FIRST CLASS

The workshop of William Lewis & Son in c.1930, around the time Kovanda, Lohberg and Halvarson would have been working there

Much has been learnt since the publication of Joseph Roda’s 1959 book Bows for Musical Instruments, yet little has been written on the life and work of the American bow makers it illustrated. When one thinks of the finest bow makers working between the 1920s and 50s, very rarely does anyone think of those working in the United States. Arguably the best American bow makers of this generation were Frank Kovanda, Ernst Julius Lohberg and Anders Ernfried Halvarson. All three of these makers worked at the well-known Chicago shop of William Lewis & Son in the 1920s, before continuing their work in different parts of the country. All three had popular followings during their lifetimes, from high-calibre musicians in top American orchestras to studio musicians throughout the nation. They were also among the best repairmen of their generation, working with such musicians as Heifetz, Milstein and Stern. Kovanda, Lohberg and Halvarson all had in common a reverence for the great master F.X. Tourte; a predilection for innovative designs; and impeccable workmanship. And although their effect on American bow making was not as influential as that of William Salchow in New York, their work had an impact on a generation of American musicians in profound if unseen ways. Together, they form the nation’s first school: the ‘School of William Lewis’.

Self-stylised as a ‘violinist’s headquarters’, William Lewis & Son was indeed one of the centres of the American stringed-instrument world. Headed by Carl Becker Sr., the workshop was one of the largest in the country and the influences coursing through it were vast: fine examples of all the great masters’ instruments and bows, and with an active group of researchers publishing seminal works on the history of the violin. By the late 1920s another Frenchtrained bow maker, Raymond Del Prato, joined the workshop. According to Becker Sr.’s son, Carl F. Becker, he was a ‘marvellous worker’ and his bows were undoubtedly influential among his colleagues. Though his work is virtually unknown today, he had a gold-mounted violin bow for sale at Lewis’s for $150, a mere $25 less than a similar bow by Eugène Sartory. All of these factors would have had a profound influence on the genesis of eager bow makers such as Kovanda, Lohberg and Halvarson.

Kovanda’s World War II draft registration card gives his date of birth as 14 September 1904

FRANK KOVANDA

The most famous of these three makers was Frank Kovanda.A first-generation American whose parents emigrated from Bohemia, Kovanda was born in Cicero, on the outskirts of Chicago on 14 September 1904. His father Bohuslav was a cabinet maker, and young Frank grew up learning the tools of the trade from his father. The first record of Kovanda as a violin maker appears in the 1923 Cicero city directory. He began his studies with Chicago violin maker John Hornsteiner, and several dictionaries of violin and bow makers list him as having worked for Lewis’s starting in 1924. If he did work with Hornsteiner, it was for a very brief period of time: he was really a protégé of the William Lewis & Son company.

Once at Lewis’s in 1924, he quickly developed his skills as a woodworker. He probably did not have a formal apprenticeship as we expect professional luthiers to go through today. Rather, he would have drifted into bow making and sought out the advice and sagacious critiques of a number of craftsmen and experts, including Carl Becker Sr., the doyen of the William Lewis shop. There is no doubt that Kovanda was extremely talented, and with the accumulated knowledge in the shop to channel the young maker’s talent, along with the number of good examples of fine bows passing through the firm, Kovanda was in the ideal place to achieve success.

By the outbreak of World War II, Kovanda was perhaps the finest, best-known living American maker. His bows were to be found in the hands of musicians in the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, and in orchestras throughout the US. His bows sold for $75–$125 in the early 1940s, most likely his elegant gold tortoiseshell bows commanding the highest price. With a national reputation that could only grow, given that imports ceased during the war years, he was in a position to expand his business.

ALL BOW PHOTOS RICHARD WARD

This silver-mounted violin bow gives evidence of why Kovanda was held in such high esteem during his working career. Modelled on a middle-period Tourte, as were many of his bows, the octagon is first-rate and sharp. Another hallmark of his bows is the exaggerated curve of the front ridge of the head, sweeping to a sharp point at the tip of the nose. The transition from the head to the stick has an extravagant ‘comma’. The frog is recessed into the stick, and the Parisian eye has a thick silver ring surrounding a ring of end-grain ebony. The wood of the stick is good but not flashy, with a lustrous finish. Of the three makers, Kovanda evinced perhaps the finest metalwork, utilising a double collar on the inner ring of the button.

