An exhibition organized by Andy Lim took place in September once again and parallel to the Mondo Musica in Cremona: Cuveé Darling 2015, Cremona Exhibition

The serial " The Great Bowmakers from the 19th and 20th Century", was extended by a new Leporello about Ludwig Bausch and Heinrich Knopf. The research on life and work of the bowmakers is of great interest for me as I consider them both as one of the most important bowmakers from the 19th century. Photos and detail pictures of the bows likewise come from me.

The ivory- Cites problem currently causes lots of alarm and irritation amongst musicians. With my new model Tan I avoid all Cites- relevant materials and by that I offer a bow that gives the musicians the possibility for problem-free traveling. The model Tan has tip of titan and renounce mother of pearl. The shape of this model is inspired by the bows of the German bow maker Ludwig Bausch who I appreciate a lot.

By now the IBAMA has inspected the area for planting and conferred right to use. Now the land has to be prepared for the planting and enough seedlings have to be bought. We found 14 participants. In the first project year every participant contributes 1200 € which are used to plant ¼ ha. The Instituto Preservarte which looks after the project on site receives 20 % for administrative tasks.

The contest was hosted by the L'Association Française du Violoncelle and by the Paris Conservatoire à Rayonnement Régional and was excellently organized by Fabienne Ringenbach. Also here I worked as a juror and have enjoyed the good cooperation with the other jurors and the musicians very much.

Report (FR)

In this competition not only violin makers take part but of course also bow makers. This time I was no participant but a member in the jury. 56 bows were submitted and had to be examined and be valued. It was a long way, until in the end all winners of a medallion were certain.

Our aim is that smaller farmers cultivate trees for commercial purposes and by that have an additional opportunity to earn money with the support of the planting. For a start it is necessary to find out which formalities and laws have to follow and which authority is competent for the different steps. Therefore it is planned to firstly plant at the Casara's and at Floriano Schäffer's ground - 2 ha each - and pass on the know-how. Floriano is bowmaker and land owner who has planted a lot on his ground and by that gained experience in cultivation farming already.
The land will then be appraised by the IBAMA - the state environmental agency in Brazil.

Sustainability and conscious handling of natural resources are crucial topics for me as we have been wasting raw materials on account of future generations for a long time now. I am convinced that sustainability towards Fernambuk use is possible. Fernambuk (caesalpina echinata) – Brazil`s national tree – is the wood with the best characteristics for bow making. The tree exclusively grows in the Mata Atlantika- the most fertile growing area in Brazil. So big areas were cleared for agricultural purposes and to protect the remnant forests the tree was listed in attachment II of the CITES agreement (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna) in 2001. Manufacture and trade are allowed if a legal purchase of the wood can be stated. But at the moment it is hardly possible to legally purchase the wood. I as a bow maker feel the responsibility to take care that there is not only taking but also new planting.

Group picture (From the Left):
Carlos Ambrosini, Igor Fomin, Jose Carlos Rosonni, Ruy Renato Casara, Carlos Brasil, Eric Granchamp, Sidney Sabbag, Pierre Peloux, Mitsuaki Sasano, Renato Casara, Fabricio Ambrosini , Manoel Francisco, Josef Gabriel

Darling Publications starts editing the first Leporello with the title ´The Great Bowmakers from the 19th and 20th Century´. The first tome shows 18 bows of the great french bowmaker Eugène Nikolas Sartory (1871-1946) in its original scale plus a series of detailed images.

I took part in selecting the bows- the detailed images come from me.

The orchestra of the Royal Danish Theatre – Det Kongelige Teater- is said to be one of the oldest orchestras in Europe and was first mentioned in records in 1448. It is also among the few orchestras that provides the instruments for its musicians. This explains how there is an unknown Stradivari in its fund.

In 2011 the book about Nikolai Kittel and his bows was published. Therefore it was possible to see and photograph the collection of Kittel bows preserved at the Glinka Museum in Moscow.

I took part in the Pau Brasil workshop in Reclife as representative from I.P.C.I Germany- an international initiative for the conservation of the Pernambuco tree. The conference was about the progress of the project we supported.

Additionally I visited my friend Renato Casara. Years ago Mr. Casara started growing Pernambuco trees on his own initiative.

Participation in an exhibition of violin and bow makers in Paris from March 7 to 10, 2012, organized by the AELA on the premises of the Fondation Singer-Polignac. AELA stands for Atelier Européen de Luthiers et Archetiers, an organization of largely French violin and bow makers.

The premises of the Fondation are impressive and the exhibition well organized.

This special show of the 61st Craft Fair Munich adopted the motto: Music instruments – Masterpieces of arts and crafts.

Bow makers who showed at the fair were Morgan Andersen - U.S.A., Josef P. Gabriel - Germany, Eric Grandchamp - France, and Christophe Collinet- also from Germany.

This is the first comprehensive publication about the bows of Nikolai Kittel of St. Petersburg. Authors: Klaus Grünke, Josef P. Gabriel and Yung Chin. All photographs that appear in the book were taken by Josef P. Gabriel. Published in October 2011. For more information, go to: www.nikolai-kittel.com.

Publication of the fanfold brochure "Exceptional German Bows of the Violin Family from the 19th and 20th Century" in collaboration with Andy Lim of Darling Publications. It features illustrations of bows made by old German bow makers as well as images of Josef P. Gabriel's bows.

Supervision of Sebastian Valtl's degree thesis at Rosenheim University of Applied Sciences, department of Wood Technology. The thesis addressed determining the properties of pernambuco and alternative woods for string instrument bows.

Founding member of I.P.C.I. Deutschland, the German section of the International Pernambuco Conservation Initiative. The association is dedicated to the protection and conservation in Brazil of the pernambuco tree or Caesalphiniaechinata. Full information about the work of the German section can be found at www.ipci-usa.org.

Member of the master craftsman's examination board for the craft of bow making at the Chamber of Craft Trades of the administrative region of Mittelfranken, Germany.