Luthier

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An engraver's impression of Antonio Stradivari examining an instrument.

A luthier or violin maker is a person who builds or repairs stringed instruments, either bowed or plucked. These include violins, violas, cellos, double basses, guitars of all kinds, lutes, and mandolins.

The French word lutherie, used in both French and English, refers to the art of constructing string instruments. The name luthier harkens back to early lute-makers. In the USA, the term "luthier" is only rarely used even by specialists and not generally known, and the term "violin maker" is the [usual term] for makers of all members of the violin family and string basses. It is usual to differentiate in US English between violin makers and makers of other string instruments like guitars, lutes, etc.

Well-known luthiers

Violins, violas, cellos, basses, and bows

Italian

• the Amati family
• Tomaso Balestrieri
• Bergonzi
• Nicolò Gagliano
• Gasparo da Salò
• Matteo Goffriller
• Giovanni Battista Guadagnini
• the Guarneri family
• Domenico Montagnana
• Desiderio Quercetani
• Stefano Scarampella
• Antonio Stradivari
• Carlo Giuseppe Testore
• Sergio Peresson
• Vincenzo Rugeri

French

• Gustave Bernardel
• Charles Collin-Mezin, Jr.
• Charles Jean Baptiste Collin-Mezin
• Gasparo Duiffopruggar
• Nicolas Lupot
• Etienne Vatelot
• Jean Baptiste Vuillaume and family
• [Gauthier Louppe]

Hungarian

• Otto Erdesz

German

• the Klotz family
• Karl Hermann (Andreas Morelli)

American

• Scott Cao
• Brian Skarstad
• R.J. Malloy
• W. Wilkanowski

Austrian

• Jacob Stainer
• David Tecchler
• Leopold Widhalm

Swiss

• Johannes Finkel (bows)

Australian

• Lawrence O'Neill (guitar)

Guitars

Classical guitars

Non-classical guitars and other plucked instruments

• Tom Anderson [Tom Anderson Guitarworks]
• John Arnold
• Matthew John Bascetta
• Bob Benedetto
• Paul Bigsby
• Mark Blanchard
• Dana Bourgeois
• Jack Briggs
• Rob Bustos (Paragon Guitars)
• Fred Carlson
• Wayne Charvel
• Bill Collings
• John D'Angelico
• James D'Aquisto
• Jol Dantzig (Hamer Guitars)
• The Dopyera Brothers
• Lynn Dudenbostel
• Richard Echeverria
• Lynn Ellsworth
• Leo Fender
• Harry Fleishman
• Celso Freire - [Luthier Online!]
• Orville Gibson
• Friedrich Gretsch
• Arthur Hansel
• John Kingslight
• Joseph Kovacic - founder of Lado Guitars
• Mark Lacey
• Del Langejans
• Marty Lanham
• Harvey Leach
• Lloyd Loar
• George Lowden
• Randy Lucas
• Lance McCollum
• Daniel McKenna Jr.
• Linda Manzer
• Christian Frederick Martin
• Godefroy Maruejouls
• Bill and Reg May (the Maton company)
• Richard Mermer
• Kari Nieminen (Versoul)
• Monty Novotny
• Paul Languedoc
• Les Paul
• Bozo Podunavac
• Mario Proulx
• Bernardo Chavez Rico - founder of B.C. Rich
• Paul Reed Smith
• David Rouse
• Stephen Sedgwick
• Ned Steinberger
• Elmer Stromberg and his father Charles Stromberg
• Bob Taylor (luthier)
• Carl Thompson
• Ron Thorn
• Rick Turner
• David Whiteman
• W. Wilkanowski
• Kathy Wingert
• Dean Zalinsky

Suggested reading for the amateur luthier

• Guitarmaking: Tradition and Technology by Cumpiano and Natelson
• Build your own Acoustic Guitar by Jonathan Kinkead
• Steel String Guitar Construction by Irving Sloan
• Classic Guitar Construction by Irving Sloane
• Making an Archtop Guitar by Bob Benedetto
• Big Red Books of American Lutherie by the Guild of American Luthiers
• Lutherie Tools edited by Cindy Burton and Tim Olsen
• Making Master Guitars by Roy Courtnall
• Classic Guitar Making by Arthur E. Overholtzer (Out of Print)
• Clapton's Guitar by Allen St. John

External links

Luthier supplies

• [Stewart MacDonald USA]
• [Luthier Mercantile International USA]
• [Madinter Spain]
• [Luthimate France]
• [Warmoth USA]

Other sites of interest

• [Luthier Classical Guitar and Flamenco Guitars] Luthier Music Corp. Sole manufacturer of luthier strings
• [American Federation of Violin and Bow Makers]
• [Guild of American Luthiers] Stringed-instrument builders, primarily Guitar, violin, and mandolin.
• [Classical Guitar Magazine] The world's only monthly magazine dedicated to the classical guitar
• [Liutaio Mottola Lutherie Info Site - Information and plans for builders of stringed musical instruments]
• [The Online Dictionary of Violin and Bow Makers]
• [The Violin Site - Violin Making]
• [The history of the violin] - A quick overview about making and history of the violin, including answers to questions such us "Why old master instruments sound so good"
• [www.frets.com - Everything you should know about working on an instrument]
• [Musical Instrument Makers Forum]
• [Luthier Joseph Bandy Website] - Forum where luthier will answer your questions about stringed instrument building and repair
• [Project Guitar]
• [UK Guitar Builder's Forum]
• [The Luthier Directory]
• [Cozio.com - A database of many old Italian instruments]
• [www.wardviolins.com - home of Roderick R Ward the highly recommended contemporary English violin, viola and cello maker]
• [Clemens Violins - A contemporary American maker of fine violins]
• [Paul N. Bryant - A contemporary English maker of double basses, 'cellos, and violas]
• [Kay Edgecumbe, New Zealand luthier]
• [Luthier woods]
• [Contemporary Guitar Builders and Repairers] - A master list of luthiers (primarily guitar builders and repairpersons). The list--hosted by [HandCraft Guitars]--is frequently updated.
• [Frédéric Becker - A contemporary French maker of fine violins, sales of violins]
• [Bryan Galloup, luthier, also has luthiers' school]
• [Online Dictionary of Violin and Bow Makers]
• [Violin Makers of the Amati Family]
• [Harp Guitars]

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