Despite his potential for success as a maker, Kovanda relocated to Los Angeles in 1951 to focus on repairs. This move west was part of a larger trend, as LA was the perfect place for any talented luthier or musician to live. Homes were relatively inexpensive, the movie industry in Hollywood was at the height of its golden age, and work as a professional musician in the studios and other professional orchestras was plentiful. All those musicians needed good luthiers, and Kovanda was ready to answer the call.

There are three pieces of evidence to suggest he moved west in 1951. Firstly Paul Toenniges, a friend and respected colleague from Chicago, opened his business, Studio City Music, in the San Fernando Valley in 1952, and Kovanda worked for him.

Secondly, the Kovanda home and workshop on Bakman Avenue in North Hollywood was purchased and renovated in 1951, and it was within walking distance to Studio City Music. Lastly, the earliest record I have found of him in Los Angeles was his voting registration in 1952.

Kovanda began working for the Los Angeles City Schools in the mid-1950s, repairing school instruments. He was such a good repairman that he won a prize in 1965 for his ‘innovations in repair methods for stringed instruments’. These innovations were legendary to those who knew him, and many are still in regular use (see box). He retired from his job at the school district in 1970, though he continued doing contract work for Hans Weisshaar at least into the middle of the decade. Although he mostly drifted away from bow making around the time he began working for the City Schools, he continued to make bows on a very limited basis until the early 1970s.

TOOL PHOTOS COURTESY DAVID STONE

This gold-mounted viola bow by Kovanda bears many of the same features of his silver-mounted bow. The octagon is confident and the head has the same exaggerated curve on the front ridge. The chamfers are broad, sweeping to a prominent ‘comma’ in the transition to the stick. The nose, however, is a bit smaller in proportion to the large head. The frog is unlined. The Parisian eye also has a thick gold ring surrounding a thin ring of end-grain ebony, and the thumb projection curves down towards the leather grip. He sometimes left his bows unstamped, although the unique stylistic elements of his head model are signature enough.

KOVANDA’S TOOLS

Tip jig for headplate installation

This jig is simple, straightforward and effective. When gluing the headplate, Kovanda wanted to ensure even pressure across the entire surface without damaging the stick. He would place the bow in the jig, clamp it in place, glue the headplate on, and then wrap the head with string. If there was any curve to the bottom of the head, the string would clamp the headplate onto the stick evenly. This tool is still in use by David Stone of Seattle.

Butt-bushing repair tool kit

This inventive kit is a quick, secure, and clean way to bush the butt ends of sticks on inexpensive or student bows. Using one of the brass collets with the appropriate diameter to the hole, the hand drill is stabilised. Once it was stable, Kovanda would cut into the stick with the hand drill using the collet as a guide until necessary. This ensures a clean, straight cut. He would then insert a small brass ring, sawn from pre-fabricated brass tubing, into the hole, perhaps covering up the repair using glue and pernambuco dust. This is a good example of the prizewinning innovations he designed to repair the large volume of student bows and instruments he handled while working for the Los Angeles City Schools. It is also owned by David Stone.

Palm chisel and knife

Typically for Kovanda’s knives, the handles are removable. Most of his chisels were this size. He built the handles for maximum comfort, fitting from the centre of his palm to his fingertips. These two are still used by David Stone.

The workshop of William Lewis & Son in 1961. Ernst Lohberg is seated second from the right

Ernst Lohberg at his workbench in 1959

THE STYLISTIC SIMILARITIES IN KOVANDA’S AND LOHBERG’S WORK SHOW THE CLEAR INFLUENCE THEY HAD ON EACH OTHER

ERNST LOHBERG

Born in Brunskog, Sweden, on 29 December 1901, Ernst Julius Lohberg (‘Ernie’) immigrated to the United States through the port of New York on 23 February 1926, aboard the SS Gripsholm. On the ship’s manifest, Lohberg was listed as snickare (carpenter). His father, Olov Lohberg, already lived in Chicago, the most likely reason why Lohberg settled there. He probably started working at Lewis’s within the year after his arrival, and while it is still not known how he was hired there, his training as a carpenter would certainly have helped. Like Kovanda he probably did not have a formal apprenticeship, but was well trained in violin and bow repairs, his talent in bow work being immediately apparent. By 1961 Lewis’s was advertising him as a nationally respected bow repair expert. He would have fitted right into the workshop community, not only because there were several fellow Swedes there, but because the culture of the shop was of passionate innovation in repairs and construction. Lohberg and Kovanda were making bows at home after hours.

