Eugène Nicolas Sartory (22 September 1871,

Mirecourt Mirecourt () is a Communes of France, commune in the Vosges (French department), Vosges Departments of France, department in Grand Est in northeastern France. Mirecourt is known for lace-making and the manufacture of musical instruments, particula ...

– 5 March 1946, Paris) was an influential French

archetier A bow maker is a person who builds, repairs, and restores antique or modern Bow (music), bows for bowed string instruments. These include violins, violas, cellos, double basses, viola d'amore, viola da gamba, etc. The French word for bowmaker (b ...

/bow maker from

, France. After having first apprenticed with his father, he went on to work in Paris for

Charles Peccatte Charles Peccatte (14 October 185022 October 1918) was a French ''Archetier'' ( bow maker). He was born in Mirecourt, the son of François Peccatte and the nephew of Dominique Peccatte. He was trained by August Lenoble with whom he later had a part ...

and Joseph Alfred Lamy before setting up his own shop in 1889. His bows are marked "E.SARTORY A PARIS". The apex of the trend toward heavy, strong bows was exemplified in the output of Eugène Sartory, who developed a style of bow to which his atelier adhered consistently for decades. He fortified the Voirin model, producing sturdily built bows with strong shafts. Later on Sartory innovated the design of his bows; widening the head and altering the shaft cross-section as well as thickening the shaft above the handle. These changes provided more stability and reliability in the handling. In his early period, Sartory preferred dark pernambuco wood, whereas the later bows are generally of lighter color.

Vigneron A winemaker or vintner is a person engaged in winemaking. They are generally employed by wineries or wine companies, where their work includes: *Cooperating with viticulturists *Monitoring the maturity of grapes to ensure their quality and to de ...

and Fétique produced bows that at times could rival a Sartory in terms of strength and handling, but the consistency of Sartory bows has made them a perennial favorite among musicians even if they lack some of the subtlety of older bows. Sartory bows are utterly reliable as playing tools and will satisfy a wide variety of players. His list of assistants includes

Louis Morizot Louis Morizot (1874–1957) was an influential French bow maker of great reputation. Biography Louis was born in Darney (Vosges), and worked in Mirecourt, France where he started a family dynasty. Louis Morizot began his apprenticeship with ...

(perè),

Jules Fétique Jules Fétique (1875 in Mirecourt (Vosges) – 1951 in Gagny (Seine Saint Denis)) was a prominent French archetier from a family of bowmakers. Son of Charles Claude Fétique (1853-1911) a violin maker, and brother to Victor Fétique, Jules Fé ...

& Louis Gillet.

Hermann Wilhelm Prell Hermann Wilhelm Prell (1875–1925) was a skillful German bow maker. He was born on July 29, 1875, in Bad Brambach, Germany. Hermann Wilhelm spent his formative years as a pupil of Heinrich Hoyer. In the early years afterwards he worked ...

worked for Sartory in Paris between 1897 and 1898.

Honors and awards

*1894 Lyon (France) International and Colonial Exhibition *1897 Bruxelles (date corrected thanks to Isaac Salchow) *1900 Paris (France) Universal and International Exhibition. *1905 Liege (Belgium) Universal and International Exhibition. *1906 Milan (Italy) Exposizione Internationale del Sempione *1908 London (Great-Britain)

Franco-British Exhibition The Franco-British Exhibition was a large public fair held in London between 14 May and 31 October 1908. It was the first in the series of the White City Exhibitions. The exhibition attracted 8 million visitors and celebrated the Entente Cordial ...

Quotes

"The name Sartory is universally recognized due to the prolific and consistent output from the Sartory atelier. All of these qualities to make Sartory’s among the least difficult bows to sell. Consequently the margin between wholesale and retail pricing is narrower with Sartory bows than with other fine string instruments and bows." - Stefan Hersh "Sartory bows are synonymous with reliability and consistency and are the bow of choice for many professional musicians."
Gennady Filimonov

References

* "Sartory and the Case of Spurious Bows" Edition De La Rue De Rome, Paris, 2021 by Gennady Filimonov * The Strad - February 2019 p. 48-55. Filimonov, Gennady Sartory and the fake bows/ "Phoney War" * * * * * Dictionnaire Universel del Luthiers - Rene Vannes 1951,1972, 1985 (vol.3) *

Universal Dictionary of Violin & Bow Makers The ''Universal Dictionary of Violin & Bow Makers'' is a widely cited reference work providing information on approximately 9,000 violin makers. The work is based on the extensive notes of violinist and composer William Henley (1874-1957). Henley ...

- William Henley 1970
Eugène Nicolas Sartory: the modern classic of bow making
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sartory, Eugene Nicolas 1871 births 1946 deaths Luthiers from Mirecourt Bow makers