Cello Month ~ March 2015

Emmanuel is the son of Montreal bow maker Louis Begin. After working with his father, Emmanuel continued his training in France with Yannick Le Canu and has now returned to Montreal. Both professional players and students have enjoyed the beautiful sound they can produce and how well they feel to play.

He has won several recognitions from the Violin Society of America, including Certificates of Merit for his violin and cello bows in 2010. Awards and special mentions: Certificate of Merit for violin and cello bow to the Violin Society of America 2010. Certificate of Merit for violin and viola bow and a gold medal for cello bow to the Violin Society of America in 2012.

Éric Gagné worked for several years at Blaise Emmelin, first as an apprentice and then as an assistant. He then worked at Maison Bernard for Pierre Guillaume in Brussels, where he also trained in the art of bow restoration.  He now has a workshop in Montreal where he makes his bows; he also works with the Wilder and Davis workshop where he restores and sells bows throughout Canada.

After receiving a Bachelor of Music degree in double bass performance and music theory, Eric began studying the craft of bow making with Jon Crumrine in Atlanta and Reid Hudson in British Columbia. He furthered his studies with Jerry Pasewicz, Rodney Mohr, and David Orlin at the Oberlin College Bow Makers Workshops in Ohio, paying significant attention to advanced restoration.

At the Oberlin workshops, Eric learned traditional French techniques from Stephane Thomachot and Eric Grandchamp, as well as English and German techniques from Tim Baker and Klaus Grunke, respectively.

Eric joined the staff of Reuning & Son Violins in October 2002 to lead the bow repair and restoration department. The inspiration he takes from the graceful and elegant models of Pajeot, Simon, and Maline is apparent in his own bows, which musicians admire—and purchase—for the beautiful tone they produce.

Eric is a member of the American Federation of Violin and Bow Makers and the Violin Society of America. He has won several Certificates of Merit for Workmanship at various VSA and International Society of Bassists competitions.

A world renowned bow maker, Georges Tepho studied with Bernard Ouchard and Roger Lotte at the Mirecourt School. He has participated in expositions in Paris, Frankfurt, and Tokyo, as well as in numerous competitions.

He currently works at his shop in Quimper, France, perfecting his craft and mentoring up-and-coming bow makers. Tepho makes his own model of bow, influenced by the elegance of 19th century French bow making, as well as models inspired by the bows of Tourte and Pajeot.

John Norwood Lee, a bow maker from Chicago, came across trouble in China in the 1990s. Jianfeng Lee who had just retired from the army helped John solve the problem and became John’s student. Jianfeng Lee worked for John until 2007. Now Jianfeng is a member of the Violin Society of America (VSA) and also a member of the Violin Society of China. He lives in Ningbo, a coast city in east China. He has been awarded prizes in many bow making competitions held in various places. Many professional players and students from musical schools play on stages all over the world with his bows.

Jianfeng loves collecting pernambuco, wood for making bows. Sometimes he travels from one end of the earth to another just to collect a few wonderful sticks for making bows. Jianfeng also loves communicating with musicians to learn personal requirements of different players and different music groups. He specializes in making bows with different performances to meet the needs for solo players, orchestra players, quartet players and to meet the needs for different musical styles.

John Aniano began bowmaking in 1977 at age 17.  His violin teacher at the time, Francine Nadeau Walsh allowed him to take detailed measurements and tracings of her violin bows. He purchased some pernambuco blanks and went to work. His early bows were made by essentially self-taught methods.

After high school, he enrolled in the Industrial Arts program at Montclair University and made several bows for independent study credits. It was at this time that Aniano contacted William Salchow to ask about "proper" bowmaking methods.  At his urging, Aniano began to make regular Saturday morning visits to his New York City shop to get pointers on how bows were made and repaired. After completing his college studies and graduating in December 1981, Aniano began working for Mr. Salchow as a full-time employee. He worked there until December 1983 and continued to make bows until he attended Rutgers University where he studied ceramic engineering.

After graduating from Rutgers, Aniano spent several years working for firms involved with fiber optics and telecommunications, although he continued to be an avid woodworker. Because of the downturn in the telecommunications industry, he eventually chose to return to bowmaking and has attended the Oberlin Bowmaker Workshops held from 2002 through 2011.

Jon Crumrine began playing violin at age 4. He holds a degree in viola performance from the University of Michigan. While a student and later as an orchestral musician, Jon enjoyed spending time in violin shops learning more about instruments and bows. This curiosity led him to a sales position with Shar Products in Ann Arbor.

In 1992, Jon began working on bows with Jerry Pasewicz in Ann Arbor. He then attended the Violin Craftsmanship Institute at the University of New Hampshire where he studied with Lynn Hannings and George Rubino. This training led him to a position at Williams Gengakki Violins in Atlanta, and while there he commenced a series of visits to Munich, Germany, to study with Bogenmachermeister Markus Wörz. Jon has also spent numerous summers participating in the Oberlin College Bow Makers Workshop where he worked with French master, Jean Grunberger, and other top American bow makers.

In 2000, Jon moved to the Boston area to become the head of the bow department at Reuning & Son Violins and then worked as the Sales Manager at Johnson String Instrument. In May 2011, Jon joined Carriage House Violins where he is available for bow rehairing, repair, and restoration.

