Eugen Meinel Violin – Markneukirchen 1925-1930 German Gem!

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The Eugen Meinel brand was a trade name used by the Ernst Heinrich Roth shop of Markneukirchen, Germany right after World War I. The Meinel name was used to avoid conflicts with the same type of bows and instruments imported to North America as well as in the homeland. There are no other markings on the bow. The Roth firm was one of the most prominent German firms in the early 20th century and they were known for their instruments as well as their bows. At a time when German makers did not place country of origin on their bows and used famous French and Italian names to sell their items the Roth firm operated with transparency in their business practices. A very fine company in the string business that survived two World Wars and cared about their workers and their families. I say again: there should be a movie made about the family and their story of survival from Markneukirchen to a reboot in Bubenreuth.

I grew up in the New York/New Jersey area. With close to eight million people in that area and well before “Antiques Road Show” my dad and I gathered quite a collection of instruments and bows with no help from cell phones or computers. With a decade of collecting from 1974 to 1984 as a teenager with my dad, we purchased hundreds of violins, violas, and over 1,200 decent mostly German bows. As a young kid, I was into carving, instrument restoration, and anything related to baseball. If the stick and/or violin were in decent condition, we bought it. Carving and music were in my family as my dad was a fantastic bird carver. If you come to the violin shop you can see some of his birds. Somehow, I have 10 carvings of his that did not get sold. They are here in the shop, and a few are at my home. Many times, we came away with beautiful instruments and a bunch of bows. We mostly sought older German instruments. They usually looked shabby, lacking luster, full of dirt, and came with cases you didn’t want to lay on the back seat of the car. This Meinel violin is one of those German finds. It has gorgeous woods, new ebony fittings, new bridge, and a new soundpost and is finally ready for the showroom.

Corpus 359.0 mm Major Width 202.0 mm Minor Width 167.0 mm Rib Height 29.0 mm

The violin sound carries. It is rich and vibrant in its tone. I would also call it smooth. The response is quick and the sound of the instrument leans to the mature scale. When I really lay into the instrument there is a slight edge to the tone. In my playing test I used two different bows, one at 60.7 grams and the other at 61.8 grams. They both made the air move and made the violin pop. The violin lays well, which to me tells a player that the instrument is easy to handle, even in higher positions. The instrument requires little effort to produce a good tone. The violin responded well even with a light touch for the bows. The entire voice of the instrument leans slightly to the darker side, meaning the violin is not so bright. The projection is evident, and a player will fall in love with the creaminess of the sound.