medal for tone.

Email: info@gibertoninalin.com

Website: www.gibertoninalin.com

Instagram: @gibertoni_nalin

I make powerful, responsive violins with an emphasis on traditional design and craftsmanship. I have been fortunate to have a career as a violinist myself and it has helped me refine my work to make beautiful tools for players who demand high performing instruments. I like a violin which feels generous and leaps to the player's needs. It should have the capacity to allow the player to draw from ever increasing depths. At the same time a violin should demand the best from you and inspire through its appearance and tone. This is what I try to achieve through my making.

Email: benweedonviolins@gmail.com

Website: benweedonviolins.co.uk

Instagram: @benweedonviolins

After graduating from NSVM in 2018 (Distinction), Henry moved to Angers, France where he worked alongside Francois Denis and Marcus Klimke. Becoming part of the Lutherie community, he honed his skills in making instruments.

The open and forward-thinking community of luthiers in Angers proved to be the perfect place for new ideas and methods. This has given Henry the ability to design and produce instruments which are unique to his style whilst still in harmony with the Cremonese ideals.

As of 2022 Henry has been based in the heart of Hampshire

Email: hdwmann@hotmail.com

Website: henrydwmann.co.uk

Instagram: @henry.dw.mann

The New Making department at Florian Leonhard Fine Violins combines their expertise in the field of instrument making, a deep knowledge of old Italian violins and a desire to collaborate with players to create instruments for the modern musician. The New Making department caters to some of the best musicians including members of the BBC Symphony Orchestra, the concert master of the CBSO, and soloists around the world. By focusing on select models of violin which have proven themselves in the modern concert hall, our makers are the top choice of many world-class musicians today.

Email: office@florianleonhard.com

Website: https://www.florianleonhard.com/

Instagram: @florianleonhard

William John started work at Ealing Strings in 1977 restoring and studying instruments of the great Italian masters; Amati, Stradivari, Guarneri etc. He started making violins, violas and cellos in 1980, alongside some of Europe’s finest makers.

Having left Ealing Strings in 1991 William continues to make and restore instruments for soloists, orchestral musicians and students.

Email: wjohnviolins@aol.com

Website: www.williamjohnviolins.co.uk

Instagram: @williamjohnviolinslondon

Mark's been making violins for 30yrs, a graduate of Merton College and the NSVM. All his working life Mark has followed a philosophy of continuous improvement by working alongside other makers, recently teaming up with Peter Greiner to make instruments for the prestigious IMS Prussia Cove, where Mark is violin maker in residence.

His instruments can be taken on approval from his workshop or My Luthier in London.

Mark’s workshop is situated on the beautiful Lizard Peninsula in Cornwall. Due to his remoteness, he often takes satellite workshops in London, Manchester and Cardiff to see clients.

Email: jenningsviolins@yahoo.com

Website: jenningsviolins.com

Instagram: @jenningsviolins

Colin Charles Adamson is a violin maker who was born in Edinburgh, Scotland. He graduated from the prestigious Newark School of Violin Making in 1997. After Newark he worked in Canada, Finland and Germany, working as a maker and restorer. Colin has been in business for 25 years and is currently based in the beautiful seaside town of North Berwick. He has made well over 100 instruments, which are played in leading orchestras all around the world. Colin works to commission, specialising in instruments of the distinctive 17th century Italian period.

Email: mail@adamson-violins.com

Website: adamson-violins.com

Instagram: @ColinCharlesAdamson

Established in London since 2002, Andreas has gained a reputation for making excellent sounding instruments as well as for sound adjustments and set ups.

He has made instruments for the renowned cellist Raphael Wallfisch, chamber musicians,orchestra leaders, senior teachers and soloists Nicholas Miller, Roger Coull, Hatty Haynes, Jane Gordon, Frank Schaefer, Angus McCall, Greta Mutlu, Lasma Taimina, Gaby Lester, David Fruehwirth, Julia Schroeder, Lea Birringer, Triin Ruubel, Pavla Tesařová and Igor Ozim, who have performed, broadcast and recorded extensively on their Hudelmayer instruments.

Email: andreas@hudelmayer.com

Website: www.hudelmayer.com

I started training at the Maestri Liutai school in Gubbio, moved to England and completed the 3 year course at the Newark School of Violin Making. From 2007- 2010 I worked as a maker at the Roger Hansell workshop, in North Yorkshire. In 2010 I moved back to Italy, where I set up my workshop in Perugia. I won Best Sound in 2013 at the ANLAI violin making competition with a violin, and in 2015 a viola received the Edrev Prize. In the past few years I’ve taken courses with Francois Perego on varnish, Sound Adjustment with the BVMA and taken part at the workshop in Brandenburg as well working in Montreal at the Collectif Lutherie Montreal.

Website: www.protaniviolins.com

Instagram: @protaniviolins

I am based in central London, just a short walk from the Imperial War Museum. What distinguishes my work from other makers is the particular method I use to make very accurate copies of Cremonese instruments. I do this by reproducing the constructional shape of the original, not just copying the outside. I also use light shone through the wood to make a give the plates a very even flexibility.

