Florian Leonhard
Director
Florian Leonhard has dedicated his life to studying, restoring and making violins. After Mittenwald he worked for W.E. Hill and Sons becoming Head Restorer. Today he leads his own team of restorers. Informed by 40 years of research, Florian’s bench copy instruments are sought after for their acoustic and visual closeness to the originals.
A regular contributor to books and articles and having published his books, ‘The Makers of Central Italy’ and the ‘Makers of Tuscany’, Florian is currently conducting research on the Bisiach family of makers for a book due to be published next year.
Florian is regularly called upon as a jury member for violin competitions, and has held the position of President at the Pisogne Making Competition in Cremona. Florian Leonhard Fine Violins is widely considered both the leading dealership and restoration workshop in the world.
Thomas Wei
Head of Sales
Tom actively engages with musicians to find them the very best instrument. For 20 years, he has worked closely with Florian and our restorers and makers to ensure that a bespoke service is supplied to every client who visits. Prior to this role, he pursued his studies in violin performance in Taiwan, moving to London in the early 90’s where he studied at the Purcell school and then the Royal Academy of Music. This background has proved invaluable, and affords him an understanding and passion to help fulfil the particular needs of the musician looking to get the very best from their long hours of practice. When he’s not working with musicians and instruments, Tom spends much of his spare time on the river with the Lea Rowing club in Hackney.
Julian Doring
Workshop Manager
Julian manages the workshop at FLFV London and enjoys leading an innovative and highly skilled collaborative team. After training at the Mittenwald School of Violin Making, he worked in Nuremburg, where he decided to focus on restoration and developed an interest in varnish making and retouching. A perfectionist with a sharp eye for detail, Julian is fascinated by the use of technology in restoration, and continues to expand his knowledge by attending workshops, researching and applying advanced restoration techniques. A violinist himself, Julian enjoys working alongside musicians to ensure their instrument reaches its full potential.
Melina Polizzi
Head of New Making
Melina was born in Venice, and grew up in Germany and Austria. She has always been interested in fine arts and crafts, which inspired her to move back to Italy. Melina completed her degree as a luthier at I.I.S Antonio Stradivari, Cremona, in 2011. Following her studies, Melina worked as an Assistant at Gregg Alf’s workshop in Venice and the U.S.A., before coming to work at Florian Leonhard Fine Violins in 2016 as a New Maker.
Lauri Tanner
Head of Bow Making and Restoration
Lauri made his first musical instrument when he was 15 years old. He first studied to be a guitar maker, and worked as a guitar maker in Helsinki for five years. Developing interest in the restoration of historical instruments, he decided to take up studying violin making at Newark School of Violin Making, graduating in 2013. During his studies, Lauri turned his attention to bows, attending the BVMA course and VSA Oberlin summer courses, before starting at Florian Leonhard Fine Violins in 2015. Lauri has a great interest in the working methods of old violins and bow makers, and enjoys reading historical woodworking publications. Lauri also lends his services as a bow restorer to the Royal Academy of Music two days a month.
Joe Stupple
Head of Business Development
Joe has worked for FLFV since 2009, after studying Music at Manchester. His first project was to coordinate the publishing of The Makers of Central Italy. After representing the company on one trip to New York, Joe continued to develop business across the pond, conducting a number of notable sales in the States and back at home since.
Joe works closely with our colleagues in San Francisco, Belgium, Hong Kong and Seoul, as well as looking after clients in London. In his spare time, he likes going to concerts and spending time with family.
Arielle Masliah
Office Manager
Arielle joined Florian Leonhard Fine Violins in 2014 as the Project Coordinator and since then, her role has grown to London Office Manager. She moved from Paris to study at University College London and progressed to working in the City as a data analyst. She was delighted with the opportunity for something completely different at FLFV, and her multi-lingual skills and background has served her well in the esoteric world of fine instruments. She organises Florian’s Far East marketing, participation in international competitions, business development, and assists him with all the instruments’ certifications. She is currently coordinating the forthcoming publication on ‘The Makers of Tuscany’. Whilst not a musician herself, she has been inspired by her experience of the classical music industry to take up playing the piano.
Justina Lui
Administrator
Justina is from Melbourne, Australia, and began playing the violin at the age of five. She has a Law LLB degree from the University of Melbourne, as well as a Graduate Diploma in Music (Violin Performance) from the Melbourne Conservatorium of Music. She has freelanced as a violinist and educator in Australia and France, where she undertook further study in chamber music and orchestral playing.
Passionate about new music and community engagement with classical music, Justina has also worked in the Contemporary Music Department at Schott Publishing and was the Shop Manager at Thwaites Fine Instruments and Bows in London. Justina joined the team at FLFV in 2019.
Patrick Smith
PA to Florian Leonhard & Office Administrator
Patrick joined FLFV in early 2020 as an Office Administrator and PA to Florian, after graduating the year before with a master’s degree from Bristol University in film scoring; a discipline he remains active in during his spare time. He comes from a very musical background and obtained his Bachelor’s degree in Music with German.
Yoav Finkelstein
Restorer
As a child, Yoav studied the violin at the Jerusalem Conservatory of Music. After working for several years as a computer programmer, he decided to follow his early passion to become a violin maker. He moved to Italy and attended the Parma School of Violin Making, where he learned the craft from the influential Violin Maker Renato Scrollavezza. Yoav then spent five years as a restorer in Tel Aviv, working intensively with local players. At that time, he was also appointed Violin Maker for the Keshet Eilon International Mastercourse, where he had the opportunity to meet both world-leading and upcoming musicians.
Upon joining Florian Leonhard’s team in 2019, Yoav moved to London with his family.
Ines Lecher
New Maker
Ines was studying Photography and Fine Arts in Vienna when she decided to train in violin making at Newark School of Violin Making and Repair. After completing her degree as a luthier, Ines moved to Berlin. Here, she mainly focused on restoration, whilst getting to know the different aspects of making by dipping into the world of Baroque instruments.
Ines joined the FLFV Team in 2020.
Georg Morgenstern
Restorer
Born into a musical family in Rostock, North Germany, Georg grew up surrounded by music and culture. His father is a violinist and his mother a teacher of Music and Art, so he soon became involved in drawing, painting, playing and singing classical music and enjoying taking part in opera and theatre throughout his early life. Gradually his passion for music, combined with a fascination for craftmanship and art, led Georg to study violinmaking at the violin making school in Mittenwald. After his studies Georg spent some years in South Germany and Switzerland focusing on new making and sound adjustment, before making the move to join our London team in 2021.
Elinor Bishop
Administrator
Elinor has lived in London all her life and began playing the cello when she was 3 years old. She studied Music at the University of York, and went on to do a Masters in Music Education at UCL.
She initially began working for FLFV in 2018 and has recently returned, combining it with her cello teaching practice. Elinor also writes for Music Teacher magazine, and teaches Early Years classes for her local music service. Outside of work, Elinor enjoys cooking and walking her dog.
Rebecca Smith
Administrator
Rebecca is a violinist and violist appearing with a number of the UK’s leading ensembles—from historical performance on period instruments, to contemporary classical, and dance band music. She has degrees from Oxford and the RNCM, studying with Remus Azoitei and Maciej Rakowski respectively. Their instruction proved invaluable for her own teaching at both Chetham’s and St Mary’s Edinburgh specialist music schools.
Having first encountered FLFV over ten years ago as a client, Rebecca is enthusiastically involved with innovative approaches to sound and setup with the workshop teams. She has also enjoyed working on Florian’s latest publication ‘The Makers of Tuscany’.
In her spare time you may find Rebecca lost in Golden Age Thinking: a condition which began not long after her appointment as Violinist of the Scarborough Spa Orchestra.
