J.Thibouville-Lamy – Reborn for the 21st century
June 2021 sees the re-launch of the prestigious J.Thibouville-Lamy orchestral brand - a range of premium violin, viola and cello bows drawing upon some of the most respected archetiers of French bow-making history.
Founded in 1861 in Mirecourt, France, the Thibouville-Lamy company firmly established itself as one of the most influential and important musical manufacturers of its day, producing 150,000 instruments annually with a staff of around 1000 craftspeople.
Now, based in the UK as part of Barnes & Mullins’ family of brands, Thibouville-Lamy can begin once more to offer the finest quality products for bowed instrument players, perfectly complementing its B&M orchestral stablemate, The Hidersine Company.
“It is with a great deal of pride that we now find ourselves the custodians of the historic Thibouville-Lamy brand,” Bruce Perrin, B&M’s joint managing director explains. “Of course, with a great history comes great responsibility, and our goal is to ensure that any product bearing any variation of the J.T.L moniker should represent the very finest example of its type.”
Bruce Perrin continues, “Working with a select group of incredibly skilled bow-makers in Suzhou, China, we set about re-creating some of the Thibouville-Lamy company’s most famous and revered pieces. Of particular note are the bows of Joseph Alfred Lamy (Lamy Père) and his youngest son, George Leon Lamy. These bows were the craftsmen’s own development of great bows from Voirin and Vuillaume, and pieces that subsequently influenced other French masters such as Eugene Sartory.”
The J.Thibouville-Lamy range of Master Archetier bows are made from 20-year seasoned Pernambuco tonewood with a Lucchi rating above 5300: a technical rating that ensures only the most resonant sticks are chosen for these extremely special bows. Added to the tonally superior sticks are fully mounted Burmese Ebony frogs, ‘925’ silver windings and the very finest stallion hair.
Elsewhere in the newly released ranges, there are the exceptional Peccatte-style ‘J.T.Lamy’ series bows for Violin, Viola or Cello; and the superb J.T.L. Violin bows in either Vuillaume, Peccatte or Sartory styles.
Each of the bows is supplied within a premium presentation box alongside a certificate of authenticity. Retail prices start around £600 rising to £900 for the Master bows.
