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98 DESIGN&CREATIVITY
The Stradivarius Code
Stefan-Peter Greiner belongs to a new élite of violin makers. His quest to
achieve the perfect sound to rival a Stradivarius is aided by physics and
chemistry.The rest is art, and craftsmanship.
COPY Robert Kittel PHOTOGRAPHY Thorsten Futh
he southern part of Bonn is a
real treasure trove. Each house is
an antique, and along the Argelander-
straße stands a particularly fine art nou-
veau residence. But if the house itself is
a work of art, the contents are even
more so. Stefan-Peter Greiner works in
the basement. The hallway is where
wooden boards are stored that used to
be trees in a spruce forest. The scent of
dry branches and resin hangs in the air.
Greiner, clad in an apron, like those
worn by shoemakers who still shape the
soles with their hands, greets us: “Many
people imagine my workshop to be
much bigger. But for me it’s perfect.”
Three meters by three – really not much
room for the workplace of a “King of
Sound.” Greiner makes violins, and
enthusiast critics have taken to dubbing
him the “new Stradivarius.”
Violin making is romantic – and so
is Greiner. The 41-year-old craftsman
drives a vintage car and wears white
shirts with stand-up collars, of which
Beethoven would have been proud.
Many famous soloists swear by the vio-
lins made by the ancient masters, no-
tably Antonio Stradivari and Giuseppe
Guarneri. Both made their violins and
violas between 1680 and 1740, in
Cremona, Italy. There are still about
500 Stradivarius violins in existence,
and until now their sound has never
been equaled. The asking price? Up to
five million euros. Not bad for a couple
of hundred grams of glued wood.
Greiner takes a sip of café latte – from
T
Objects of desire: The waiting period for
a Greiner violin is four to five years.