Atelier Johannes Loescher - A friendly collaboration between Italy and Germany

 

Collaboration between Francesco Dalla Quercia, Liutaio and                    Frank Eickmeyer (for his Italian friends: Francesco Dalla Quercia) and Johannes Loescher.

In 1986 two young musicians from Germany made friends with each other in Cremona, the homeplace of the classical school of violin-making.
Their names were Frank Eickmeyer (for his Italian friends: Francesco Dalla Quercia) and Johannes Loescher.

Having soon discovered their shared passion, the cello, Francesco and Johannes spent a lot of time together working and practising on their beloved instrument (both were pupils in the local Conservatory, where building and playing are taught alongside).

They untiringly discussed about the sound and the tuning of their instruments in order to discover which wood was the best and how they could work it, thus testing their ideas and putting them into practice at almost the same time.

While Francesco mostly dedicated himself to building modern bowed instruments, Johannes studied the art of restoration and reconstruction of period instruments from the Baroque, Classical and Romantic ages.

Johannes Loescher.
Wood for making violins, violas and cellos by Francesco Dalla Quercia, Frank Eickmeyer

In 1989 Dalla Quercia opened his "bottega" (workshop) in the very heart of ancient Bologna, while Loescher's path led him to Nuremberg, where he went on studying the secrets of restoration at the Germanisches Nationalmuseum during nearly a decade. Finally, he was able to open his own shop in Cologne in 1999 as Meister Johannes Loescher.

Every year the two friends meet somewhere in Europe in order to inspect large amounts of trees, such as poplars, firs and maples.

The output of their quest is stored in a country-house among the hills south of Bologna. Quite a few pieces of selected wood, cut from the logs under their direct supervision, are being seasoned there since ten -- and even thirteen -- years.

Moreover, they have in store precious “period” spruce from the 18th century. Two violins and a viola Francesco has built out of that wood proved to be amazing masterpieces for quick response, smooth texture, richness in overtones which contributes to good projection of sound.

Cellos being made by Liutaio, Francesco Dalla Quercia, from Bosa Sardinia
Loescher setting up a Dalla Quercia cello

Loescher with a Viola d’Amore by Francesco Dalla Quercia.

Loescher setting up (regulation of soundpost, bridge, type of strings) a Dalla Quercia cello.

Atelier Johannes Loescher

 

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