OH Taxonomy
Walther Krüger was the chief scientist at the music instrument institute in Markneukirchen Germany before his retirement in the 1980s. His specialty was research on the acoustics of instruments to improve their design and production through mathematical measurements and consistency. His research...
H. P. Wilfer inherited the passion and drive of his father who formed the Framus Guitar Company. After hard times and his father’s retirement, H. P. bought back the company to bring the many innovative and popular products back to market. H. P. did so through the success of his Warwick Bass Company...
Gunter Schmalfuss has taken great pride in working on one instrument most of his career, the tuba. Since 1961, Mr. Schmalfuss has studied, built and designed tubas in addition to teaching the craft of repair. Following a great tradition of handcrafted work, he has played a vital role in the...
Joachim Schneider proudly continues in the family tradition of hand crafted instrument making. His great grandfather was a violin builder as was his grandfather. His grandfather and father also became guitar luthiers. Joachim was taught by his grandfather and specialized in building professional...
Dieter Kühnl is the president of Kuhnl & Hoyer. The brass instrument company (name a horn and chances are they have made it) began after World War II in the small town of Markterlbach, near Neustradt an der Aisch, Germany. Dietor recalls with pride working with his grandfather and father in...
Christian Benker has been an influential leader in the German musical instrument manufacturing industry. With fresh ideas and marketing skills he helped Hofner reinvent itself during the 1950s and 60s. Christian worked alongside Mr. Hofner, the inventor of the widely popular Beatle bass and Mr....
Gerhilde Benker served as president of Hofner Music, a firm founded by her grandfather Karl Hofner in 1864 in Eger, Germany. Her father, Walter, was the inventor of the Hofner bass, which has been known as the Beatle Bass ever since young Paul McCartney began playing the instrument. The endorsement...
Josef Lausman proudly followed in his family’s footsteps. In the small German village of Nauheim (near Frankfurt) he made mouthpieces, primarily for trumpets and trombones for many years until his retirement. The small factory may not be well known to players by name, however, since their products...
Rudi Metzler watched the Beatles on TV in his home in Germany and wanted to be the next Ringo Starr. He earned money washing cars, taking over a year to earn enough for his first drum kit. After playing in several bands he thought the future for him would be in selling instruments so he began...
Irmgard Dittmar has been a part of the music products industry her whole life. Her father was a noted trumpet builder and designer, and she has worked for the Schreiber music company for nearly 40 years. Over the years she has served as President Hugo Schreiber’s assistant and in doing so has...