Violin Atelier Schmidt

About Violin Atelier Schmidt

Violin Atelier Schmidt is a professional repair shop and consultation center for violin-family instruments located on Compton Crescent in the Lockwood Park neighbourhood of London. The business serves string players of all levels, from beginners to professionals, throughout southwestern Ontario and the surrounding regions. The shop provides comprehensive maintenance, repair, and restoration services for violins, violas, cellos, and basses. Specific services include gluing open seams, adjusting or replacing pegs, dressing fingerboards, cleaning and touching-in varnish, and installing new sound posts and bridges. The shop also performs complex restorations such as neck grafts, sound post patches, fitting new bass bars, and correcting sunken plate archings. Additionally, the business offers bow services, including rehairing with Mongolian Stallion hair and replacing leather grips or faceplates. Customers can also purchase student models, fine handmade violins, high-quality strings, and various accessories. The business is owned and operated by luthier Matthew Schmidt, who received a formal education in violinmaking from the Mittenwald Violinmaking School in Bavaria, Germany. His training included building, varnishing, setting-up, identifying, and studying the history of violin-family instruments. Before opening this shop, Matthew worked at Geo. Heinl & Company Ltd. in Toronto, where he was responsible for the maintenance and high-level restoration of many valuable instruments. He describes his approach as one based on honesty, integrity, and a deep respect for instruments as historical works of art. Clients are invited to visit the shop for consultations or to learn more about the services offered over a mug of coffee. While the shop is generally available on weekdays, visitors are asked to make an appointment in advance. The facility features central air conditioning, humidity control, and a monitored security system to ensure the safety of the instruments.