Britain's Top Hundred Makers

The legacy of British making has meant that there have been extremely fine instruments on one hand, but also many instruments that were made with practicality in mind and finally those made by amateurs and eccentrics. I love every element of British making, and the diversity is part of what it makes such a rewarding field to understand, and for that reason I wanted to include as many makers as possible, even those right at the fringe of violin making as an art form.

However, at the core of British making is approximately one hundred makers who operated at the top of their profession, and whose instruments provide compelling opportunities for professional musicians. This page is a shortcut to discovering who the makers are who I respect the most. There aren't necessarily 100 on the page, and undoubtedly I will have overlooked some of the important ones, but by providing a list of this sort, it should be helpful to users of this website in establishing what is valuable and sought after. 

BOW MAKERS

Allen, Samuel

Bultitude, Arthur

Dodd, John 

Dodd, James

Panormo, Louis

Tubbs, Alfred

Tubbs, James

Tubbs, Thomas

Tubbs, William

Watson, William

HILL BOW MAKERS

Baily, Leslie
Barnes, Arthur
Bishop, Edgar
Bultitude, Arthur
Copley, Arthur
Johnson, William
Leeson, Albert
Leggatt, Charles
Napier, Frank
Napier, William
Retford, William C
Retford, William R
Scarbrow, Arthur
Watson, William
Yeoman, Sydney



         

VIOLIN, VIOLA & CELLO MAKERS

A

Aireton, Edmund (I)

Aireton, Edmund (II)

Ardern, Job

B

Baker, William

Banks, Benjamin

Banks, James & Henry

Barrett, John

Betts, John

Betts, Arthur
Betts, Arthur and John

Blair, John

Boullangier, Charles

C

Cahusac, Thomas

Carter, John

Chanot, George
Chanot, Frederick William

Craske, George

Cross, Nathaniel
Cross, William

Collingwood, Joseph

Cuthbert, Robert

D

Day, John

Delaney

Dodd, Thomas

Duke, Richard (I)
Duke, Richard (II)

E

F

Fendt, Bernhard Simon (I)
Fendt, Bernhard Simon (II)

Fendt, Jacob

Ford, Jacob

Forster, Andrew
Forster, William (I)
Forster, William (II) "Old Forster" / "Royal Forster"
Forster, William (III) "Young Forster"
Forster, William (IV)
Forster, Simon Andrew

Foster, William 

Furber, David
Furber, John
Furber, Matthew

G

Gilkes, Samuel

Grice, John

H

Hardie, Matthew
Hardie, Thomas

Hare, Elizabeth
Hare, John

Harris, Charles (I)
Harris, Charles (II)

Hesketh, Thomas Earle

Hill, Henry Locked
Hill, Joseph
Hill, Lockey
Hill, William Ebsworth
Hill, W.E. & Sons (company)

Hudson, George Wulme

I

J

Jay, Henry

Johnson, John

K

Kennedy, Thomas

L

Langonet..

Lewis, Edward (I & II)

Longman & Broderip

Lott, John Frederick Lott (I)
Lott, John Frederick Lott (II) "Jack Lott"

Luff, William

M

Marshall, John

Merlin, John Joseph
Morrison, John

N

Norman, Barak

O

P

Panormo, George 

Panormo, Joseph 

Panormo, Vincenzo

Pamphilon, Edward

Parker, Daniel 

Perry, Thomas 

Perry & Wilkinson

Thomas Powell

Prior, William

Q

-

R

Rayman, Jacob

Richardson, Arthur

Ringwood, William

Romney, George

S

Scott, Joseph

Sexton, John

Stirrat, David

Smith, Thomas

T

Thompson, Robert

Tobin, Richard

U

Urquhart, Thomas

V

Voller, William, Charles & Alfred 

W

Wamsley, Peter

Wise, Christoper

Withers, Edward