Mittenwald Friedhofskirche St Nikolaus Exterior Klotz Gedenktafel

Matthias Klotz (1653–1743) was German luthier, a member of the Klotz family of violin makers that flourished in

Mittenwald Mittenwald is a German municipality in the district of Garmisch-Partenkirchen, in Bavaria. Geography Mittenwald is located approximately 16 kilometres to the south-east of Garmisch-Partenkirchen. It is situated in the Valley of the River Isar, b ...

, Germany as early as 1683.

Biography

Matthias Klotz (with spelling variations Mathias Khlotz, Khloz, Cloz), was baptized on 11 June 1653 in Mittenwald's St. Peter and Paul Catholic church, the son of Urban Klotz (Vrbanus Cloz, 1627–1691), a tailor, and his wife Sophia (?-1681). He died in Mittenwald at age 90 on August 16, 1743. In Mittenwald documents he was repeatedly described as a world-renowned lute and violin maker. He is buried in the cemetery of the St. Nikolaus Church.

Early education

Klotz became interested in music and instruments in early childhood. Beginning at age 12, from 1672 to 1678, he took apprenticeship with master Giovanni Railich (Johann Railich), an Italian lute maker at Bottega di Lautaro al Santo in

Padua Padua ( ; it, Padova ; vec, Pàdova) is a city and ''comune'' in Veneto, northern Italy. Padua is on the river Bacchiglione, west of Venice. It is the capital of the province of Padua. It is also the economic and communications hub of the ...

, Italy. In 1683, Klotz, now a skilled lute and violin maker, returned prosperous to

and established his own workshop.

Style of craftsmanship

Klotz did not build most of his instruments in the classical Italian style, but made them similar to those of masters from

Füssen Füssen is a town in Bavaria, Germany, in the district of Ostallgäu, situated one kilometre from the Austrian border. The town is known for violin manufacturing and as the closest transportation hub for the Neuschwanstein and Hohenschwangau cast ...

(a town in

Bavaria Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total lan ...

) and

Swabia Swabia ; german: Schwaben , colloquially ''Schwabenland'' or ''Ländle''; archaic English also Suabia or Svebia is a cultural, historic and linguistic region in southwestern Germany. The name is ultimately derived from the medieval Duchy of ...

(Southern Germany). Certain elements of his violins reflect the style of the Tyrolean master luthier

Jacob Stainer Jacob Stainer (–1683) was the earliest and best known Austrian and Germanic luthier. His violins were sought after by famous 17th- and 18th-century musicians and composers including Johann Sebastian Bach, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and . Stainer w ...

. Klotz m

Memorial

A bronze statue of Klotz stands in front of Mittenwald's landmark St. Peter and Paul's Church, at the mouth of the narrow street leading to the Violin-Making Museum (Geigenbaumuseum).

Biography

Early education

Style of craftsmanship

Memorial

References

Further reading