18/08/2026
A continuation of my last reel on innovators in violin making! Since by accident I didn't include women in my previous one (my deepest apologies), here is a list showcasing a small selection of the amazing female talent in our craft. Some more known, some perhaps less known, all innovative!
1. Carleen Hutchins, in my opinion one of the greatest innovators of the past century, and responsible for starting a movement of science based research in lutherie.
2. Claudia Fritz, the other most influential person for our craft of the last decades. Her research proving contemporary instruments to be as good as the best old instruments were an absolute eye-opener for the world!
3. Emma Hardy , using local materials and inspired by nature, her instruments are true works of art. Each instrument personal, unique, and telling a story!
4. Ruth Obermayer , combines the traditional craft with acoustic research and locally inspired artisanal touches.
5. Paris Andrew , makes her own unique instruments like her recent deer cello and a daring advocate to 'cut the Stradivari cord'. I fully agree!
In history the role of women in our craft has been underappreciated, since the name of the workshop/label was almost always exclusively male. Yet we know that many instrument making families included women working for their respective husband/father/... So who knows, perhaps some historic instruments would need a different label?
Luckily times have changed and now we know how many women there are at the top of our craft. And there are so many!!!
I wanted to focus on living makers, but could not possibly exclude Carleen Hutchins, so she deserves an exception I think! And yes Claudia Fritz is a researcher, not a maker, but she did cut a violin bridge once 😉 and is the catalyst of so much innovation that she deserves a spot as well!
Who else should we add to the list?
