Emile Marcel Français
Bow maker / Violin maker
(1894 – 1984)
Émile Marcel Français, born in Paris in 1894, learned both violin and bow making from his father, Henri Français, before going further afield to complete his training — first with Fenzel in Markneukirchen, then with Lyon & Healy in Chicago from 1912 to 1914. He returned to Paris and, in 1938. He was appointed repairer to the Paris Conservatoire, employed a number of the leading makers and restorers of his generation in his own workshop, and was made a member of the Legion of Honour; he also served as president of several of the city's trade associations.
He built a real reputation for his reproductions of individual classical instruments, and his workshop's output was considerable — credited with roughly 300 violins, 36 violas and 24 cellos over his career, alongside bows that were highly regarded in their own right, branded "EMILE FRANÇAIS A PARIS." He died in 1984.
Price History
- The auction record for this maker is $84,000 in Nov 2022, for a violin.
- 28 auction price results.
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Français family tree
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