Samuel Zygmuntowicz

Samuel Zygmuntowicz
Born(1956-11-24)24 November 1956
Philadelphia
OccupationViolinmaker
InstrumentViolin

Samuel Zygmuntowicz (born 1956) is a contemporary luthier and is widely regarded as one of the finest violin makers of his generation.[1] He began his instrument making training at age 13, and studied making and restoration under Peter Prier, Carl Becker[2] and René Morel.[3] Since 1985 he has been based in Brooklyn, New York. His early work demonstrates expert skill as a copyist of classic instruments. Later work includes personal models informed by intensive advanced research. Findings from this research have been published in numerous print and digital media. Zygmuntowicz is an active fiddler, playing with several folk music groups. His playing can be heard on the recordings Grand Picnic, and Jump When the Trumpets Blow.

Zygmuntowicz was born in Philadelphia to Jewish Holocaust survivors from Poland. He is a graduate of the Violin Making School of America in Salt Lake City (1976–80) during which time he also worked for Carl Becker.[4] In 1980, a Becker-style Stradivari violin copy made by Zygmuntowicz won two gold medals - for violin workmanship and tone - at the Violin Society of America Competition.[5] The same year, Zygmuntowicz began five years of additional training in the restoration workshop of Jacques Français Rare Violins, Inc. and René A. Morel.[6] Isaac Stern owned two Zygmuntowicz violins.[6] After Stern died in 2001, both violins were sold at a Tarisio auction in 2003, each violin surpassing the previous record for the highest price paid for a string instrument by a living maker at auction, until the record was broken in October 2013.[7]

His clients include Leila Josefowicz, Yo-Yo Ma, David Finckel, Cho-Liang Lin, Maxim Vengerov, Joshua Bell, Dylana Jenson, Matthew Lipman and the Emerson String Quartet.[8] In their 2008 recording of Bach fugues, the Emerson String Quartet all played Zygmuntowicz instruments. The Violinmaker, a book written by John Marchese, chronicles the making of a violin for Emerson String Quartet violinist Eugene Drucker.[9]

  1. ^ "4 Prominent American Violin Makers You Should Know | MyLuthier Blog". www.myluthier.co. Retrieved 18 August 2022.
  2. ^ "Chicago-based violin maker and restorer had a 75-year career". The Strad. 31 January 2013. Archived from the original on 10 August 2017. Retrieved 14 September 2017.
  3. ^ Zygmuntowicz, Samuel (February 2012). "Rene Morel 1932-2011". The Strad.
  4. ^ Zygmuntowicz, Samuel (April 2017). "How to Talk To Your Violin Maker". Strings Magazine.
  5. ^ "Previous Conventions & Competitions". Violin Society of America. Retrieved 19 October 2018.
  6. ^ a b Cutts, Chloe (January 2017). "Sound Sculptor". The Strad.
  7. ^ Schrader, Erin (February 2006). "A Confluence of Confluences". String Letter Publishing. Archived from the original on 12 November 2006. Retrieved 17 December 2007.
  8. ^ Schrader, Erin (February 2006). "Samuel Zygmuntowicz Considers the Timing of Gluey". String Letter Publishing. Archived from the original on 30 November 2011. Retrieved 14 November 2014.
  9. ^ Marchese, John (2007). The Violin Maker. New York: Harper Collins. ISBN 978-0-06-001267-0.