Maria da Gloria Leitao Venceslau
Publications Coordinator and Archival Researcher
Maria da Gloria Leitao Venceslau is a musicologist working on the relationships between organology and economic studies. She obtained her Bachelor and Master’s degrees at the Faculty of Musicology in Cremona, University of Pavia, and she completed her PhD in Music and Performing Arts at the Sapienza University of Rome. Several fellowships and awards, such as Jamis and Galpin Grant, have supported her studies and publications. Over the years, she worked continuously as a self-employed researcher on different organological projects. For FLVF, she was the research leader for the volume ‘The Makers of Central Italy’ and now for our latest publication, ‘The Makers of Tuscany’. Following a period of several years in South Korea, Gloria moved to the U.K. She then worked at the University of Southampton, and is now part of the FLFV team as our Publications Coordinator and Archival Researcher. She is also responsible for FLFV Articles Series, our new platform of online articles on crucial topics for the sector, published monthly on the Florian Leonhard Fine Violins website.
Luca Modaffari
Restorer
Bow Restorer Luca Modaffari carries out all areas of bow work, from rehairs and maintenance to more complex restorations.
Luca was born in the small town of Sarzana, on the north-west coast of Italy.
At the age of 12 he started playing guitar, and began soon after to start making effects pedals for himself and friends. After finishing high school, this evolved into instrument making and Luca decided to pursue further studies in lutherie.
After studying violin making and restoration in Cremona, Luca relocated to London where he worked for 4 years as a bow restorer at JP Guivier before joining the bow department at FLFV.
In his spare time Luca likes cooking and spending time with friends.
Sam Brouwer
New Maker
Sam Brouwer, born in 1990 in The Netherlands, started playing violin at the age of nine.
After his pre-university studies Sam started his training as a violinmaker at the International Lutherie School of Antwerp (Belgium) but decided in his second year to attend the renowned Newark School of Violin Making in the United Kingdom. During his time in Newark Sam received several awards from the RAB-Trust, e.g. work experiences, a special financial grant and a placement at the VSA Oberlin Violin Makers Workshop. Sam graduated with distinction.
After his studies in Newark Sam continued his training working with Ragnar Hayn in Berlin. Sam has been a member of the team at FLFV in London since February 2022.
Sam attended the VSA Oberlin Violin Makers Workshop both in 2017 and 2018.
Mr. Reginald
Mascot
Mr. Reginald is a small but notable member of the team. He is a natural at meeting clients and making them feel at ease. However, notwithstanding close scrutiny from his line manager, Arielle, he is frequently caught sleeping on the job.
Florian Leonhard
Director
Florian Leonhard has dedicated his life to studying, restoring and making violins. After Mittenwald he worked for W.E. Hill and Sons becoming Head Restorer. Today he leads his own team of restorers. Informed by 40 years of research, Florian’s bench copy instruments are sought after for their acoustic and visual closeness to the originals.
A regular contributor to books and articles and having published his books, ‘The Makers of Central Italy’ and the ‘Makers of Tuscany’, Florian is currently conducting research on the Bisiach family of makers for a book due to be published next year.
Florian is regularly called upon as a jury member for violin competitions, and has held the position of President at the Pisogne Making Competition in Cremona. Florian Leonhard Fine Violins is widely considered both the leading dealership and restoration workshop in the world.
Thomas Wei
Head of Sales
Tom actively engages with musicians to find them the very best instrument. For 20 years, he has worked closely with Florian and our restorers and makers to ensure that a bespoke service is supplied to every client who visits. Prior to this role, he pursued his studies in violin performance in Taiwan, moving to London in the early 90’s where he studied at the Purcell school and then the Royal Academy of Music. This background has proved invaluable, and affords him an understanding and passion to help fulfil the particular needs of the musician looking to get the very best from their long hours of practice. When he’s not working with musicians and instruments, Tom spends much of his spare time on the river with the Lea Rowing club in Hackney.
Julian Doring
Workshop Manager
Julian manages the workshop at FLFV London and enjoys leading an innovative and highly skilled collaborative team. After training at the Mittenwald School of Violin Making, he worked in Nuremburg, where he decided to focus on restoration and developed an interest in varnish making and retouching. A perfectionist with a sharp eye for detail, Julian is fascinated by the use of technology in restoration, and continues to expand his knowledge by attending workshops, researching and applying advanced restoration techniques. A violinist himself, Julian enjoys working alongside musicians to ensure their instrument reaches its full potential.
Melina Polizzi
Head of New Making
Melina was born in Venice, and grew up in Germany and Austria. She has always been interested in fine arts and crafts, which inspired her to move back to Italy. Melina completed her degree as a luthier at I.I.S Antonio Stradivari, Cremona, in 2011. Following her studies, Melina worked as an Assistant at Gregg Alf’s workshop in Venice and the U.S.A., before coming to work at Florian Leonhard Fine Violins in 2016 as a New Maker.
Lauri Tanner
Head of Bow Making and Restoration
Lauri made his first musical instrument when he was 15 years old. He first studied to be a guitar maker, and worked as a guitar maker in Helsinki for five years. Developing interest in the restoration of historical instruments, he decided to take up studying violin making at Newark School of Violin Making, graduating in 2013. During his studies, Lauri turned his attention to bows, attending the BVMA course and VSA Oberlin summer courses, before starting at Florian Leonhard Fine Violins in 2015. Lauri has a great interest in the working methods of old violins and bow makers, and enjoys reading historical woodworking publications. Lauri also lends his services as a bow restorer to the Royal Academy of Music two days a month.
Joe Stupple
Head of Business Development
Joe has worked for FLFV since 2009, after studying Music at Manchester. His first project was to coordinate the publishing of The Makers of Central Italy. After representing the company on one trip to New York, Joe continued to develop business across the pond, conducting a number of notable sales in the States and back at home since.
Joe works closely with our colleagues in San Francisco, Belgium, Hong Kong and Seoul, as well as looking after clients in London. In his spare time, he likes going to concerts and spending time with family.
Arielle Masliah
Office Manager
Arielle joined Florian Leonhard Fine Violins in 2014 as the Project Coordinator and since then, her role has grown to London Office Manager. She moved from Paris to study at University College London and progressed to working in the City as a data analyst. She was delighted with the opportunity for something completely different at FLFV, and her multi-lingual skills and background has served her well in the esoteric world of fine instruments. She organises Florian’s Far East marketing, participation in international competitions, business development, and assists him with all the instruments’ certifications. She is currently coordinating the forthcoming publication on ‘The Makers of Tuscany’. Whilst not a musician herself, she has been inspired by her experience of the classical music industry to take up playing the piano.
Justina Lui
Administrator
Justina is from Melbourne, Australia, and began playing the violin at the age of five. She has a Law LLB degree from the University of Melbourne, as well as a Graduate Diploma in Music (Violin Performance) from the Melbourne Conservatorium of Music. She has freelanced as a violinist and educator in Australia and France, where she undertook further study in chamber music and orchestral playing.
Passionate about new music and community engagement with classical music, Justina has also worked in the Contemporary Music Department at Schott Publishing and was the Shop Manager at Thwaites Fine Instruments and Bows in London. Justina joined the team at FLFV in 2019.
Patrick Smith
PA to Florian Leonhard & Office Administrator
Patrick joined FLFV in early 2020 as an Office Administrator and PA to Florian, after graduating the year before with a master’s degree from Bristol University in film scoring; a discipline he remains active in during his spare time. He comes from a very musical background and obtained his Bachelor’s degree in Music with German.
