Streitwolf or warring wolf – what a fabulous name! This family name usually signified a bold or fierce character and was at times taken on to establish a heroic identity – a warrior, a fighter! Born into very modest circumstances, the instrument maker Johann Heinrich Gottlieb STREITWOLF didn’t begin life...
Dresden, Germany was home to many legendary instrument makers. Theodor Karl POPPE was one woodwind specialist. POPPE would become the last name of the owners of a famous Dresden workshop and highly regarded for his oboes, flutes and clarinets. Three famous makers, all born and trained in Adorf, in Vogtland...
Johann Martin Benedikt LEHNER Johann Martin Benedikt LEHNER was born on 11 June 1853. His father Josef and mother Marianna Wilhelmina (née Stobl) were married in Ansbach, Bavaria and had three children – two boys and a girl. Johann Martin Benedikt, or simply Martin Lehner, as he preferred to be known,...
This short story centres on a young man from the small village of Bessancourt in France. He would establish his own workshop in Paris, specialising in the art of making exquisite handmade flutes, ultimately becoming one of the most renowned flute-makers in French history. The business would endure across three...
The HAYNES surname is synonymous with Boehm flute manufacture in the USA. But it’s all somewhat confusing – same name, no relation plus family ties and feuds. The main story is of course one of two brothers… isn’t it? John C. HAYNES (1830-1907) The first Haynes to mention is John C. Haynes...
Who better to make Boehm flutes than a flute maker who received first-hand training from Mr. Boehm himself? Carl Emil Cäsar RITTERSHAUSEN (1852-1927) or just Emil Rittershausen worked at Boehm & Mendler before he set up on his own in Berlin to make Boehm flutes and piccolos. Theobald Boehm described...
The Potters were a celebrated family of woodwind instrument makers and musicians working in the Classical Period in central London. Their story is a fascinating one and the subject of much detailed research specifically about flutes as they were flute specialists. Surviving Potter flutes outnumber by far those of other...
Joseph WALLIS is perhaps best known for joining forces with Carlo Tommaso GIORGI (1856–1953) to produce the Giorgi flute under patent in England. There’s much more to his story though – from the rise to the sad demise of the business he founded. Early life and career Our Joseph Wallis was born...
Imagine an ocarina with exceptional intonation, pure sound quality and design elegance. Then its maker could be the man known as the Stradivarius of ocarinas – Cesare VICINELLI (1841-1920). From kiln man to ocarina maker par excellence, Cesare Vicinelli certainly had an exciting life. But how could that all come...
The name Scherer conjures up images of beautiful instruments, crafted in ivory that were definitely fit for a king. Who were these famous instrument makers and where did they work? The story is a fascinating one, so read on! Back to Butzbach The Scherers were originally thought to have worked out of...
One of the beautiful stories of mythology tells of the way the first musical instrument was suggested. As the story runs, as Orpheus was walking along the shores of the sea, his foot struck a reed that had been cast up by the waters, and had dried in the sun. The reed gave forth a soft, sweet sound as it was made to vibrate by the stroke of Orpheus’ foot and the result was the lyre or hand-harp of the ancient Egyptians. A similar story, and probably the same one adapted to the wind instruments, is that of Lucretius which says that “the simple flute had its origin from the breathing of western winds over certain reeds,” and thus was suggested the musical pipe, or simple tube, which has developed into one of the most fascinating of instruments.
The most elaborate and beautiful collection of flutes ever displayed in the United States, and probably in the world, was seen by visitors to the German section of the Columbian Exposition. The display was that of E. Rittershausen, of Berlin. It was arranged in a large, square glass case, and consisted of flutes made of various woods, of Ebonite and of sterling silver. The Rittershausen flutes are the standard of the world, and have received the indorsement of the best performers upon this favorite instrument. Until 1832 the flute was not regarded as a perfect instrument. In that year Theobald Boehm, of Munich, brought the instrument to such a degree of perfection as to make it one of the most prominent of orchestral and solo instruments. The Rittershausen flutes are made exactly upon the Boehm system, and with such wondrous skill and delicacy of workmanship as to have long since become the favorite of discriminating flutists. It is, in fact, the instrument universally referred to when the Boehm flute is desired.
Like the illustrious Boehm, Mr. Rittershausen is also a virtuoso as well as a manufacturer, devoting his entire faculties to the production of a perfect flute. By his own practical skill he is enabled to appreciate the many details and requirements in the construction of such an instrument as is demanded by the most fastidious virtuoso. This, it will readily be seen, is an invaluable consideration in the selection of a flute by a skilled performer. And in the rapid progress of musical culture of America, there are many lovers of the beautiful instrument who are its admirers and enthusiastic students at the present time.
Living in the musical city of Berlin, Mr. Rittershausen is thrown in personal contact with the greatest flutists of Europe, thereby receiving many suggestions from them that are of incalculable benefit in the manufacture of his instruments. The Rittershausen factory is located at 107 Bergmann street, Berlin, and its product has been famous from the establishing of the present business in 1870. Each year adds largely to the number of Rittenhausen-Boehm flutes in use in America, and they have received the highest testimonials from the most famous composers and performers in this country as well as those abroad. The American representative of the Rittershausen flutes is Mr. Carl Fischer, No. 6 Fourth Avenue, New York.
Musical Instruments at the World’s Columbian Exposition – Frank D. Abbottt, Charles A. Daniell – 1895 – P. 200
