20 years of experience

Repair and restoration of violins, violas and cellos

 

At the violin making workshop Lämmle I perform repairs and restorations on all string instruments and bows. Care and accuracy are very important to me. It usually takes a detailed consultation with a cost estimate before I begin repair.

 

By participation in various workshops before starting my own, I have gotten to know many ways of working and restoration techniques. Trainings, courses and exchange with colleagues are of utmost importance to me.

 

 

Care

Have your instrument checked regularly

 

Changes to the instrument happen insidiously: The bridge warps, the strings age, the pegs do not move smoothly any more, response is lacking, the sound is matt.

 

The player struggles more and more, and the pleasure of practising decreases.
Often small interventions help to make everything go smooth once again – the fun in playing returns!

 

I can advise you about the possibilities.

 

 

Repair

Repair and failure

Optimizing the playability, removal of varnish damage or abrasions, renewal of sound post and bridge, fitting of the pegs, crack repair after accidents, neckgraft , patches or bushings …

 

No matter the problem, your instrument is in good hands with me.
We will discuss in detail what is necessary.

 

A rental instrument or bow is provided to you for the duration of the repair, free of charge.

 

 

Bow repair

Everything from one source

 

Standard repairs to bows, such as rehairing, silver windings, leather thumb grip, renewal of eye, slide and work on the mechanics are carried out in my workshop.

 

For special orders I work with a Munich bow maker.

 

 

Restoration

Preservation of the original substance

 

This has priority for complex restorations, as well as an approximation to the original state of the instrument. That way improperly performed repairs can be corrected and stabilized by a restoration. The instrument undergoes a visual and sonic upgrade.

 

Upon request, the restoration is documented with photos.

 

 

Restoration of an attic discovery

 

An old lady discovered in her attic a violin that her father had once played as concertmaster in Hamburg. After verification, it was found that it was a master violin from 1920s Berlin.

 

However, the violin was in a terrible state: According to the lady it had survived the bombing of Hamburg, and had just been saved at that time. Then someone had tried a “repair” – some cracks had been glued with two-component adhesive.

 

On the bridge area you can see burn marks, also the missing original varnish in some places. There are also marks with permanent marker…

 

First, the top is removed, the cracks are opened and cleaned.
Particularly the rock-hard, old two component adhesive is a real challenge.

 

It worked, and the crack surfaces look good and clean again.

 

Now provisionally small bricks are glued on, in order to fix the clamps.

 

On both sides

 

So piece by piece the top is assembled again, the cracks are adapted and newly glued. This process takes several weeks.
Since the arching is warped, a correction of the arching is made. Once finished, all the cracks are saved and a new bass bar is placed.

 

Now we come to the retouching.

 

Layer by layer new varnish is put only at the locations at which varnish was missing and adjusted to the color. Again, this takes several weeks. Subsequently, the violin is closed again and set up to play.

After months the project nears its end … once again for comparison

 

Before…

 

And after…

 

 

Individual appointment >>>