Trained in Switzerland, the luthier worked in London, Europe and South Korea
The respected London-based violin maker and restorer Hans Luthi has died at the age of 41. Having studied lutherie at the Geigenbauschule Brienz in Switzerland, he worked at two workshops in South Korea before moving back to Europe. From 2009 he worked on the team of Florian Leonhard Fine Violins in Hampstead, London, with a couple of freelance periods including restoration projects for Peter Biddulph and Eckhard Kropfreiter. A number of his friends and colleagues have written this tribute:
‘In April 2021 we received the devastating news of the loss of our friend Hans Luthi. A violin restorer of the very highest order and beloved friend and colleague, Hans was a wonderful husband to Remi and adored father to his dear son Tobi and stepdaughters Venus and Ella. His work was simply superb, of a world-leading level.
‘Depression thrives in isolation, and distressingly that side of Hans’s life was kept firmly separate from his work and friendships. In the workshop Hans prioritised helping colleagues and he was always patient and kind.
‘We will remember his secure and expert hand, and his almost super-human level of skill and perfectionism. But most of all the memory of his laugh, his hilarious dry sense of humour and his warmth shall live on in all of our lives that he so illuminated.’
Luthi also leaves behind a brother and father in Switzerland.
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