Yoav Finkelstein
Restorer
As a child, Yoav studied the violin at the Jerusalem Conservatory of Music. After working for several years as a computer programmer, he decided to follow his early passion to become a violin maker. He moved to Italy and attended the Parma School of Violin Making, where he learned the craft from the influential Violin Maker Renato Scrollavezza. Yoav then spent five years as a restorer in Tel Aviv, working intensively with local players. At that time, he was also appointed Violin Maker for the Keshet Eilon International Mastercourse, where he had the opportunity to meet both world-leading and upcoming musicians.
Upon joining Florian Leonhard’s team in 2019, Yoav moved to London with his family.
Ines Lecher
New Maker
Ines was studying Photography and Fine Arts in Vienna when she decided to train in violin making at Newark School of Violin Making and Repair. After completing her degree as a luthier, Ines moved to Berlin. Here, she mainly focused on restoration, whilst getting to know the different aspects of making by dipping into the world of Baroque instruments.
Ines joined the FLFV Team in 2020.
Georg Morgenstern
Restorer
Born into a musical family in Rostock, North Germany, Georg grew up surrounded by music and culture. His father is a violinist and his mother a teacher of Music and Art, so he soon became involved in drawing, painting, playing and singing classical music and enjoying taking part in opera and theatre throughout his early life. Gradually his passion for music, combined with a fascination for craftmanship and art, led Georg to study violinmaking at the violin making school in Mittenwald. After his studies Georg spent some years in South Germany and Switzerland focusing on new making and sound adjustment, before making the move to join our London team in 2021.
Elinor Bishop
Administrator
Elinor has lived in London all her life and began playing the cello when she was 3 years old. She studied Music at the University of York, and went on to do a Masters in Music Education at UCL.
She initially began working for FLFV in 2018 and has recently returned, combining it with her cello teaching practice. Elinor also writes for Music Teacher magazine, and teaches Early Years classes for her local music service. Outside of work, Elinor enjoys cooking and walking her dog.
Rebecca Smith
Administrator
Rebecca is a violinist and violist appearing with a number of the UK’s leading ensembles—from historical performance on period instruments, to contemporary classical, and dance band music. She has degrees from Oxford and the RNCM, studying with Remus Azoitei and Maciej Rakowski respectively. Their instruction proved invaluable for her own teaching at both Chetham’s and St Mary’s Edinburgh specialist music schools.
Having first encountered FLFV over ten years ago as a client, Rebecca is enthusiastically involved with innovative approaches to sound and setup with the workshop teams. She has also enjoyed working on Florian’s latest publication ‘The Makers of Tuscany’.
In her spare time you may find Rebecca lost in Golden Age Thinking: a condition which began not long after her appointment as Violinist of the Scarborough Spa Orchestra.
Maria da Gloria Leitao Venceslau
Publications Coordinator and Archival Researcher
Maria da Gloria Leitao Venceslau is a musicologist working on the relationships between organology and economic studies. She obtained her Bachelor and Master’s degrees at the Faculty of Musicology in Cremona, University of Pavia, and she completed her PhD in Music and Performing Arts at the Sapienza University of Rome. Several fellowships and awards, such as Jamis and Galpin Grant, have supported her studies and publications. Over the years, she worked continuously as a self-employed researcher on different organological projects. For FLVF, she was the research leader for the volume ‘The Makers of Central Italy’ and now for our latest publication, ‘The Makers of Tuscany’. Following a period of several years in South Korea, Gloria moved to the U.K. She then worked at the University of Southampton, and is now part of the FLFV team as our Publications Coordinator and Archival Researcher. She is also responsible for FLFV Articles Series, our new platform of online articles on crucial topics for the sector, published monthly on the Florian Leonhard Fine Violins website.
Luca Modaffari
Restorer
Bow Restorer Luca Modaffari carries out all areas of bow work, from rehairs and maintenance to more complex restorations.
Luca was born in the small town of Sarzana, on the north-west coast of Italy.
At the age of 12 he started playing guitar, and began soon after to start making effects pedals for himself and friends. After finishing high school, this evolved into instrument making and Luca decided to pursue further studies in lutherie.
After studying violin making and restoration in Cremona, Luca relocated to London where he worked for 4 years as a bow restorer at JP Guivier before joining the bow department at FLFV.
In his spare time Luca likes cooking and spending time with friends.
Sam Brouwer
New Maker
Sam Brouwer, born in 1990 in The Netherlands, started playing violin at the age of nine.
After his pre-university studies Sam started his training as a violinmaker at the International Lutherie School of Antwerp (Belgium) but decided in his second year to attend the renowned Newark School of Violin Making in the United Kingdom. During his time in Newark Sam received several awards from the RAB-Trust, e.g. work experiences, a special financial grant and a placement at the VSA Oberlin Violin Makers Workshop. Sam graduated with distinction.
After his studies in Newark Sam continued his training working with Ragnar Hayn in Berlin. Sam has been a member of the team at FLFV in London since February 2022.
Sam attended the VSA Oberlin Violin Makers Workshop both in 2017 and 2018.
Mr. Reginald
Mascot
Mr. Reginald is a small but notable member of the team. He is a natural at meeting clients and making them feel at ease. However, notwithstanding close scrutiny from his line manager, Arielle, he is frequently caught sleeping on the job.
Florian Leonhard
Director
Florian Leonhard has dedicated his life to studying, restoring and making violins. After Mittenwald he worked for W.E. Hill and Sons becoming Head Restorer. Today he leads his own team of restorers. Informed by 40 years of research, Florian’s bench copy instruments are sought after for their acoustic and visual closeness to the originals.
A regular contributor to books and articles and having published his books, ‘The Makers of Central Italy’ and the ‘Makers of Tuscany’, Florian is currently conducting research on the Bisiach family of makers for a book due to be published next year.
Florian is regularly called upon as a jury member for violin competitions, and has held the position of President at the Pisogne Making Competition in Cremona. Florian Leonhard Fine Violins is widely considered both the leading dealership and restoration workshop in the world.
Thomas Wei
Head of Sales
Tom actively engages with musicians to find them the very best instrument. For 20 years, he has worked closely with Florian and our restorers and makers to ensure that a bespoke service is supplied to every client who visits. Prior to this role, he pursued his studies in violin performance in Taiwan, moving to London in the early 90’s where he studied at the Purcell school and then the Royal Academy of Music. This background has proved invaluable, and affords him an understanding and passion to help fulfil the particular needs of the musician looking to get the very best from their long hours of practice. When he’s not working with musicians and instruments, Tom spends much of his spare time on the river with the Lea Rowing club in Hackney.
Julian Doring
Workshop Manager
Julian manages the workshop at FLFV London and enjoys leading an innovative and highly skilled collaborative team. After training at the Mittenwald School of Violin Making, he worked in Nuremburg, where he decided to focus on restoration and developed an interest in varnish making and retouching. A perfectionist with a sharp eye for detail, Julian is fascinated by the use of technology in restoration, and continues to expand his knowledge by attending workshops, researching and applying advanced restoration techniques. A violinist himself, Julian enjoys working alongside musicians to ensure their instrument reaches its full potential.
Melina Polizzi
Head of New Making
Melina was born in Venice, and grew up in Germany and Austria. She has always been interested in fine arts and crafts, which inspired her to move back to Italy. Melina completed her degree as a luthier at I.I.S Antonio Stradivari, Cremona, in 2011. Following her studies, Melina worked as an Assistant at Gregg Alf’s workshop in Venice and the U.S.A., before coming to work at Florian Leonhard Fine Violins in 2016 as a New Maker.
