SALT LAKE CITY — It's not widely known, but a small Salt Lake City shop has been making sweet music as the oldest violin making school in the country.
Since 1972, the Violin Making School has sat at the southeast corner of 200 South and 300 East.
“It just sounds pretty cool and alluring to start with,” said student Gabriel Fuguracion. “You know, there’s some mystery about violin makers, how do they do that?”
That’s where the school's owner and director comes in.
Sanghoon Lee, a former student himself, left Korea to study the violin making craft under the legendary Peter Prier, who founded the school. Lee believes the school’s reputation attracts students from all walks of life, and no music experience is required.
“It is not necessary, to know something about violin making or music theory or performance, anything at all. We can teach you how to become a violin maker,” said Lee.
The school’s program is normally three years.
Jonas Refsgaard of Denmark is a third-year student and gets the career change award. He holds a PhD in nuclear physics and was working at a lab in Vancouver when he decided during the pandemic that he needed to chase his true passion.
“I think when I was a teenager, I think the idea of becoming a violin maker had sort of popped in my mind, but I thought I rejected it because it wasn’t serious enough or something,” said Refsgaard. “I felt like had to be an academic, but then I sort of resurfaced.”
Included in the curriculum of the school, if students don’t already know, they’re offered lessons on how to play the instrument.
Second-year student Less Lynn said his violin playing has improved immensely since enrolling in the school, and in turn, it helps him turn out violins that are pleasing to the ear.
“It especially helps me in discerning what the quality of sound I should be looking for in my making,” said Lynn.
Attention to detail and concentration are some of the traits needed to become a top-notch violin maker, which is a process that can be rewarding in some unexpected ways.
“A lot of the steps are really meditative,” said Fuguracion. “It’s like you’re looking at something and comparing, and just very intentional moves on what you’re doing, so I just find a kind of peace in doing that.”