Jon seeks out the finest materials available, paying particular attention to the quality, beauty, and age of the Pernambuco wood he prefers. He blends elements of the classic French aesthetic with original ideas to emphasize sound and playability.

Norwegian-born Ole Kanestrom resides in Port Townsend, Washington, a town affectionately dubbed as the “Mirecourt of American Bowmaking” where he has practiced his craft since 1996. Musicians at the top of their game seek Kanestrom bows for their elegant style, sound, and playability.

Kanestrom studied bowmaking under Charles Espey and continued his education in restoration and conservation of historically significant bows with former shop-mate Paul Siefried. He passed his AFVM Journeyman exam in 2004 and is a member of the American Federation of Violin and Bowmakers.

Born in 1960, Pascal Camurat trained as violin maker in Mittenwald and as bow maker in Paris. Since then, his career has gradually become enriched in all facets of the music business: manufacturing of instruments and bows, repairing, restoration, trading of instruments and expertise.

Having made his first bow in Paul Siegfried’s shop in Los Angeles in 1984, he completed his bow training with Stephane Thomachot. While in LA, he completed his training in restoration of instruments with internships at Hans Weisshaar (Los Angeles, 1985) and in the studio of Charles Beare (London, 1987) after which he succeeded his father Jacques Camurat in Paris for 10 years with his brother Bernard.

His professional activities have led him to become General Secretary of the International Society of Violin and Bow Makers, as well as Chairman of the Association of Violin and Bow Makers of France. Today, he has a studio in Montpellier where he makes fine violins and bows.

Pierre-Yves Fuchs was born in Lausanne, Switzerland. As a child he played the violin. As an adult he trained as a luthier in Brienz and as a repairer with Weinstein in Tel Aviv, before studying bow making with Gilles Duhaut, Pierre Guillaume and Benoit Rolland. In 1997 he established his own company.

He has won many important prizes for his bow making, including a Gold Medal each for his violin, viola, cello and bass bows in the Violin Society of America competition in 2004.

His style is inspired by Mirecourter, Pecatte, Maire and Pajeot. The dark wood he uses for his bow sticks is a reminder of these masters.

Robert Morrow resides in the bow makers’ capital of the world: Port Townsend, Washington. He began his studies as a bow maker through an apprenticeship with Charles Espey, who pushed him to work at the level of someone who had spent many more years at the bench than he had at the time. Before he became a bow maker, Morrow was a part of a community of Northwest Coast Native American artists and was known for his wood carving on traditional art such as totem poles and masks, which he credits for training his eye in wood working.

He is influenced by the classic French makers – Tourte, Pajeot and Lupot – but he approaches his bows with his own style as well, seeking to make bows that are even from frog to tip with the perfect amount of tension to the bow hair.

He has won three Violin Society of America competition Gold Medals for his bows, putting him at ‘hors concours’ status, meaning that the he is no longer able to compete in VSA competitions.

Rodney is a graduate of the Kenneth Warren & Son School of Violin Making (now known as the Chicago School of Violin Making). After graduation Rodney worked for bowmaker John Norwood Lee in Chicago.  He has been active in bow making for over 25 years and is a member of the American Federation of Violin and Bow Makers where he earned the degree of Master of Bow Making. He has produced more than 800 bows and has restored a countless number of fine bows.

As Co-Director of the VSA Oberlin Bow Restoration Workshop, Rodney has taught many students the fine art of repair and restoration. He has been a guest instructor at the North Bennett Street School in Boston and given demonstrations at the Chicago School of Violin Making.

Rodney has won 20 awards in international competitions.  After winning his third gold medal with the Violin society of America, he is no longer eligible to compete and has earned the title of Hors’ Concours. He was awarded his Hors’ Concours Certificate at the 19th Violin Society Competition and Convention in Cleveland, OH on November 11, 2010.  Rodney served as a bow workmanship judge for the VSA International Competition in Portland, Oregon in 2008.  In 1999, he received third prize for a bass bow in the 2nd Concours International de Paris.

Rodney has recently served as President of the Violin Society of America during the 2012 competition and convention in Cleveland, Ohio and is past president of the American Federation of Violin and Bow Makers.

Steven Beckley was born in Menlo Park California in 1955. Always tinkering, he had an early fascination for musical instruments and working with wood. At the age of nineteen he began professionally repairing fretted instruments. As his skills unfolded and grew, he expanded his business to the restoring, repairing and construction of classical guitars.

In 1981 He began making bows under the tutelage of William Salchow. His instruction with Mr. Salchow continued through 1983. From 1982 until 1986 he worked for Boyd Poulsen where he was given additional instruction in bow repair and restoration. He continued to make bows from scratch on his nights and days off. In 1986 Mr. Beckley began building bows full time at his shop in Los Altos, California dedicating most of his time to making bows for the wholesale trade. In 1989 He earned his Journeyman's Degree from the American Federation of Violin and Bow Makers.

In 1999 Steve Beckley and his wife Meryl moved to the scenic Mendocino coast in Northern California. After completing the construction of their home and shop, Meryl has taken on most of the day to day running of the supply business www.BowWorks.com, which caters to other makers who work on bows and need the necessary supplies, materials and information to achieve their goals. This tranquil setting has allowed Mr. Beckley to concentrate on the making of bows.