Lauri Tanner
Head of Bow Making and Restoration
Lauri made his first musical instrument when he was 15 years old. He first studied to be a guitar maker, and worked as a guitar maker in Helsinki for five years. Developing interest in the restoration of historical instruments, he decided to take up studying violin making at Newark School of Violin Making, graduating in 2013. During his studies, Lauri turned his attention to bows, attending the BVMA course and VSA Oberlin summer courses, before starting at Florian Leonhard Fine Violins in 2015. Lauri has a great interest in the working methods of old violins and bow makers, and enjoys reading historical woodworking publications. Lauri also lends his services as a bow restorer to the Royal Academy of Music two days a month.
Joe Stupple
Head of Business Development
Joe has worked for FLFV since 2009, after studying Music at Manchester. His first project was to coordinate the publishing of The Makers of Central Italy. After representing the company on one trip to New York, Joe continued to develop business across the pond, conducting a number of notable sales in the States and back at home since.
Joe works closely with our colleagues in San Francisco, Belgium, Hong Kong and Seoul, as well as looking after clients in London. In his spare time, he likes going to concerts and spending time with family.
Arielle Masliah
Office Manager
Arielle joined Florian Leonhard Fine Violins in 2014 as the Project Coordinator and since then, her role has grown to London Office Manager. She moved from Paris to study at University College London and progressed to working in the City as a data analyst. She was delighted with the opportunity for something completely different at FLFV, and her multi-lingual skills and background has served her well in the esoteric world of fine instruments. She organises Florian’s Far East marketing, participation in international competitions, business development, and assists him with all the instruments’ certifications. She is currently coordinating the forthcoming publication on ‘The Makers of Tuscany’. Whilst not a musician herself, she has been inspired by her experience of the classical music industry to take up playing the piano.
Justina Lui
Administrator
Justina is from Melbourne, Australia, and began playing the violin at the age of five. She has a Law LLB degree from the University of Melbourne, as well as a Graduate Diploma in Music (Violin Performance) from the Melbourne Conservatorium of Music. She has freelanced as a violinist and educator in Australia and France, where she undertook further study in chamber music and orchestral playing.
Passionate about new music and community engagement with classical music, Justina has also worked in the Contemporary Music Department at Schott Publishing and was the Shop Manager at Thwaites Fine Instruments and Bows in London. Justina joined the team at FLFV in 2019.
Patrick Smith
PA to Florian Leonhard & Office Administrator
Patrick joined FLFV in early 2020 as an Office Administrator and PA to Florian, after graduating the year before with a master’s degree from Bristol University in film scoring; a discipline he remains active in during his spare time. He comes from a very musical background and obtained his Bachelor’s degree in Music with German.
Yoav Finkelstein
Restorer
As a child, Yoav studied the violin at the Jerusalem Conservatory of Music. After working for several years as a computer programmer, he decided to follow his early passion to become a violin maker. He moved to Italy and attended the Parma School of Violin Making, where he learned the craft from the influential Violin Maker Renato Scrollavezza. Yoav then spent five years as a restorer in Tel Aviv, working intensively with local players. At that time, he was also appointed Violin Maker for the Keshet Eilon International Mastercourse, where he had the opportunity to meet both world-leading and upcoming musicians.
Upon joining Florian Leonhard’s team in 2019, Yoav moved to London with his family.
Ines Lecher
New Maker
Ines was studying Photography and Fine Arts in Vienna when she decided to train in violin making at Newark School of Violin Making and Repair. After completing her degree as a luthier, Ines moved to Berlin. Here, she mainly focused on restoration, whilst getting to know the different aspects of making by dipping into the world of Baroque instruments.
Ines joined the FLFV Team in 2020.
Georg Morgenstern
Restorer
Born into a musical family in Rostock, North Germany, Georg grew up surrounded by music and culture. His father is a violinist and his mother a teacher of Music and Art, so he soon became involved in drawing, painting, playing and singing classical music and enjoying taking part in opera and theatre throughout his early life. Gradually his passion for music, combined with a fascination for craftmanship and art, led Georg to study violinmaking at the violin making school in Mittenwald. After his studies Georg spent some years in South Germany and Switzerland focusing on new making and sound adjustment, before making the move to join our London team in 2021.
Elinor Bishop
Administrator
Elinor has lived in London all her life and began playing the cello when she was 3 years old. She studied Music at the University of York, and went on to do a Masters in Music Education at UCL.
She initially began working for FLFV in 2018 and has recently returned, combining it with her cello teaching practice. Elinor also writes for Music Teacher magazine, and teaches Early Years classes for her local music service. Outside of work, Elinor enjoys cooking and walking her dog.
Rebecca Smith
Administrator
Rebecca is a violinist and violist appearing with a number of the UK’s leading ensembles—from historical performance on period instruments, to contemporary classical, and dance band music. She has degrees from Oxford and the RNCM, studying with Remus Azoitei and Maciej Rakowski respectively. Their instruction proved invaluable for her own teaching at both Chetham’s and St Mary’s Edinburgh specialist music schools.
Having first encountered FLFV over ten years ago as a client, Rebecca is enthusiastically involved with innovative approaches to sound and setup with the workshop teams. She has also enjoyed working on Florian’s latest publication ‘The Makers of Tuscany’.
In her spare time you may find Rebecca lost in Golden Age Thinking: a condition which began not long after her appointment as Violinist of the Scarborough Spa Orchestra.
Maria da Gloria Leitao Venceslau
Publications Coordinator and Archival Researcher
Maria da Gloria Leitao Venceslau is a musicologist working on the relationships between organology and economic studies. She obtained her Bachelor and Master’s degrees at the Faculty of Musicology in Cremona, University of Pavia, and she completed her PhD in Music and Performing Arts at the Sapienza University of Rome. Several fellowships and awards, such as Jamis and Galpin Grant, have supported her studies and publications. Over the years, she worked continuously as a self-employed researcher on different organological projects. For FLVF, she was the research leader for the volume ‘The Makers of Central Italy’ and now for our latest publication, ‘The Makers of Tuscany’. Following a period of several years in South Korea, Gloria moved to the U.K. She then worked at the University of Southampton, and is now part of the FLFV team as our Publications Coordinator and Archival Researcher. She is also responsible for FLFV Articles Series, our new platform of online articles on crucial topics for the sector, published monthly on the Florian Leonhard Fine Violins website.
Luca Modaffari
Restorer
Bow Restorer Luca Modaffari carries out all areas of bow work, from rehairs and maintenance to more complex restorations.
Luca was born in the small town of Sarzana, on the north-west coast of Italy.
At the age of 12 he started playing guitar, and began soon after to start making effects pedals for himself and friends. After finishing high school, this evolved into instrument making and Luca decided to pursue further studies in lutherie.
After studying violin making and restoration in Cremona, Luca relocated to London where he worked for 4 years as a bow restorer at JP Guivier before joining the bow department at FLFV.
In his spare time Luca likes cooking and spending time with friends.
Sam Brouwer
New Maker
Sam Brouwer, born in 1990 in The Netherlands, started playing violin at the age of nine.
After his pre-university studies Sam started his training as a violinmaker at the International Lutherie School of Antwerp (Belgium) but decided in his second year to attend the renowned Newark School of Violin Making in the United Kingdom. During his time in Newark Sam received several awards from the RAB-Trust, e.g. work experiences, a special financial grant and a placement at the VSA Oberlin Violin Makers Workshop. Sam graduated with distinction.
After his studies in Newark Sam continued his training working with Ragnar Hayn in Berlin. Sam has been a member of the team at FLFV in London since February 2022.
Sam attended the VSA Oberlin Violin Makers Workshop both in 2017 and 2018.
Mr. Reginald
Mascot
Mr. Reginald is a small but notable member of the team. He is a natural at meeting clients and making them feel at ease. However, notwithstanding close scrutiny from his line manager, Arielle, he is frequently caught sleeping on the job.
