COPIED
1 mins

LUTHIER FLORIAN BARTSCH

A peek into lutherie workshops around the world

Lutherie

ALL PHOTOS FLORIAN BARTSCH

Geigenbau Bartsch has been here in Essen, north-west Germany, since 1903, but we’ve only been based in this workshop for the past two and a half years. It’s a result of the pandemic: there used to be a gymnastics studio next door to the shop, but the business fell prey to the lockdowns and folded in 2020. Then the landlord asked if we’d like to take over the space, and after ten minutes of discussion we decided to do it. During Covid, our business dropped by around a third, but it’s now back to pre-pandemic levels; sadly, some of the freelance musicians we used to see regularly have taken other jobs and not returned. At least my father Johann managed to complete a new violin during that time, anyway, with a label that reads: ‘Johann Bartsch Coroniensis’!

The new workshop is 110 sq m, and we still have access to the old one, which you can see through the window. So in total we have 190 sq m, which includes the showroom where we keep most of our instruments. All four of us work in a line in front of the windows, and we all have our preferred chairs; I have the small wooden one, but as I spend as much time in the office as the workshop, perhaps it’s right for me to have the least comfortable seat!

Essen is a musical city with several orchestras, a music college and a high standard of amateur playing. For this reason, most of our work revolves around restoration and repair, but we still make the occasional new instrument as well.

The firm was founded 120 years ago on the other side of the road, but we moved into this building in 1974. Even now, we still get people coming in asking: ‘I had trouble finding you – last time I was here, you were on the other side!’ Maybe it’s a sign of how much our customers are inclined to come back – but at least they must have had a memorable experience last time!

This article appears in September 2023

Go to Page View
This article appears in...
September 2023
Go to Page View
Editor’s letter
September may herald the end of summer, but
Contributors
RAINER MICHAEL COCRON (In Focus, page 85) studied
SOUNDPOST
Letters, emails, online comments
PODCAST OF THE MONTH
www.thestrad.com TOP 3 ONLINE POSTS 1 TwoSet
On the beat
News and events from around the world this month
NEWS IN BRIEF
Julia Fischer receives Bavarian arts award bit.ly/44D2Gc2
OBITUARIES
IRENE SHARP US cellist and pedagogue Irene Sharp
PREMIERE of the MONTH
KING’S COLLEGE: The dark form of Edward King,
COMPETITIONS
Affinity Quartet Mio Imai Christian McBride AFFINITY QUARTET
NEW PRODUCTS
BASS FINGERBOARD First of its kind A new,
Life lessons
The Juilliard Quartet second violinist on the joy and value of collaboration in chamber music
Spirit of camaraderie
The tenth Osaka International Chamber Music Competition and Festa featured not only a dizzying array of high-level music making, but also a sense of mutual support between the competitors, reports Robert Markow
The heights of viola heaven
Carlos María Solare reports from the 48th International Viola Congress, which took place in the tropical surroundings of Salaya, at the western borders of Thailand’s capital city
‘ALL IT TAKES IS ONE’
American violin virtuoso Randall Goosby may only be in his twenties, but he is already deeply committed to passing on his passion for music to the younger generation, as he tells Amanda Holloway
THE DEEP END
Billy Tobenkin, who began playing the cello aged 25, explores his own experience of learning Bach’s Prelude in G major after only a few months, and why he believes it is beneficial for adult learners to dive straight into ‘grown-up’ repertoire – offering tips on how to proceed
FIRST PRINCIPLES
When a professional luthier takes on someone new, the amount of learning needed to become a trusted employee can be overwhelming. Sarah Kluge explains her method of training an apprentice from scratch, including an essential list of dos and don’ts
BRIGHT YOUNG MINDS
Good mental health is crucial to a young musician’s development. Rita Fernandes hears from administrators, counsellors and teachers from leading music schools about what defines a successful conservatoire mental health support system
FAMILY FORTUNES
Zosimo Bergonzi, son of Carlo, was for a time the only luthier active in Cremona – but until recently the string world knew of only one instrument by him. Michel Samson tracks his career through his known works, which now number more than thirty
MARKING A MILESTONE
When Hilary Hahn decided to record Ysaÿe’s Six Solo Violin Sonatas for their centenary year, all the stars seemed to align in terms of both timing and fresh musical insights, as she tells Charlotte Gardner
WHAT’S THE BUZZ?
Finding why an instrument buzzes while playing is a task that bedevils luthiers. Dmitry Tarakanov presents a checklist for the most likely causes
FERDINANDO GARIMBERTI
IN FOCUS
Making an ebony crown
Makers reveal their special techniques
LUTHIER FLORIAN BARTSCH
LOCATION Essen, Germany
With 20 per cent extra
Points of interest to violin and bow makers
SCHUBERT STRING QUARTET IN G MAJOR, FIRST MOVEMENT
MASTERCLASS
Arriving in style
Teaching bow landings with special reference to Mozart
CONCERTS
Your monthly critical round-up of performances, recordings and publications
RECORDINGS
FONDATION GAUTIER CAPUÇON PRESENTS… CHAMINADE Piano Trio no.1
BOOKS
Chaconne Handbook I–II: A Theoretical and Practical Guide
petermach
www.petermach.com
From the ARCHIVE
In his early life, Franz Joseph Haydn supported himself as a violinist. T. Lamb Phipson gives an account of the composer’s formative years
ELDBJØRG HEMSING
The Norwegian violinist has fond memories of hearing Bruch’s First Violin Concerto for the first time – and advice for anyone looking to play it themselves in the future
Looking for back issues?
Browse the Archive >

Previous Article Next Article
September 2023
CONTENTS
Page 92
PAGE VIEW