As proof of his camaraderie with his colleagues, the witnesses who signed his citizenship petition of 1929 were William Frank, salesman at Lewis’s, and Paul Toenniges, who at that time was still a violin maker there. Toenniges eventually hired Lohberg for contract work repairing bows, as he already had done with Kovanda. The Toenniges connection is important for three reasons. First, Toenniges, a first-rate luthier, would have hired only the best repairmen. Secondly, it shows that there was a lifelong connection between Kovanda and Lohberg. Not only did they live within a few miles of each other in North Hollywood – Lohberg lived on Morella Avenue – but the stylistic similarities in their work also show the clear influence they had on each other. Lastly, even when Lohberg was still living and working in Chicago while Kovanda had moved to North Hollywood, they would have stayed in contact, Toenniges being part of the glue of the artistic social circle, as it were.

Studying this Lohberg gold-mounted violin bow, one can see how his thorough understanding of the work of Tourte helped his stellar reputation as a bow restorer. His octagon is sharp, smooth and even. The oblique facets are significantly narrower than the primary facets. The workmanship of the head is first-class, with clean, straight lines. The front ridge crisply sweeps towards the nose, the ridge clearly present to the tip. The wood is of very good quality, though he did not reserve the best-quality sticks for gold mountings: customers paid only the difference between the price of silver and the price of gold rather than a premium price for gold mountings. The camber is unique – it gradually slopes from the head to the low point above the middle of the stick, quickly and sharply turning towards the frog. The Parisian eye on the unlined frog has a thick ring of gold around a thin ring of end grain ebony. This was typical of the Tourte-copy frogs he produced. The button has a generous amount of gold. Despite being 65.5 grams, the bow is remarkably supple and balanced in the hand.

He continued working for Lewis’s as a violin repairman, but primarily worked on bows, repairing them at work during the day and making new ones at night. By the time he moved to North Hollywood, probably in the early 1960s when he started to work for the City Schools, he had largely stopped making bows, although by about 1970 he was willing to make a bow for $1,000, and a frog for $100. He had a superb reputation for bow restoration: according to those who visited his shop, he was a charming and hard-working man who loved baseball. Curiously, Lohberg worked standing up at an ironing board. He told at least one customer, who regularly visited his shop in the late 1960s, that he gave early advice and lessons on bow making to Martin Beilke, one of the finest early American bow makers. He died on 22 March 1977

HALVARSON TOOL PHOTOS COURTESY SKINNER INC

ANDERS HALVARSON

Anders Ernfried Halvarson (‘Hally’) was born on 9 December 1900 in Malung, Sweden. His father was also a carpenter. He immigrated to the United States on 31 March 1923 on a third-class ticket aboard the Aquitania. According to Roda, in 1924 he started at Lewis’s, where, like many of his colleagues he worked alongside Carl Becker Sr. While there he focused mostly on instrument repairs, although he did spend a large amount of his time designing and constructing a number of machines to assist in the shop. These machines, which Kovanda helped him build, included an overhead router for graduating, and machines for making ferrules and other metalwork. In 1929 he moved to Middleville, MI, with William Myers, a salesman/violin restorer at William Lewis, establishing the partnership, Myers–Halvarson. They remained in Middleville until 1936, when they settled in Nashville, MI. During World War II, when there were shortages of everything from metal to food, Halvarson (below) designed machines ‘using pieces of pipe, parts of automobiles and whatever they could use’ to produce bridges for violins; according to newspaper accounts, at one point he produced up to 2,500 bridges a day from local maple! These bridges were finely finished off the press and ready for use. He continued supplying William Lewis & Son with these bridges at least through the 1950s and probably beyond. He carried this level of ingenuity into every aspect of his violin and bow making. A quiet man, he took over sole ownership of the business in 1957 when Myers retired, and continued working there by himself right up until his death in 1973.

It was in 1936, after moving to Nashville, that Halvarson began focusing on bow making while continuing to make instruments. When he started bow making he would have turned to Lohberg, already a distinguished maker, for advice. Halvarson and Lohberg maintained a lifelong friendship, both men being Swedish immigrants to Chicago in the mid-1920s, and given their mutual interest in bows. Because he had such a good eye, and such a talented hand, Halvarson quickly became a skilled bow maker. By the time he died in 1973, his obituary was published in at least a dozen newspapers from Florida to Oregon, announcing the death of a renowned bow maker. His bows are commonly found in the Michigan area and are known for their playability.