Florian Leonhard
Director
Florian Leonhard has dedicated his life to studying, restoring and making violins. After Mittenwald he worked for W.E. Hill and Sons becoming Head Restorer. Today he leads his own team of restorers. Informed by 40 years of research, Florian’s bench copy instruments are sought after for their acoustic and visual closeness to the originals.
A regular contributor to books and articles and having published his books, ‘The Makers of Central Italy’ and the ‘Makers of Tuscany’, Florian is currently conducting research on the Bisiach family of makers for a book due to be published next year.
Florian is regularly called upon as a jury member for violin competitions, and has held the position of President at the Pisogne Making Competition in Cremona. Florian Leonhard Fine Violins is widely considered both the leading dealership and restoration workshop in the world.
Thomas Wei
Head of Sales
Tom actively engages with musicians to find them the very best instrument. For 20 years, he has worked closely with Florian and our restorers and makers to ensure that a bespoke service is supplied to every client who visits. Prior to this role, he pursued his studies in violin performance in Taiwan, moving to London in the early 90’s where he studied at the Purcell school and then the Royal Academy of Music. This background has proved invaluable, and affords him an understanding and passion to help fulfil the particular needs of the musician looking to get the very best from their long hours of practice. When he’s not working with musicians and instruments, Tom spends much of his spare time on the river with the Lea Rowing club in Hackney.
Julian Doring
Workshop Manager
Julian manages the workshop at FLFV London and enjoys leading an innovative and highly skilled collaborative team. After training at the Mittenwald School of Violin Making, he worked in Nuremburg, where he decided to focus on restoration and developed an interest in varnish making and retouching. A perfectionist with a sharp eye for detail, Julian is fascinated by the use of technology in restoration, and continues to expand his knowledge by attending workshops, researching and applying advanced restoration techniques. A violinist himself, Julian enjoys working alongside musicians to ensure their instrument reaches its full potential.
Melina Polizzi
Head of New Making
Melina was born in Venice, and grew up in Germany and Austria. She has always been interested in fine arts and crafts, which inspired her to move back to Italy. Melina completed her degree as a luthier at I.I.S Antonio Stradivari, Cremona, in 2011. Following her studies, Melina worked as an Assistant at Gregg Alf’s workshop in Venice and the U.S.A., before coming to work at Florian Leonhard Fine Violins in 2016 as a New Maker.
Lauri Tanner
Head of Bow Making and Restoration
Lauri made his first musical instrument when he was 15 years old. He first studied to be a guitar maker, and worked as a guitar maker in Helsinki for five years. Developing interest in the restoration of historical instruments, he decided to take up studying violin making at Newark School of Violin Making, graduating in 2013. During his studies, Lauri turned his attention to bows, attending the BVMA course and VSA Oberlin summer courses, before starting at Florian Leonhard Fine Violins in 2015. Lauri has a great interest in the working methods of old violins and bow makers, and enjoys reading historical woodworking publications. Lauri also lends his services as a bow restorer to the Royal Academy of Music two days a month.
Joe Stupple
Head of Business Development
Joe has worked for FLFV since 2009, after studying Music at Manchester. His first project was to coordinate the publishing of The Makers of Central Italy. After representing the company on one trip to New York, Joe continued to develop business across the pond, conducting a number of notable sales in the States and back at home since.
Joe works closely with our colleagues in San Francisco, Belgium, Hong Kong and Seoul, as well as looking after clients in London. In his spare time, he likes going to concerts and spending time with family.
Arielle Masliah
Office Manager
Arielle joined Florian Leonhard Fine Violins in 2014 as the Project Coordinator and since then, her role has grown to London Office Manager. She moved from Paris to study at University College London and progressed to working in the City as a data analyst. She was delighted with the opportunity for something completely different at FLFV, and her multi-lingual skills and background has served her well in the esoteric world of fine instruments. She organises Florian’s Far East marketing, participation in international competitions, business development, and assists him with all the instruments’ certifications. She is currently coordinating the forthcoming publication on ‘The Makers of Tuscany’. Whilst not a musician herself, she has been inspired by her experience of the classical music industry to take up playing the piano.
Justina Lui
Administrator
Justina is from Melbourne, Australia, and began playing the violin at the age of five. She has a Law LLB degree from the University of Melbourne, as well as a Graduate Diploma in Music (Violin Performance) from the Melbourne Conservatorium of Music. She has freelanced as a violinist and educator in Australia and France, where she undertook further study in chamber music and orchestral playing.
Passionate about new music and community engagement with classical music, Justina has also worked in the Contemporary Music Department at Schott Publishing and was the Shop Manager at Thwaites Fine Instruments and Bows in London. Justina joined the team at FLFV in 2019.
Patrick Smith
PA to Florian Leonhard & Office Administrator
Patrick joined FLFV in early 2020 as an Office Administrator and PA to Florian, after graduating the year before with a master’s degree from Bristol University in film scoring; a discipline he remains active in during his spare time. He comes from a very musical background and obtained his Bachelor’s degree in Music with German.
Yoav Finkelstein
Restorer
As a child, Yoav studied the violin at the Jerusalem Conservatory of Music. After working for several years as a computer programmer, he decided to follow his early passion to become a violin maker. He moved to Italy and attended the Parma School of Violin Making, where he learned the craft from the influential Violin Maker Renato Scrollavezza. Yoav then spent five years as a restorer in Tel Aviv, working intensively with local players. At that time, he was also appointed Violin Maker for the Keshet Eilon International Mastercourse, where he had the opportunity to meet both world-leading and upcoming musicians.
Upon joining Florian Leonhard’s team in 2019, Yoav moved to London with his family.
Ines Lecher
New Maker
Ines was studying Photography and Fine Arts in Vienna when she decided to train in violin making at Newark School of Violin Making and Repair. After completing her degree as a luthier, Ines moved to Berlin. Here, she mainly focused on restoration, whilst getting to know the different aspects of making by dipping into the world of Baroque instruments.
Ines joined the FLFV Team in 2020.
Georg Morgenstern
Restorer
Born into a musical family in Rostock, North Germany, Georg grew up surrounded by music and culture. His father is a violinist and his mother a teacher of Music and Art, so he soon became involved in drawing, painting, playing and singing classical music and enjoying taking part in opera and theatre throughout his early life. Gradually his passion for music, combined with a fascination for craftmanship and art, led Georg to study violinmaking at the violin making school in Mittenwald. After his studies Georg spent some years in South Germany and Switzerland focusing on new making and sound adjustment, before making the move to join our London team in 2021.
Elinor Bishop
Administrator
Elinor has lived in London all her life and began playing the cello when she was 3 years old. She studied Music at the University of York, and went on to do a Masters in Music Education at UCL.
She initially began working for FLFV in 2018 and has recently returned, combining it with her cello teaching practice. Elinor also writes for Music Teacher magazine, and teaches Early Years classes for her local music service. Outside of work, Elinor enjoys cooking and walking her dog.
Rebecca Smith
Administrator
Rebecca is a violinist and violist appearing with a number of the UK’s leading ensembles—from historical performance on period instruments, to contemporary classical, and dance band music. She has degrees from Oxford and the RNCM, studying with Remus Azoitei and Maciej Rakowski respectively. Their instruction proved invaluable for her own teaching at both Chetham’s and St Mary’s Edinburgh specialist music schools.
Having first encountered FLFV over ten years ago as a client, Rebecca is enthusiastically involved with innovative approaches to sound and setup with the workshop teams. She has also enjoyed working on Florian’s latest publication ‘The Makers of Tuscany’.
In her spare time you may find Rebecca lost in Golden Age Thinking: a condition which began not long after her appointment as Violinist of the Scarborough Spa Orchestra.
