This instrument is part of our 2023 Annual Contemporary American Makers Exhibition

2021 Spetz Model, #23

This violin is derived of my own aesthetic, featuring stylistic influences from some of my favorite violins. The violin is 356mm long. The wood working on this violin was completed May 2021.

Violin Setup Details

This violin is finished with a tetul fingerboard, and will have tetul fittings. Tetul is the heartwood of the tamarind tree, it’s hard and light, and is well suited for violin fittings.

About the maker

All my life I’ve enjoyed fine woodworking as a hobby, starting with wooden model airplanes in high school, artistic one-off furniture later in life, and even a straw-bale house. I’ve always been passionate about music, particularly traditional Scottish music, and in about 2009 I started learning to play Scottish fiddle music.

In 2017 I combined my passions for woodworking and music at the Violin Making School of America, in Salt Lake City, where I studied under Aubbie Alexander, Alex Wilson, Charles Woolf, and Sanghoon Lee, and took violin lessons from Rosalie MacMillan. I also worked at the Peter Prier and Sons Violin Shop, where I gained valuable repair and setup experience. I graduated Cum Laude in 2019; the sixth student ever to graduate from the school with this distinction.

Salt Lake City is a great place to be a violin maker and network with and learn from other makers. I frequently work with Dan Salini, an experienced local maker/restorer, on various projects; I also occasionally work with a long-established Salt Lake City violin shop. On my own violins, I continue to refine my aesthetic style and learn how to shape tonal properties.

One of my favorite aspects of violin making is the varnish. By combining new and traditional materials I have developed varnish that brings out the beauty of the wood, enhances the tone of the violin, and ages in a beautiful way.

In my spare time, I volunteer with the Violin Society of America and the Western United States Pipe Band Association. I play the Great Highland Bagpipes in a local bagpipe band with my wife, and we both like to play Scottish fiddle and hike along the Wasatch Front.

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