Johann Goldfuß

Infobox Person
name = Johann Goldfuß


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birth_date = birth date|1908|12|11|mf=y
birth_place = Wildstein Austria-Hungary (now Skalná, Czech Republic
death_date = death date and age|1970|7|3|1908|11|12|mf=y
death_place = Schwandorf, Bavaria, Germany
spouse =
children =
parents =
occupation = luthier

Johann Goldfuß (December 11, 1908 Wildstein Austria-Hungary (now Skalná, Czech Republic – July 3, 1970 Schwandorf, Bavaria, Germany) was a german luthier.Born in Bohemia, he studied his craft with Mathias Heinicke who was one of the main representatives of the school of luthiers of the Saxony - Bohemia. Johann Goldfuß worked with Heinicke for 17 years, becoming himself a master craftsman. He interrupted his work, being drafted during World War II and then taken prisoner of war.

When he was released, in 1949, he found out that his family had been expeled from Czechoslovakia and had moved to Schwandorf, Bavaria. He started his craft again, first repairing violins and eventually opened a new workshop for violins. His wife Katharina was able to go back to Czechoslovakia and to smuggle the tools which had been left behind to his new homeland. He built over 300 violins, violas and cellos which were known for the outstanding uniformity of their sounds. Concerned about the acoustic improvement of his instruments, in 1969 he used for the first time the golden ratio in the design of violins. [Die Geige, der goldene Schnitt und das Apfelmännchen [http://www.michael-holzapfel.de/themen/goldenerschnitt/gs-geige/geige.htm] ]

He founded the "Geigenbau Goldfuss" company which specializes in the production of violins and string instruments which have gained recognition for their high quality and are used by violinists in concertos all over the world. Besides the production of string instruments, Johann Goldfuß is also known for his restauration of classical violins. He died of a heart attack on July 3, 1970. Chantal Peeters - Der Goldene Schnitt [http://www.math.unibas.ch/~walser/Stud_Arbeiten/Goldener_Schnitt_Pentagon/Peeters/Peeters.pdf] ] [George Hart - The Violin: Its Famous Makers and their Imitators. ] [René Vannes - Dictionnaire universel des luthiers - 1999]

The company founded by Johann Goldfuß was taken over by his son Horst Goldfuß and has since moved to Regensburg. [Johann Goldfuss [http://www.goldfuss-geigenbau.de/d/html/Geschichte/JG.html] ]

References