Email: garethballard1@gmail.com

Website: violinslondon.co.uk

Instagram: @ballardviolins

PIRASTRO is a producer of fine handmade strings, rosins, and accessories in Germany since 1798. Discover strings, rosins and our wide range of PIRASTRO KorfkerRest® products at our BVMA Makers’ Day booth table 39.

PIRASTRO range of products:

• strings

• rosins -designed specifically for PIRASTRO strings

• shoulder rests (KorfkerRest® / KorfkerRest® LUNA®)

• accessories (string care products)

PIRASTRO is the only string manufacturer worldwide to produce strings made of gut, steel and synthetic core for: Violin, Viola, Cello, Double bass, Gamba, Concert harp, Folk harp, Erhu

Email: info@pirastro.com

Website: www.pirastro.com

Instagram: @pirastroofficial

Tamás Guminár is a violin maker based in Budapest.

He represents the artistic lineage of traditional violin making. His style is heavily influenced by 17th and 18th-century Italian masters, whose works and precision serve as his examples. His favorite works are created in the style of Stradivari, Guarneri, and Gasparo da Saló. 

Over the years, he has participated in numerous exhibitions and received many awards. Notable awards include the Sáránszky Award in 2001 and the Gold Medal of the International Guarneri Copy Contest held in Budapest.

Email: tamasguminar@gmail.com

Website: www.guminarviolin.hu

Instagram: @guminarviolin

My focus is crafting new violins and violas, inspired by 16th–18th century Brescian and Cremonese masters such as Gasparo da Salò, Guarneri del Gesù, and Stradivari. I operate my workshop in Uraiújfalu, Western Hungary. I believe that every instrument I craft brings me closer to an unknown world—a world where we create something lasting and continue to learn perpetually, respecting the traditions of our craft while still forging something new.This dedication was recognized in 2024 with a "Certificate of Merit for Tone" at the VSA competition in Indianapolis.

Email: orsostomi@gmail.com

Instagram: @orsosviolin

With a lifelong passion for woodwork and music, I left a career in IT to study at the Newark Violin Making School, where I was drawn to bowmaking by the wide range of skills and disciplines it demands. Influenced by the great makers of the past, such as Tourte and Peccatte, I now dedicate myself to making and restoring bows with professionalism and care. My work is enriched by knowledge shared by respected bowmakers during workshops in the UK and US, and my customers include players at every level.

Email: mike@mgdbows.co.uk

Website: mgdbows.co.uk

Instagram: @mgdbows

Violin maker based in Somerset, specialising in new making - violin, viola and cello.

Trained at the Newark School of Violin Making. In addition to new making I offer repair, restoration and bow rehair

Email: james@jamesstephensonviolins.co.uk

Website: jamesstephensonviolins.co.uk

Instagram: @jamescellos

As an established maker, William’s instruments are recognized for their ease of playing and character of tone. Having trained at Newark, he worked for Geigenbau Machold, one of the top workshops in Europe before setting up on his own. Since the late 1990s, he has devoted himself to making new instruments, enthusiastic about fulfilling musicians’ needs and the making process, gaining recognition for his research into authentic tools and methods of construction. He is known as being one of the few makers who make small violas, as well as violins, some medium-sized violas and cellos.

Email: william@williamcastle.co.uk

Website: williamcastle.co.uk

Over a career of 45 years and 350 instruments, I’ve built a reputation for player-friendly instruments which sound responsive, rich and full. I love to work closely with musicians to produce a perfect fit, both physically and musically. A speciality is violas, from children’s to adult sizes, from 13 1/4 inches upwards.

In 2022 I took over the organisation of the annual Lutherie Day conferences. I edited a book of the varnish expertise of the late Koen Padding, and write regularly for the Strad Magazine. In 2023 I was invited to exhibit my work at the annual Klanggestalten exhibition in Berlin.

Email: helen@helenviolinmaker.com

Website: helenviolinmaker.com

Instagram: @helenmichetschlager

Martin trained in the world renowned firm of W.E.Hill and Sons in the late 60’s and early 70’s producing fine Instruments of the Violin family from his workshop in the beautiful hills of Mid Wales.

Email: martinhilsden@inbox.com

Website: hilsdenviolins.com/

Boris is a passionate and prolific maker of violins, violas and cellos, based in Zurich, Switzerland. « I want my instruments to have a strong and positive personality. Among other things I therefore must ensure, all of it's parts have been sourced sustainably and are of the highest quality.» Boris is part of «Alliance International» an association of luthiers founded to create the conditions that make it easier for our trade to work in a sustainable framework.

In 2024, the Violin Society of America awarded his viola for its exceptional craftsmanship.

Email: tborishaug@gmail.com

Website: www.haugviolins.com

Instagram: @boris_haug

Sustainable high-end violin accessories made from local wood from certified forests: Responding to the ecological, ethical and legal concerns associated with the use of tropical woods, we have developed Sonowood®. Selected Swiss woods are densified in a patent-pending process. This gives them the properties of ebony – and in some cases even surpasses it in density, sound velocity and hardness. Sonowood is not a composite: it consists of 100% wood, there are no adhesives, resins or other plastic components. We use Sonowood to craft beautiful accessories such as fingerboards, tailpieces or pegs.

Email: jermann@swisswoodsolutions.ch

Website: https://sonowood.swisswoodsolutions.ch/en/De

Instagram: @sonowood