Pierre Guillaume

Bow maker
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Pierre Guillaume was born in 1963 and trained as a bow maker in France, completing a three-year apprenticeship in the workshop of Gilles Duhaut. During his early career he also worked in contact with several of the last important representatives of the Mirecourt bow-making tradition, including C. A. Bazin, L. Morizot and J.-Cl. ...Read More Ouchard.

In 1986 he became co-director of Maison Bernard in Brussels with the luthier Jan Strick. Founded in 1868, the firm deals in violins, violas, cellos and bows and maintains a workshop for their restoration and conservation.

Guillaume has combined his work as a maker with a substantial career as a bow expert. He is a sworn expert appointed by the Brussels Public Prosecutor’s Office and is regularly consulted by musicians, collectors, dealers and auction houses internationally. His certificates of authenticity have become an international standard of reference in the bow market.

He has trained a number of bow makers, including his son Simon Guillaume, who later established his own workshop in Copenhagen. Other former pupils include Emmanuel Carlier and Victor Bernard, both recipients of gold medals at competitions of the Violin Society of America.

Guillaume has continued to make bows throughout his career while developing a particular specialization in the study and authentication of French bows. He is also the author of a forthcoming publication, larchetfrançais.com, scheduled for publication in 2027. Read Less