Huajie Hu violin, Guarneri del Gesu "Baltic" model, 2024, Hamburg | Metzler Violins

bold, resonant, sweet

About the Instrument
This violin has a beautiful and powerful resonance across registers, responsive and spirited. This instrument is modeled on Guarneri del Gesù’s “Baltic” violin of c. 1731. Its auburn varnish is applied over a wheat ground. The two-piece back shows a somewhat subtle figure of tight flames slanting downward from the center joint. The relatively plain ribs and scroll accentuate the ornate fittings the luthier selected for this instrument to hearken to its 18th-century inspiration.

Interior label reads: “Geigenbaumeister Huajie Hu / Hamburg Anno 2024”
Length: 354 mm
Upper Bouts: 162 mm
Middle: 112 mm
Lower Bouts: 204 mm

About the Maker
Huajie Hu (1970-) was born in Gongqing, China, near the Russian border. His father was an amateur luthier, and it was in his father’s shop Huajie built his first violin at the age of 16. He studied violin making at Haerbin University in China and, upon graduation, maintained the instruments and bows of the members of the national Jinfan Philharmonic Orchestra in Beijing. Five years later, at the age of 26, Huajie founded his first violin workshop in Beijing. He has had a particular passion for the centuries-old lineage German violin making and, in 2000, moved to Hamburg, working with the luthier Reinhard Fischer. Huajie works to integrate Chinese and German traditions to cultivate precision and innovation in his instruments.