About us

Barbara Gschaider, born in 1971, Dipl. violin maker 

 

Georg Gschaider, born 1971, Dipl. violin maker and  Dipl.Ing. Maschinenbau (mechanical engineering).

 

Why did we become violin makers?

 

Barbara:"When I was 16, I got me first viola and I did fall in love with that instrument immediately. The arching and the varnishing was just so beautiful and it did respond so well I could not stop playing. From this moment I wanted to know how violin sound works."

 

Georg: "I just love music and musical instruments, especially  the beauty of the violin family. The traditional work which has  not change for the last 400 years.  I liked the idea of a "secret" that had to be discovered. I have a much wryer view about that now. But it still kept the appeal."

 

What skills do you need for being a good violin maker?

 

Barbara: "It is very important that you love the material and the craft. Maybe even more important: You must feel comfortable being on your own. If you want to make excellent instruments, you must listen to the wood. So I need a very quite place for work."

 

Georg: "I think it is important to understand how a violin works. The violin vibrates differently in the middle than around the edges. I really have to understand that principle to make a good instrument.

 

What is the "secret" of your instruments?

 

Barbara: "To make our instruments sound like the Italian original we must copy the idea behind the instrument, not the measurements."

 

Georg: "Barbara and I are very different: I am the scientific type of violin maker who analyses how the tone is affected by changes of the instruments.

Barbara sees or hears an instrument with the eyes and ears of a musician. She plays the viola herself, finds what is lacking and changes that.

These different approaches makes us a perfect team."

The story of our workshop

1996:

The tow of us after the Diploma show at the Newark School of Violin Making in England.

We just finished a three year course in violin making and a one year course in baroque instrument making.

Now we are heading for Germany, accompanied by our wonderful five week old baby.

1999:

After having spent some years in the workshops of experienced violin makers, we set up our own business. Our workshop was just a little attic room. Despite the lack of space and money we were really passionate about our work.

 

Today:

Our little baby is an adult now, and our workshop has grown to a 80 m² studio. Our instruments are played in many European countries.