In 1925,Adam Szymanski took his family's 200 year old violin making legacy to America, 90 years later one of his last violin's is found in a garbage can in Montreal.

May 2, 2016 at 12:45 AM · I wonder if this instrument was in fact stolen from a homeless person?

http://www.violinist.com/discussion/response.cfm?ID=27817

May 2, 2016 at 12:59 AM · You can fix the creaky tuners best with PegHeds.

May 2, 2016 at 01:22 AM · I had the same thought about being stolen from the Montréal homeless man, but this violin doesn't even look close to the one he's been seen on a video clip playing before he had his instrument stolen.

May 2, 2016 at 09:56 AM · Its pretty clear from what you've been told that this Szymanski is not the maker, but maybe a later restorer or dealer that added his label to a turn of the century Markneukirchen/Schoenbach production violin, the original label would be the Giovanni Paulo Maggini one that remains (parts of) in you violin, representing the model of the violin, not the maker.

May 2, 2016 at 02:21 PM · I am enjoying your research on this violin. I don’t know how much editing you want to do…but I wanted to point out that there are two parts to ‘restoring’ a violin. One – major repairs. Two – minor fixes…that are part of regular maintenance of all violins.

In your photo – the ‘creaking tuners’ are correctly called pegs (or tuning pegs). It is important that they fit and function well…but that’s part of regular maintenance. They also can be replaced entirely with a different set, both for functional or aesthetic purposes.

Bumps on fingerboards are minor. Fingerboards can be planed to smooth them. Bridges also need replacing from time to time.

There is only one sound post in a violin. They are often moved to find the ‘sweet spot’ or to be straightened. The fact that it’s still standing is impressive. They often fall down when the violin is being tossed about.

That looks like an inexpensive tailpiece to begin with. Higher end violins generally have a non-integrated tailpiece with only 1 (sometimes 2) fine tuners. Again, tailpieces can be changed out for any reason.

Your only ‘major fix’ would be to re-glue the seam.

So…if I were to make a car analogy, it would sound a bit odd if I said “Wow! I found a 1925 Bugatti in an abandoned garage in awful shape! It had a small dent and needed new tires and a tune-up!”

The dent would be of concern…but all cars need new tires and a tune-up.

May 7, 2016 at 08:56 AM · The story is posted on maestronet.com. There is an Adam Szymanski labeled violin on ebay right now. This violin's label looks like a repair ticket compared to that one on ebay.

May 7, 2016 at 06:37 PM · Hi Guys ! Thanks for your attention to this thread, I was also very surprised to see another Violin pop up on eBay. This is the only other Adam Szymanski violin I could track to a shop in St Pete Florida.

About the eBay one, it is curious, It features 2 addresses, one is Cremona Hall in St Petes, The second is the location of Adam's House of Music, which was located in Detroit where Adam lived before his surgery and his move to Florida.

The violin is a serial number in the 800s which explains the 1969 date. Those who have said these violins were originally imported from europe are correct. All the violins were then sanded, varnished and had the Bass Bar installed per Adam Szymanski's specs.

My Szymanski violin is an early unit rehauled by Szymanski after import, those who received uniquely the 'Bass Bar' modification have no 'numbered' sticker. The second Label inside the eBay violin was created by a Florida printer for Adam in the late 60s.

As for the stolen Montreal violin ... sorry it's not this violin. (:

Lyndon, as the Podcast explains, the violin was made sometimes around 1959 - 1969, most of these violins were imported from Europe and rehauled by Szymanski.

Part 2 is on it's way and being edited ! Thanks for the feedback guys !