Maria da Gloria Leitao Venceslau
Publications Coordinator and Archival Researcher
Maria da Gloria Leitao Venceslau is a musicologist working on the relationships between organology and economic studies. She obtained her Bachelor and Master’s degrees at the Faculty of Musicology in Cremona, University of Pavia, and she completed her PhD in Music and Performing Arts at the Sapienza University of Rome. Several fellowships and awards, such as Jamis and Galpin Grant, have supported her studies and publications. Over the years, she worked continuously as a self-employed researcher on different organological projects. For FLVF, she was the research leader for the volume ‘The Makers of Central Italy’ and now for our latest publication, ‘The Makers of Tuscany’. Following a period of several years in South Korea, Gloria moved to the U.K. She then worked at the University of Southampton, and is now part of the FLFV team as our Publications Coordinator and Archival Researcher. She is also responsible for FLFV Articles Series, our new platform of online articles on crucial topics for the sector, published monthly on the Florian Leonhard Fine Violins website.
Luca Modaffari
Restorer
Bow Restorer Luca Modaffari carries out all areas of bow work, from rehairs and maintenance to more complex restorations.
Luca was born in the small town of Sarzana, on the north-west coast of Italy.
At the age of 12 he started playing guitar, and began soon after to start making effects pedals for himself and friends. After finishing high school, this evolved into instrument making and Luca decided to pursue further studies in lutherie.
After studying violin making and restoration in Cremona, Luca relocated to London where he worked for 4 years as a bow restorer at JP Guivier before joining the bow department at FLFV.
In his spare time Luca likes cooking and spending time with friends.
Sam Brouwer
New Maker
Sam Brouwer, born in 1990 in The Netherlands, started playing violin at the age of nine.
After his pre-university studies Sam started his training as a violinmaker at the International Lutherie School of Antwerp (Belgium) but decided in his second year to attend the renowned Newark School of Violin Making in the United Kingdom. During his time in Newark Sam received several awards from the RAB-Trust, e.g. work experiences, a special financial grant and a placement at the VSA Oberlin Violin Makers Workshop. Sam graduated with distinction.
After his studies in Newark Sam continued his training working with Ragnar Hayn in Berlin. Sam has been a member of the team at FLFV in London since February 2022.
Sam attended the VSA Oberlin Violin Makers Workshop both in 2017 and 2018.
Mr. Reginald
Mascot
Mr. Reginald is a small but notable member of the team. He is a natural at meeting clients and making them feel at ease. However, notwithstanding close scrutiny from his line manager, Arielle, he is frequently caught sleeping on the job.
Florian Leonhard
Director
Florian Leonhard has dedicated his life to studying, restoring and making violins. After Mittenwald he worked for W.E. Hill and Sons becoming Head Restorer. Today he leads his own team of restorers. Informed by 40 years of research, Florian’s bench copy instruments are sought after for their acoustic and visual closeness to the originals.
A regular contributor to books and articles and having published his books, ‘The Makers of Central Italy’ and the ‘Makers of Tuscany’, Florian is currently conducting research on the Bisiach family of makers for a book due to be published next year.
Florian is regularly called upon as a jury member for violin competitions, and has held the position of President at the Pisogne Making Competition in Cremona. Florian Leonhard Fine Violins is widely considered both the leading dealership and restoration workshop in the world.
Thomas Wei
Head of Sales
Tom actively engages with musicians to find them the very best instrument. For 20 years, he has worked closely with Florian and our restorers and makers to ensure that a bespoke service is supplied to every client who visits. Prior to this role, he pursued his studies in violin performance in Taiwan, moving to London in the early 90’s where he studied at the Purcell school and then the Royal Academy of Music. This background has proved invaluable, and affords him an understanding and passion to help fulfil the particular needs of the musician looking to get the very best from their long hours of practice. When he’s not working with musicians and instruments, Tom spends much of his spare time on the river with the Lea Rowing club in Hackney.
Julian Doring
Workshop Manager
Julian manages the workshop at FLFV London and enjoys leading an innovative and highly skilled collaborative team. After training at the Mittenwald School of Violin Making, he worked in Nuremburg, where he decided to focus on restoration and developed an interest in varnish making and retouching. A perfectionist with a sharp eye for detail, Julian is fascinated by the use of technology in restoration, and continues to expand his knowledge by attending workshops, researching and applying advanced restoration techniques. A violinist himself, Julian enjoys working alongside musicians to ensure their instrument reaches its full potential.
Melina Polizzi
Head of New Making
Melina was born in Venice, and grew up in Germany and Austria. She has always been interested in fine arts and crafts, which inspired her to move back to Italy. Melina completed her degree as a luthier at I.I.S Antonio Stradivari, Cremona, in 2011. Following her studies, Melina worked as an Assistant at Gregg Alf’s workshop in Venice and the U.S.A., before coming to work at Florian Leonhard Fine Violins in 2016 as a New Maker.
Lauri Tanner
Head of Bow Making and Restoration
Lauri made his first musical instrument when he was 15 years old. He first studied to be a guitar maker, and worked as a guitar maker in Helsinki for five years. Developing interest in the restoration of historical instruments, he decided to take up studying violin making at Newark School of Violin Making, graduating in 2013. During his studies, Lauri turned his attention to bows, attending the BVMA course and VSA Oberlin summer courses, before starting at Florian Leonhard Fine Violins in 2015. Lauri has a great interest in the working methods of old violins and bow makers, and enjoys reading historical woodworking publications. Lauri also lends his services as a bow restorer to the Royal Academy of Music two days a month.
Joe Stupple
Head of Business Development
Joe has worked for FLFV since 2009, after studying Music at Manchester. His first project was to coordinate the publishing of The Makers of Central Italy. After representing the company on one trip to New York, Joe continued to develop business across the pond, conducting a number of notable sales in the States and back at home since.
Joe works closely with our colleagues in San Francisco, Belgium, Hong Kong and Seoul, as well as looking after clients in London. In his spare time, he likes going to concerts and spending time with family.
Arielle Masliah
Office Manager
Arielle joined Florian Leonhard Fine Violins in 2014 as the Project Coordinator and since then, her role has grown to London Office Manager. She moved from Paris to study at University College London and progressed to working in the City as a data analyst. She was delighted with the opportunity for something completely different at FLFV, and her multi-lingual skills and background has served her well in the esoteric world of fine instruments. She organises Florian’s Far East marketing, participation in international competitions, business development, and assists him with all the instruments’ certifications. She is currently coordinating the forthcoming publication on ‘The Makers of Tuscany’. Whilst not a musician herself, she has been inspired by her experience of the classical music industry to take up playing the piano.
Justina Lui
Administrator
Justina is from Melbourne, Australia, and began playing the violin at the age of five. She has a Law LLB degree from the University of Melbourne, as well as a Graduate Diploma in Music (Violin Performance) from the Melbourne Conservatorium of Music. She has freelanced as a violinist and educator in Australia and France, where she undertook further study in chamber music and orchestral playing.
Passionate about new music and community engagement with classical music, Justina has also worked in the Contemporary Music Department at Schott Publishing and was the Shop Manager at Thwaites Fine Instruments and Bows in London. Justina joined the team at FLFV in 2019.
Patrick Smith
PA to Florian Leonhard & Office Administrator
Patrick joined FLFV in early 2020 as an Office Administrator and PA to Florian, after graduating the year before with a master’s degree from Bristol University in film scoring; a discipline he remains active in during his spare time. He comes from a very musical background and obtained his Bachelor’s degree in Music with German.
