Located in the middle of an old village, between agricultural activities and traditional franconian style cottages, you can find the settlement of violin-makers. Inside a beautiful restored country house built from sandstone, Walter Mahr set up his own workshop.
The tradition of making fine stringed instruments was handed down from his mother to the franconian by birth. His grandfather was mandolin-maker, which is well known as a traditional settlement for instrument-makers. Also his great grandfather was a violin- maker. Even as a young boy, Walter Mahr showed the propensity for handcraftmanship and so the choice of training as a violin-maker was rather obvious. After three years of apprenticeship, Walter Mahr graduated 1983 at the chamber of handlcrafts as the top of his class.
Then he spend some years as journeyman with different masters of violin-making. In 1990 Walter Mahr passed his trade examination at the chamber of handIcrafts in Nürnberg and subsequently founded his own workshop.
Since January 2000 Walter Mahr is been a State-Certified Master for making stringed instruments. His expert opinion has been sought by Law-Courts and insurance companies.
Walter Mahr manufactures out violins, violas, celli and baroqueinstruments in all sizes.
He offers in a wide range of instruments, starting with superior instruments for novice players with a well grained (textured) solid maple back, spruce wood top and ebony fittings, up to top line masterpieces constructed from marvellous textured (grained) maple, selected and well seasoned tonal wood (materials), lacquered each by hand with spirit- or oil-varnish.
Of course, Walter Mahr will also fulfill special wishes in regard to materials, manufacturing prosesses and design. A special field for Walter Mahr are sonorical improvements.
For this, Walter Mahr cultivates good relations with musicians from different categories. His masterpieces are all made of tonal wood which has been carefully seasoned for 20 and up to 100 years. Sometimes the good connections of his families to other old violin-makers are great help to find the exact required material.
But also the mixture (composition) of his oil- or spirit- varnish can vary according to the desired (expected) tonal properties (qualities).
The customers of our young violin-maker are vendors all over Germany, but his masterpieces and students instruments are also sold in Asia, USA and the rest of the world.
As a Publicly Commissioned and Sworn Specialist for Violin-Making (the first person to hold such a title in Northern Bavaria) he has already produced several expert reports, made several valuations and been employed as an impartial expert by insurance companies and courts.
Concerning high standards, the term "Made in Germany" is quite decisive for customers in whole world.
"The clientele of old musicans is very hard to reach", says Walter Mahr "because they strongly rely to their known violin-makers". Confidence is an unwritten law in the relation between musicans and the maker of his instruments. "But I get it, step by step!"
The workshop of Walter Mahr will continue to be traditional handcraftmanship workshop even in the future. It is time to engage an apprentice and perhaps to employ a journeyman.
The evolution of Bubenreuth into a community of violinmaker
Bubenreuth was probably founded in the first half of the eleventhcentury. This was during the time where woodclearings were headed east alongside the river Regnitz through the forest by royal commisioners. The name Bubenreuth (Bubenrode) means "The clearing of Bubo" ("Rodung" is the german word for clearing) which refers to a man named Bubo who has settled down here and was clearing the woodlands.
The first documented mention about Bubenreuth bears the date of the "24th of November 1243".
Bubenreuth which kept its rural character through all of the past centuries and whose center was originally formed by two farms held in fee, was owned by Baron Eyb. Later it belongs to the Lords "Volckamer von Kirchensittenbach" (Scherleshof) and the Lord of the castle Rathsberg (Schmiedelhof). Over all of this times, Bubenreuth was part of the principality Bayreuth.
Bubenreuth's population has grown from 1939 (415 inhabitants) to 1949 (695 inhabitants).The majority of its residentss were agricultural occupied or were working in the near city of Erlangen.
A fundamental change in the communities infrastucture happend after WorldWar2. In the years 1949/1950 a lot of violinmakers from the Egerland (most of them originated in Sch鰊bach) were colonized here, after their settlement was refused in Mittenwald (due to the fear of rivalery). Their reunification and reorganisation was completed in the years 1954/55. 1500 expelled violinmakers have been settled down here in Bubenreuth. The art of making musical instruments was bursting into new life. Now, Bubenreuth as a place for making violins was born.
Today, Bubenreuth is in the lead of manufacturing stringed and plucked instruments all over Germany. Their export in countries all over the world bears witness to the extraordinary superb quality which is typical for instruments made by the violinmaker Walter Mahr.
His workshop is producing excellent solo and concert instruments in singlepiece work. Walter Mahr is also well known for his capability of repairing and valuating old precious instruments of the 17th-20th century.
Up to 1999, Bubenreuth has grown into a imposing village with roundabout 4500 citizens.
0 Beginner-Set
The Set included: Violin, Bow, Case, Shoulder rest, Rosin
I Lightly flamed solid maple, spruce top, hand-varnished, ebony fittings
II Flamed maple, spruce top, hand-varnished, rosewood fittings
III Well flamed maple, evenly textured spruce top, clean workmanship
IV Selected tonewood, model according to your specifications, with ebony, rosewood or boxwood fittings
V Beautiful, well seasoned maple and spruce top, hand-varnished with oil or spirit varnish, very clean workmanship
VI Exquisitely flamed maple, spruce top, tonewood seasoned for thirty years or longer - custom-made exclusively by hand
All instruments you can standardize varnish: italian old imitation, german old imitation or standard
Kind of wood: flamed maple, birdeye-maple, slab-cut maple, pappelwood and others
Walter Mahr Violin Germany Old Imation: MW0
Model: MWO
Description: Germany Old Imation. Lightly flamed solid maple, spruce top. hand-vanish. ebony fitting
c/w hard case, bow and rosin
Rating: ******
Price: call for price
Walter Mahr Violin Germany Old Imation: MWI
Model: MWI
Description: Germany Old Imation. Lightly flamed solid maple, spruce top. hand-vanish. ebony fitting
c/w hard case, bow and rosin
Rating: ******
Price: call for price
Walter Mahr Violin Italy Old Imation: MWII
Model: MWII
Description: Italy Old Imation. Flamed maple, spruce top, hand-vanished. rosewood fitting
c/w hard case, bow and rosin
Rating: ******
Price: call for price
Walter Mahr Violin Germany Old Imation: MWII IRIS
Model: MWII Iris
Description: Germany Old Imation. Flamed maple, spruce top, hand-vanished. rosewood fitting
c/w hard case, bow and rosin
Rating: ******
Price: call for price
Walter Mahr: MW V
Model: MW V
Decription: Beautiful, well seasoned maple and spruce top, hand-vanish with oilo and spirit vanish, very clean workmanship. Warm overtone, perfect balance sound and tone from string to string.
c/w bow, rosin and case
Rating: *********
Price: Call for the best price