vailsymposium

Third-generation Israeli violin maker Avshalom Weinstein was trained by his father, master violin-maker Amnon Weinstein.  He began working with his father in their Tel Aviv atelier in 1998 as a violin-maker and restorer of violins, violas and cellos of the highest level.

He is trained in the tradition of the Italian Cremonese School of violin-makers and the French school of restoration. Weinstein also joined his father in Keshet Eilon Violin- and Bow-making atelier at Keshet Eilon Master Class for young violinists each summer since 1998. He was invited to join the CAKA Program (Cihat Askin and Kucuk Arkadaslari) in Turkey in 2006, and has been working during CAKA courses since then. Weinstein opened his own workshop in Istanbul in 2009, where he continues the family tradition.

Weinstein has also been training with Master Bow-Maker Daniel Schmidt from Dresden in bow repairs since 2009.

Weinstein is the founder of Violin of Hope project together with his father. Violins of Hope refers to the Weinsteins’ collection of instruments with unique stories dating back to Jewish musical tradition and World War II. Both Amnon and Avshalom Weinstein collect these instruments and restore them with love and attention and bring them back to life as concert instruments.

Since 2006, Violins of Hope were invited by leading orchestras and music festivals in Europe and America, among which was The Berliner Philharmoniker (on 27th January 2015); the Cleveland Symphony in September 2015; and many others.  The project also includes chamber music concerts as well as educational programs, lectures, exhibitions of instruments and their histories.