Top Modern Violin Makers Honored in the 2024 Violin Society of America Competition

November 27, 2024, 4:01 AM · Top modern violin makers - and viola, cello, bass and bow makers - from around the world were recognized for their excellence at the Violin Society of America's biennial International Competition, which took place in conjunction with the VSA's convention, held Nov . 19-22 in Indianapolis, Ind. If you are interested in learning about today's top luthiers, a good place to start would be to research the list of winners - see below.

The VSA Competition was the largest to date, with judges examining 518 instruments, including 204 violins, 104 violas, 62 cellos and 12 double basses, plus 34 quartets. There were also 82 bows, including 27 violin, 17 viola, 29 cello and 9 double bass bows.

VSA Competition. Photo by A.J. Mast.

It took place as the VSA celebrated its 50th anniversary with a convention that attracted more than 400 attendees and included dozens of presentations, demonstrations and exhibits. A special Chamber Ensemble was convened to play recently-made instruments and bows from the VSA New Instrument Exhibit, which included instruments and bows by more than 80 makers. Separately, a Rare Instrument Exhibit featured instruments made by the Amati family.

The event concluded on Friday with a recital by violinist Augustin Hadelich at the Indiana Landmarks Center, given in partnership with the International Violin Competition of Indianapolis.

For the VSA International Competition, this year's Artisan Judges included Guy Harrison, Ulrich Hinsberger and Melina Polizzi for violin; Kelvin Scott, Jason Viseltear and Wendy Moes for viola; Frank Ravatin, Mira Gruszow and Julie Reed-Yeboah for cello; Mario Lamarre, Bill Lakeberg and David Wiebe for double bass; and Morgan Andersen, Yannick Le Canu and Emmanuel Begin for bows.

Tone Judges included Cristian Fatu, Richard Lin and Sandy Yamamoto for violin; Jordan Bak, Yu Jin and Zhanbo Vheng for viola; Austin Huntington, Mihail Jojatu and Anna Clift for cello; Rachel Calin, Sharif Ibrahim and David Murray for bass; and Pacifica Quartet members Sirnin Ganatra, Austin Hartman, Mark Holloway and Brandon Vamos; and listening judge Emilio Colón.

Here is a list of the award-winning luthiers:

VIOLIN

Silver Medal for Artisanship
Akop Azoyan
Paul Belin

Silver Medal for Tone
Fabienne Gauchet
Maximilian Franke & Elisabeth Franke
Peter Bingen
Philip Ihle & Mathieu Fourrier

Bronze Medal
Milos Seyda

Certificate of Merit for Artisanship
Piotr Pielaszek
Viateur Roy

Certificate of Merit for Tone
Andrew Ryan
Artur Friedhoff
Elià Fabré & Aogu Shimasaki
Gabor Draskoczy
John Wright
Jordan Ripstein
Ryan McLaughlin
Vejcheslav Popovski
Xue Wang
Zhongbo Wang
Zhuolin Li

Participants look at the VSA New Instrument Exhibit. Photo by A.J. Mast.

VIOLIN BOW

Gold Medal
Emmanuel Carlier
Victor Bernard

Certificate of Merit
Niall Flemming
Yongmin Na

VIOLA

Gold Medal
Elià Fabré & Aogu Shimasaki

Silver Medal for Artisanship
Jinlong Yang
Lucas Castera

Silver Medal for Tone
Benjamin Molinaro

Certificate of Merit for Artisanship
Bin Li
Boris Haug
Elià Fabré & Aogu Shimasaki
Fabienne Gauchet
Haitao Liu
Pawel Kubacka
Stefano Gibertoni & Valerio Nalin
Xiaoyang Yan

Certificate of Merit for Tone
Eduard Miller
Yan Wang & Xiaolin Xu
Zhiling Liang
Marcin Krupa
Theodore Skreko
Tamás Orsós

VIOLA BOW

Gold Medal
Emmanuel Carlier
Victor Bernard

Certificate of Merit
Lucie Martinie
Niall Flemming
Yongmin Na

CELLO

Silver Medal for Artisanship
Benjamin Molinaro
Noémie Viaud
Viateur Roy

Silver Medal for Tone
Michael Doran

Certificate of Merit for Artisanship
Krzysztof Krupa
Marcin Krupa
Stefano Gibertoni & Valerio Nalin

Certificate of Merit for Tone
Artur Friedhoff
Christian Pedersen & Paul Hart
Elià Fabré & Aogu Shimasaki
Jeffrey Muller
John Dailey
John Wright
Jun Hong Wang
Yi Huan Wang

CELLO BOW

Gold Medal
Emmanuel Carlier
Victor Bernard

Certificate of Merit
Éric Gagné
Joséphine Thomachot
Lucie Martinie
Yongmin Na

BASS

Bronze Medal
Christian Pedersen & Paul Hart
Christopher Savino
Trevor Davis

Certificate of Merit for Artisanship
Colin Shipman
Evan Davenport
Helen McIntosh
Mason Weedman
Oskar Krawiecki

BASS BOW

Gold Medal
Victor Bernard

Certificate of Merit
Michael Gaisbacher

QUARTETS

Double Gold Medal for Tone and Artisanship
Fabienne Gauchet

Gold Medal
Stefano Gibertoni & Valerio Nalin

Silver Medal for Artisanship
Noémie Viaud

Silver Medal for Tone
Artur Friedhoff
Elià Fabré & Aogu Shimasaki
Zhiling Liang

Certificate of Merit for Artisanship
Benjamin Molinaro
Jinlong Yang
Viateur Roy

Certificate of Merit for Tone
Jin Wook Hong
Jun Hong Wang
Theodore Skreko
Yi Huan Wang
Yufan Chen & Huo Rong Jiang

Founded in 1974, The Violin Society of America is a non-profit organization that promotes the art and science of making, repairing and preserving stringed musical instruments and their bows. The VSA holds events, publishes journals, and awards scholarships and grants to expand the field of lutherie. Membership is open to all and includes over 1,200 makers, dealers, players and enthusiasts.

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Top Modern Violin Makers Honored in the 2024 Violin Society of America Competition

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