Yoav Finkelstein
Restorer
As a child, Yoav studied the violin at the Jerusalem Conservatory of Music. After working for several years as a computer programmer, he decided to follow his early passion to become a violin maker. He moved to Italy and attended the Parma School of Violin Making, where he learned the craft from the influential Violin Maker Renato Scrollavezza. Yoav then spent five years as a restorer in Tel Aviv, working intensively with local players. At that time, he was also appointed Violin Maker for the Keshet Eilon International Mastercourse, where he had the opportunity to meet both world-leading and upcoming musicians.
Upon joining Florian Leonhard’s team in 2019, Yoav moved to London with his family.
Ines Lecher
New Maker
Ines was studying Photography and Fine Arts in Vienna when she decided to train in violin making at Newark School of Violin Making and Repair. After completing her degree as a luthier, Ines moved to Berlin. Here, she mainly focused on restoration, whilst getting to know the different aspects of making by dipping into the world of Baroque instruments.
Ines joined the FLFV Team in 2020.
Georg Morgenstern
Restorer
Born into a musical family in Rostock, North Germany, Georg grew up surrounded by music and culture. His father is a violinist and his mother a teacher of Music and Art, so he soon became involved in drawing, painting, playing and singing classical music and enjoying taking part in opera and theatre throughout his early life. Gradually his passion for music, combined with a fascination for craftmanship and art, led Georg to study violinmaking at the violin making school in Mittenwald. After his studies Georg spent some years in South Germany and Switzerland focusing on new making and sound adjustment, before making the move to join our London team in 2021.
Elinor Bishop
Administrator
Elinor has lived in London all her life and began playing the cello when she was 3 years old. She studied Music at the University of York, and went on to do a Masters in Music Education at UCL.
She initially began working for FLFV in 2018 and has recently returned, combining it with her cello teaching practice. Elinor also writes for Music Teacher magazine, and teaches Early Years classes for her local music service. Outside of work, Elinor enjoys cooking and walking her dog.
Rebecca Smith
Administrator
Rebecca is a violinist and violist appearing with a number of the UK’s leading ensembles—from historical performance on period instruments, to contemporary classical, and dance band music. She has degrees from Oxford and the RNCM, studying with Remus Azoitei and Maciej Rakowski respectively. Their instruction proved invaluable for her own teaching at both Chetham’s and St Mary’s Edinburgh specialist music schools.
Having first encountered FLFV over ten years ago as a client, Rebecca is enthusiastically involved with innovative approaches to sound and setup with the workshop teams. She has also enjoyed working on Florian’s latest publication ‘The Makers of Tuscany’.
In her spare time you may find Rebecca lost in Golden Age Thinking: a condition which began not long after her appointment as Violinist of the Scarborough Spa Orchestra.
Maria da Gloria Leitao Venceslau
Publications Coordinator and Archival Researcher
Maria da Gloria Leitao Venceslau is a musicologist working on the relationships between organology and economic studies. She obtained her Bachelor and Master’s degrees at the Faculty of Musicology in Cremona, University of Pavia, and she completed her PhD in Music and Performing Arts at the Sapienza University of Rome. Several fellowships and awards, such as Jamis and Galpin Grant, have supported her studies and publications. Over the years, she worked continuously as a self-employed researcher on different organological projects. For FLVF, she was the research leader for the volume ‘The Makers of Central Italy’ and now for our latest publication, ‘The Makers of Tuscany’. Following a period of several years in South Korea, Gloria moved to the U.K. She then worked at the University of Southampton, and is now part of the FLFV team as our Publications Coordinator and Archival Researcher. She is also responsible for FLFV Articles Series, our new platform of online articles on crucial topics for the sector, published monthly on the Florian Leonhard Fine Violins website.
Luca Modaffari
Restorer
Bow Restorer Luca Modaffari carries out all areas of bow work, from rehairs and maintenance to more complex restorations.
Luca was born in the small town of Sarzana, on the north-west coast of Italy.
At the age of 12 he started playing guitar, and began soon after to start making effects pedals for himself and friends. After finishing high school, this evolved into instrument making and Luca decided to pursue further studies in lutherie.
After studying violin making and restoration in Cremona, Luca relocated to London where he worked for 4 years as a bow restorer at JP Guivier before joining the bow department at FLFV.
In his spare time Luca likes cooking and spending time with friends.
Sam Brouwer
New Maker
Sam Brouwer, born in 1990 in The Netherlands, started playing violin at the age of nine.
After his pre-university studies Sam started his training as a violinmaker at the International Lutherie School of Antwerp (Belgium) but decided in his second year to attend the renowned Newark School of Violin Making in the United Kingdom. During his time in Newark Sam received several awards from the RAB-Trust, e.g. work experiences, a special financial grant and a placement at the VSA Oberlin Violin Makers Workshop. Sam graduated with distinction.
After his studies in Newark Sam continued his training working with Ragnar Hayn in Berlin. Sam has been a member of the team at FLFV in London since February 2022.
Sam attended the VSA Oberlin Violin Makers Workshop both in 2017 and 2018.
Mr. Reginald
Mascot
Mr. Reginald is a small but notable member of the team. He is a natural at meeting clients and making them feel at ease. However, notwithstanding close scrutiny from his line manager, Arielle, he is frequently caught sleeping on the job.
Florian Leonhard
Director
Florian Leonhard has dedicated his life to studying, restoring and making violins. After Mittenwald he worked for W.E. Hill and Sons becoming Head Restorer. Today he leads his own team of restorers. Informed by 40 years of research, Florian’s bench copy instruments are sought after for their acoustic and visual closeness to the originals.
A regular contributor to books and articles and having published his books, ‘The Makers of Central Italy’ and the ‘Makers of Tuscany’, Florian is currently conducting research on the Bisiach family of makers for a book due to be published next year.
Florian is regularly called upon as a jury member for violin competitions, and has held the position of President at the Pisogne Making Competition in Cremona. Florian Leonhard Fine Violins is widely considered both the leading dealership and restoration workshop in the world.
Thomas Wei
Head of Sales
Tom actively engages with musicians to find them the very best instrument. For 20 years, he has worked closely with Florian and our restorers and makers to ensure that a bespoke service is supplied to every client who visits. Prior to this role, he pursued his studies in violin performance in Taiwan, moving to London in the early 90’s where he studied at the Purcell school and then the Royal Academy of Music. This background has proved invaluable, and affords him an understanding and passion to help fulfil the particular needs of the musician looking to get the very best from their long hours of practice. When he’s not working with musicians and instruments, Tom spends much of his spare time on the river with the Lea Rowing club in Hackney.
Julian Doring
Workshop Manager
Julian manages the workshop at FLFV London and enjoys leading an innovative and highly skilled collaborative team. After training at the Mittenwald School of Violin Making, he worked in Nuremburg, where he decided to focus on restoration and developed an interest in varnish making and retouching. A perfectionist with a sharp eye for detail, Julian is fascinated by the use of technology in restoration, and continues to expand his knowledge by attending workshops, researching and applying advanced restoration techniques. A violinist himself, Julian enjoys working alongside musicians to ensure their instrument reaches its full potential.
Melina Polizzi
Head of New Making
Melina was born in Venice, and grew up in Germany and Austria. She has always been interested in fine arts and crafts, which inspired her to move back to Italy. Melina completed her degree as a luthier at I.I.S Antonio Stradivari, Cremona, in 2011. Following her studies, Melina worked as an Assistant at Gregg Alf’s workshop in Venice and the U.S.A., before coming to work at Florian Leonhard Fine Violins in 2016 as a New Maker.
