About us

Antoine is a violin maker and restorer who comes from the South of France.

Having played the violin from an early age, and fascinated by the workshop he visited as a child in Avignon, he decided to become a luthier.

After finishing his schooling in Provence, he was accepted into the esteemed violin making school of Mirecourt in the Vosges where for four centuries violins and violin makers have practised their art.

Completing his studies in Mirecourt he finished his training with work experiences in the celebrated Parisian workshop of Vatelot-Rampal and in the Cremonese workshop of Eric Blot (expert of modern Italian masters).

After leaving Mirecourt, he worked for the internationally renowned expert Jan Strick in Brussels at The Maison Bernard where he was able to restore and study many 18th century instruments from Italy , France, Germany and the Netherlands.

Antoine and Linda Lespets met at the prestigious French national school of violin making in Mirecourt in the early 2000s. They married and have been working together ever since.

Linda graduated of the French National Violin Making School of Mirecourt, renowned for its traditional methods and techniques.

She completed her apprenticeship with violin makers and restorers across Europe in workshops such as the Royal Academy of Music in London, Vatelot-Rampal in Paris the restoration workshop of Roland Terrier in Mirecourt and in Germany, with Roger Hargrave, one of today’s most celebrated makers of new and baroque instruments.

After finishing her studies in Mirecourt, she worked for one of Europe's top modern makers, in the heart of Brussels. His workshop is known for its copies of 18th century Italian instruments that follow the Italian tradition and techniques used by the Cremonese masters such as Stradivari, Guarneri and Amati.

Linda is also the host of a podcast called “The Violin Chronicles” that looks at the history of historically significant violin makers and the tumultuous times in which they made their instruments.