Framus
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| Private | |
| Industry | String instruments |
| Founded | Schönbach, Germany (1946) |
| Founder | Fred Wilfer |
| Defunct | 1975-1995 |
| Headquarters | Markneukirchen, Germany |
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Area served
|
Global |
| Products |
Violins Violas Cellos Double basses Dulcimers Zithers Lutes Classical, archtop, acoustic and electric guitars Lap & pedal steel guitars Acoustic & electric basses Electric upright basses Ukuleles Banjos Mandolins Amplifiers |
| Owner | Hans-Peter Wilfer |
| Divisions | Warwick GmbH & Co Music Equipment KG |
| Subsidiaries | Giannini Drums |
| Website |
Framus Vintage website Framus International website |
Framus is a German string instrument manufacturing company, that existed from 1946 until going bankrupt in 1975. The Framus brand was revived in 1995 as part of Warwick GmbH & Co Music Equipment KG in Markneukirchen, Germany. Their headquarters and custom shops are located in Markneukirchen, Shanghai, New York City, and Nashville.
Framus originated in the town of Schönbach, today called Luby u Chebu in the area of Eger. The city at the foot of the Erzgebirge was shaped by the music. Violins and other string instruments have been manufactured and exported from Schönbach worldwide. There, in the Bohemian area, the founder of Framus, Fred Wilfer was born in 1917. After World War II, when he heard about the expulsion plans of the allied forces in his south eastern Germany homeland (which was probably soon becoming part of the Soviet Union), he decided to build up a new basis for his countryman and the music industry in the west.
Even before the first train was going to transport violin makers from Schönbach to other areas, Fred Wilfer contacted different government authorities in Bavaria and told them about his plans. The Bavarian government welcomed his plans and asked him to create all conditions needed for the settlement to Bavaria. In 1946 he founded the FRAMUS works... the name being an acronym of FRAnconian MUSical instruments and designed to draw attention to the fact that the celebrated violin makers of Schönbach had made Franconia their new home.
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Wikipedia