John Bolander worked with his father John Alfred. In 1943-1946 he learned bow making with Alfred Lanini . His bows have become very popular in the San Francisco Bay Area. And are of a distinctive style. The pernambuco stick is especially beautiful and the ebony frog is unusual, in that Bolander normally used mountain mahogany.
Karl van der Meer started out as a violinist in the Concertgebouw Orchestra, taking up violin making in 1892. He became head of the violin department of a large Amsterdam music store, establishing his own firm in 1899 which became the most important violin shop in Amsterdam. He was especially well known for his fine bows. Those branded K.V.D.MEER AMSTERDAM. Were made by A.Toussant in Mirecourt.
The Cuniot-Hury workshop was founded by Pierre Cuniot in the later 19th century. It flourished under Pierre’s son Eugène who employed several fine makers including E.F.Ouchard and later his son E.A.Ouchard. This fine bow has a Vuillaume-style frog and is in almost new condition, remarkable for a bow that is 120 years old. It is accompanied by a certificate of authenticity from Raffin, Paris who describes it as a beautiful example of this great French maker.
J.Paulus served his apprenticeship in the C.A.Schuster workshop from 1930-1934 staying on until WWII. After the war he returned to the Schuster workshop staying until 1955. He set up his own workshop in 1955. His work has always been highly regarded and is in the classic Markneukirchen style.
Originally from Czechoslovakia, R.Dotschkail (1923-1996) trained at the Technical School for Insrtument making in Graslitz in the 1930’s. After WWII he was forced out of Czechoslovakia and set up his workshop in Erlangen in 1951. This beautiful bow has a gold-mounted ivory frog and an elegant gold mounted button with pearl eyes on each facet.
Son of Joseph Lamy, Alfred apprenticed in the Bazin workshop. After his training he worked for Collin-Mezin and later at the Laberte workshop. He established his own workshop in 1919. The workshop closed on his death in 1922. In spite of the relatively small number of bows made under his own name, his work is highly respected and compares favorably to that of other members of the Lamy family.
Eury is considered one of the most important Parisian bow makers of the of the first half of the 19th century. He first studied violin making with his father François in Mirecourt. It appears that he also studied bow making there. Moving to Paris he met François Tourte who became a major influence in his work. In fact, his bows are often compared favorably to those of Tourte. Certified by Millant.
Josef Gabriel did his apprenticeship with Alfons Riedel in Bubenreuth. After passing his master’s exam, he opened his Erlangen workshop in 1987. Since then he has won numerous awards and medals including gold medals at the Violin Society of America and Mittenwald competitions.
Emile Dupree bows were made in the Seifert workshops in Bubenreuth primarily for the American market. This is an especially nice example and is gold mounted
From the workshop of Frank Daguin, Lyon.
The Finkel workshop was founded by Siegfried Finkel in the 1950’s. They continue to make exceptional quality bows to this day.
The Otto Dürrschmidt workshop was founded in 1894 and today is headed by Uwe Dürrschmidt and his daughter. Today’s Dürrschmodt bows are made to the same exacting standards as they were over 100 years ago.
Born in 1928, Jean Paul Lauxerrois served his apprenticeship with Marcel Vatelot in Paris and then in Mirecourt from 1947-1950 with François Lotte. He joined André Chardon’s workshop working with Marcel and Etienne Vatelot. He set up his own workshop in Paris in 1959, moving to Bordeaux in 1980. In the 1950’s and ‘60s, Jean Paul was one of the most important figures in the revival of the great tradition of French bow making.
For over fifty years Frank Passa’s San Francisco violin shop was one of the most important on the west coast. In 1978 he brought in Reid Kowallis and Morgan Andersen as bow makers, who had just graduated from the violin making school in Salt Lake City, UT. They made superb bows which were branded F.PASSA SF. Between ’78 and ’82, Reid won several medals at VSA competitions. This is an especially nice example of Reid’s elegant work and is gold mounted.
Vladimir Radosavljevic was for many years a professional violinist in Belgrade. He developed an interest in bow making and repair so he came to the U.S. and trained in the repair of fine bows. In ’98 he moved to Brasil to learn the art of bow making. He was so successful that he had many orders for his bows. He returned to this country working with a number of makers and dealers. Today he splits his time between Savannah and his native Belgrade.
Bows from the H.R.Pfretzschner workshop have always been in demand by musicians all over the world. This bow represents an excellent value for the musician in that the nickel mounted button is a later replacement.
Roger François Lott studied with his father François. His Mirecourt workshop produced high quality bows both under his own name and also for important Parisian makers and dealers such as R.& M. Millant and E.Vatelot.
This exceptional bow was made for Caressa & Français in Paris. The stick is the work of Claude Thomassin and the frog and button is by Jules Fetique. It is fully certified by Raffin.
Nicolas Maline was one of the truly great French bow makers of the 19th century. He was the son and pupil of Guillaume. He then worked for Pajeot alongside Nicolas Maire before opening his own workshop. He supplied bows to J.B. Vuillaume starting in 1840 although he never worked in Paris, and he was actually the first to make bows with the Vuillaume style frog. Vuillaume greatly appreciated his work and many of the bows stamped Vuillaume Paris were actually made by Maline in Mirecourt. The stick of this viola bow is of snakewood.
Originally from Perryville Missouri, Frank Callier moved to St Louis at age 17 where he began studying violin making. After working in San Antonio, TX, he settled in Hollywood in 1928 where he set up his own violin and bow making shop. He was by far the most important bow maker in Los Angeles and won a number of medals and awards for his fine bows.