Lauri Tanner
Head of Bow Making and Restoration
Lauri made his first musical instrument when he was 15 years old. He first studied to be a guitar maker, and worked as a guitar maker in Helsinki for five years. Developing interest in the restoration of historical instruments, he decided to take up studying violin making at Newark School of Violin Making, graduating in 2013. During his studies, Lauri turned his attention to bows, attending the BVMA course and VSA Oberlin summer courses, before starting at Florian Leonhard Fine Violins in 2015. Lauri has a great interest in the working methods of old violins and bow makers, and enjoys reading historical woodworking publications. Lauri also lends his services as a bow restorer to the Royal Academy of Music two days a month.
Joe Stupple
Head of Business Development
Joe has worked for FLFV since 2009, after studying Music at Manchester. His first project was to coordinate the publishing of The Makers of Central Italy. After representing the company on one trip to New York, Joe continued to develop business across the pond, conducting a number of notable sales in the States and back at home since.
Joe works closely with our colleagues in San Francisco, Belgium, Hong Kong and Seoul, as well as looking after clients in London. In his spare time, he likes going to concerts and spending time with family.
Arielle Masliah
Office Manager
Arielle joined Florian Leonhard Fine Violins in 2014 as the Project Coordinator and since then, her role has grown to London Office Manager. She moved from Paris to study at University College London and progressed to working in the City as a data analyst. She was delighted with the opportunity for something completely different at FLFV, and her multi-lingual skills and background has served her well in the esoteric world of fine instruments. She organises Florian’s Far East marketing, participation in international competitions, business development, and assists him with all the instruments’ certifications. She is currently coordinating the forthcoming publication on ‘The Makers of Tuscany’. Whilst not a musician herself, she has been inspired by her experience of the classical music industry to take up playing the piano.
Justina Lui
Administrator
Justina is from Melbourne, Australia, and began playing the violin at the age of five. She has a Law LLB degree from the University of Melbourne, as well as a Graduate Diploma in Music (Violin Performance) from the Melbourne Conservatorium of Music. She has freelanced as a violinist and educator in Australia and France, where she undertook further study in chamber music and orchestral playing.
Passionate about new music and community engagement with classical music, Justina has also worked in the Contemporary Music Department at Schott Publishing and was the Shop Manager at Thwaites Fine Instruments and Bows in London. Justina joined the team at FLFV in 2019.
Patrick Smith
PA to Florian Leonhard & Office Administrator
Patrick joined FLFV in early 2020 as an Office Administrator and PA to Florian, after graduating the year before with a master’s degree from Bristol University in film scoring; a discipline he remains active in during his spare time. He comes from a very musical background and obtained his Bachelor’s degree in Music with German.
Yoav Finkelstein
Restorer
As a child, Yoav studied the violin at the Jerusalem Conservatory of Music. After working for several years as a computer programmer, he decided to follow his early passion to become a violin maker. He moved to Italy and attended the Parma School of Violin Making, where he learned the craft from the influential Violin Maker Renato Scrollavezza. Yoav then spent five years as a restorer in Tel Aviv, working intensively with local players. At that time, he was also appointed Violin Maker for the Keshet Eilon International Mastercourse, where he had the opportunity to meet both world-leading and upcoming musicians.
Upon joining Florian Leonhard’s team in 2019, Yoav moved to London with his family.
Ines Lecher
New Maker
Ines was studying Photography and Fine Arts in Vienna when she decided to train in violin making at Newark School of Violin Making and Repair. After completing her degree as a luthier, Ines moved to Berlin. Here, she mainly focused on restoration, whilst getting to know the different aspects of making by dipping into the world of Baroque instruments.
Ines joined the FLFV Team in 2020.
Georg Morgenstern
Restorer
Born into a musical family in Rostock, North Germany, Georg grew up surrounded by music and culture. His father is a violinist and his mother a teacher of Music and Art, so he soon became involved in drawing, painting, playing and singing classical music and enjoying taking part in opera and theatre throughout his early life. Gradually his passion for music, combined with a fascination for craftmanship and art, led Georg to study violinmaking at the violin making school in Mittenwald. After his studies Georg spent some years in South Germany and Switzerland focusing on new making and sound adjustment, before making the move to join our London team in 2021.
Elinor Bishop
Administrator
Elinor has lived in London all her life and began playing the cello when she was 3 years old. She studied Music at the University of York, and went on to do a Masters in Music Education at UCL.
She initially began working for FLFV in 2018 and has recently returned, combining it with her cello teaching practice. Elinor also writes for Music Teacher magazine, and teaches Early Years classes for her local music service. Outside of work, Elinor enjoys cooking and walking her dog.
Rebecca Smith
Administrator
Rebecca is a violinist and violist appearing with a number of the UK’s leading ensembles—from historical performance on period instruments, to contemporary classical, and dance band music. She has degrees from Oxford and the RNCM, studying with Remus Azoitei and Maciej Rakowski respectively. Their instruction proved invaluable for her own teaching at both Chetham’s and St Mary’s Edinburgh specialist music schools.
Having first encountered FLFV over ten years ago as a client, Rebecca is enthusiastically involved with innovative approaches to sound and setup with the workshop teams. She has also enjoyed working on Florian’s latest publication ‘The Makers of Tuscany’.
In her spare time you may find Rebecca lost in Golden Age Thinking: a condition which began not long after her appointment as Violinist of the Scarborough Spa Orchestra.
Maria da Gloria Leitao Venceslau
Publications Coordinator and Archival Researcher
Maria da Gloria Leitao Venceslau is a musicologist working on the relationships between organology and economic studies. She obtained her Bachelor and Master’s degrees at the Faculty of Musicology in Cremona, University of Pavia, and she completed her PhD in Music and Performing Arts at the Sapienza University of Rome. Several fellowships and awards, such as Jamis and Galpin Grant, have supported her studies and publications. Over the years, she worked continuously as a self-employed researcher on different organological projects. For FLVF, she was the research leader for the volume ‘The Makers of Central Italy’ and now for our latest publication, ‘The Makers of Tuscany’. Following a period of several years in South Korea, Gloria moved to the U.K. She then worked at the University of Southampton, and is now part of the FLFV team as our Publications Coordinator and Archival Researcher. She is also responsible for FLFV Articles Series, our new platform of online articles on crucial topics for the sector, published monthly on the Florian Leonhard Fine Violins website.
Luca Modaffari
Restorer
Bow Restorer Luca Modaffari carries out all areas of bow work, from rehairs and maintenance to more complex restorations.
Luca was born in the small town of Sarzana, on the north-west coast of Italy.
At the age of 12 he started playing guitar, and began soon after to start making effects pedals for himself and friends. After finishing high school, this evolved into instrument making and Luca decided to pursue further studies in lutherie.
After studying violin making and restoration in Cremona, Luca relocated to London where he worked for 4 years as a bow restorer at JP Guivier before joining the bow department at FLFV.
In his spare time Luca likes cooking and spending time with friends.
Sam Brouwer
New Maker
Sam Brouwer, born in 1990 in The Netherlands, started playing violin at the age of nine.
After his pre-university studies Sam started his training as a violinmaker at the International Lutherie School of Antwerp (Belgium) but decided in his second year to attend the renowned Newark School of Violin Making in the United Kingdom. During his time in Newark Sam received several awards from the RAB-Trust, e.g. work experiences, a special financial grant and a placement at the VSA Oberlin Violin Makers Workshop. Sam graduated with distinction.
After his studies in Newark Sam continued his training working with Ragnar Hayn in Berlin. Sam has been a member of the team at FLFV in London since February 2022.
Sam attended the VSA Oberlin Violin Makers Workshop both in 2017 and 2018.
Mr. Reginald
Mascot
Mr. Reginald is a small but notable member of the team. He is a natural at meeting clients and making them feel at ease. However, notwithstanding close scrutiny from his line manager, Arielle, he is frequently caught sleeping on the job.
