Samuel Zygmuntowicz (born 1956) is a contemporary

luthier A luthier ( ; AmE also ) is a craftsperson who builds or repairs string instruments that have a neck and a sound box. The word "luthier" is originally French and comes from the French word for lute. The term was originally used for makers of ...

and is widely regarded as one of the finest violin makers of his generation. He began his instrument making training at age 13, and studied making and restoration under

Peter Prier Peter Paul Prier (27 February 1942 – 14 June 2015) was a German-born American violinmaker, music teacher and businessman. He founded Peter Prier and Sons Violins (originally named "Violin Making School of America", 1965). In 1972 he expanded hi ...

, Carl Becker and René Morel. Since 1985 he has been based in

Brooklyn, New York Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

. His early work demonstrates expert skill as a copyist of classic instruments. Later work includes personal models informed by intensive advanced research. Findings from this research have been published in numerous print and digital media. Zygmuntowicz is an active fiddler, playing with several folk music groups. His playing can be heard on the recordings ''Grand Picnic'', and ''Jump When the Trumpets Blow''. Zygmuntowicz was born in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Since ...

to Jewish Holocaust survivors from Poland. He is a graduate of the Violin Making School of America in

Salt Lake City Salt Lake City (often shortened to Salt Lake and abbreviated as SLC) is the capital and most populous city of Utah, United States. It is the seat of Salt Lake County, the most populous county in Utah. With a population of 200,133 in 2020, th ...

(1976–80) during which time he also worked for Carl Becker. In 1980, a Becker-style Stradivari violin copy made by Zygmuntowicz won two gold medals - for violin workmanship and tone - at the Violin Society of America Competition. The same year, Zygmuntowicz began five years of additional training in the restoration workshop of Jacques Français Rare Violins, Inc. and René A. Morel.

Isaac Stern Isaac Stern (July 21, 1920 – September 22, 2001) was an American violinist. Born in Poland, Stern came to the US when he was 14 months old. Stern performed both nationally and internationally, notably touring the Soviet Union and China, and ...

owned two Zygmuntowicz violins. After Stern died in 2001, both violins were sold at a Tarisio auction in 2003, each violin surpassing the previous record for the highest price paid for a string instrument by a living maker at auction, until the record was broken in October 2013. His clients include Leila Josefowicz, Yo-Yo Ma, David Finckel, Cho-Liang Lin, Maxim Vengerov, Joshua Bell, and the Emerson String Quartet. In their 2008 recording of Bach fugues, the

Emerson String Quartet The Emerson String Quartet, also known as the Emerson Quartet, is an American string quartet that was initially formed as a student group at the Juilliard School in 1976. It was named for American poet and philosopher Ralph Waldo Emerson and beg ...

all played Zygmuntowicz instruments. ''The Violinmaker'', a book written by John Marchese, chronicles the making of a violin for Emerson String Quartet violinist Eugene Drucker.

Strad3D

Since 2006, Zygmuntowicz has been the creative director of th
Strad3D
project, which ''The Strad Library'' called "One of the most groundbreaking and comprehensive studies of the violin form ever conceived." It involved the first 3D laser vibration scanning of Stradivari and Guarneri violins, (the 'Titian' and 'Willemotte' Stradivaris, and the 'Plowden' Guarneri 'del Gesu') and included acoustic testing and CT scanning. Zygmuntowicz turned the endeavor into a broad collaborative project, bringing together makers, musicians, filmmakers, acoustical engineers, and other researchers - among them physicist and co-developer George Bissinger, who had pioneered the use of vibration scanning using lasers. According to Zygmuntowicz, "The instruments were gently activated by tapping the bridge, and then three scanning lasers detected the resulting patterns of vibration, which were revealed on screen as a rippling landscape of colour and motion, rather like a motion-capture animated film." The result was the first three-dimensional motion capture of violins in use. The practical value of these scientific investigations continues to emerge. Initial findings were published in an article appearing in the January 2009 issue of ''The Strad''.

Teaching, Public Speaking, and Outreach

Zygmuntowicz is an active speaker at museums, conferences, and chamber music festivals, and intensive workshops, on topics ranging from historical and contemporary violin-making techniques to modern violin acoustics and cutting-edge research. Recent engagements include, The National Museum of Mathematics (MoMath) in 2016, Lake Champlain Chamber Music Festival of 2015-16
Music@Menlo Festival of 2017
The 2018 La Jolla SummerFest
Banff String Quartet Competition of 2013The 2012 EG Conference
and yearly appearances at the Oberlin Acoustics Workshop, and at the Juilliard School in NY. These presentations have been adapted to the various interests of the general public, active string players, scientific researchers, and experienced luthiers. Videos of past presentations can be found o
Zygmuntowicz’ Studio YouTube Channel
and videos from the Strad3D project on th
Strad3D YouTube Channel
Zygmuntowicz has published several analyses of great classic instruments, including the 'Duport' cello, 'Titian', and 'Huberman' violins of Stradivari, the 'Plowden' Guarneri 'del Gesu' violin, and a 1796 Mantegazza viola.

References

External links

About Sam Zygmuntowicz
at Strad3d.org
Samuel Zygmuntowicz interview
at

National Public Radio National Public Radio (NPR, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from other n ...

Samuel Zygmuntowicz Documentary
at Vimeo.com a short documentary by Dustin Cohen
Samuel Zygmuntowicz at EG Conference 2012

{{DEFAULTSORT:Zygmuntowicz, Samuel American luthiers Artists from Brooklyn Musicians from Brooklyn 1956 births Living people Artists from Philadelphia