HALVARSON’S TOOLS

Camber jig

Halvarson had a highly inventive mind and figured out ways to work around technical challenges quickly and easily. This jig is essentially an oven, heated by incandescent light bulbs. It appears he would bend the roughed-out pernambuco stick and clamp it down using the pre-carved block of wood (propped up on the oven in the photo). Then he would place it on the wire mesh, held up by an old piece of pipe. The makeshift oven would heat up the wood until the desired temperature, and the stick would take on the new camber. If he wanted to adjust the camber he could do it later, in the traditional manner. It is distinctly possible that the box used in this oven is a repurposed insulated milk delivery box.

‘Mystery’ jig

This jig is made up of a number of odds and ends, though its purpose is harder to determine. It is a corrugated-steel lined box around what appears to be a pre-fabricated bathroom vanity light strip, complete with light bulbs and sockets,. Halvarson rigged a light switch to control the heat from the bulbs and used old plywood to stabilise the contraption. Hooks are inserted into the box, making room for four bows. It is possible that a hood, which would be attached to the eye hooks on the top back, is missing. Halvarson was famous for this type of creativity.

This silver-mounted cello bow illustrates the high level Halvarson achieved in his bow making. Modelled on a Tourte bow, the octagon is clean, crisp and smooth. The oblique facets are narrower than the primary facets. The chamfers are steady and sleek, facilitating an elegant transition from the head to the stick. The head, an excellent copy of Tourte, is not without the author’s own flair: the snout is fairly thick, sweeping roundly to a delicate point. Curiously, the ebony under the silver faceplate is double-layered. The wood is excellent, the finish thick and translucent. In the one rough spot, Halvarson leaves the file markings visible on the nipple.

Halvarson (left) and Lohberg in 1959

BOTH SWEDISH IMMIGRANTS, HALVARSON AND LOHBERG MAINTAINED A LIFELONG FRIENDSHIP

Kovanda’s and Lohberg’s bow stamps

Eyes of the gold-mounted bows by Kovanda (page 48) and Lohberg (page 49)

Kovanda, Lohberg, and Halvarson were friends who clearly discussed the stylistic concerns and technical aspects of bow making. On a close inspection of their bows, the similarities are striking: in particular, they all show a deep reverence for the artistic flair of Tourte. The octagons are even, sharp and smooth. The front ridge crisply sweeps towards the nose, the ridge clearly present to the very tip. Each maker takes particular care in carving the tip of the nose, which flows to a delicate point, highlighting his skill. The bows are dressed in a rich, luminous finish, accentuating the crisp feel of their work. The workmanship of the heads are first-class, with clean, straight lines. Their bows, especially seen in the design of their heads, are modern reinterpretations of the great master, each one demonstrating an expressive flair rooted in Tourte’s vision, while simultaneously sculpting a certain American individuality.

The frogs were also made using Tourte as inspiration. Lohberg and Kovanda especially show a similar affinity in the work of their frogs. Known in their day as master copyists – reproduction frogs of both men can be found in the Roda book – a thin band of end-grain ebony is used between the mother-of-pearl eye and a thick gold ring. None of the makers are stingey in their use of metal. Halvarson uses large, conspicuous pins in the frog and button, whereas Kovanda and Lohberg place three small pins on the heel of the frog, in the Tourte style. Lohberg takes particular pains in covering up the pins in his frog and button.

This trio was known mostly within in the borders of their country, and American musicians used their bows in recording studios, top-tier orchestras, and professorships. Like many American luthiers, they did not come from a musical background, nor did they come from a family of luthiers. They did, however, all have a background in carpentry, and that certainly informed their abilities as repairmen and bow makers. They were all trained in the Lewis workshop and would have benefited enormously by the opportunities in studying superb examples and in working alongside Carl Becker Sr. Kovanda worked there for about 25 years; Lohberg for over 30 years; Halvarson for only 5 years, but went into partnership with William Myers, who had been there for about 15 years. The three makers maintained contact and undoubtedly discussed bow making and technique during their entire working careers. Above all, these three bow makers formed the first American bow ‘school’, which was forged in the workshops of William Lewis & Son and enjoyed by musicians throughout the country.