Wind Instrument Making

In Schwaz, Andrä Hochschwarzer commonly known as “Klarinett-Anderl” (1825-1902) repaired violins, zithers and guitars and built some new string instruments, but mainly clarinets and flutes.[61] The wood turner Felix Aggstein manufactured flutes, oboes “and other musical wind stuff” in Wilten in 1721 and became a resident of Innsbruck in 1729. Franz Krismer (1790-1847) also carried on the trade of building woodwind instruments in Innsbruck. Johann Groß’smusic store in Innsbruck set up a repair workshop for wind instruments in 1833 and also employed German-Bohemian journeymen for building new ones. This is where Franz Wenzel Leibelt (1814-1856) of Kothau near Heinrichsgrün, Bohmia, worked until 1844, after which time he went into business for himself. His widow married Groß’s journeyman Anton Brambach (†1875), who carried on the workshop and produced mainly woodwind instruments. In June 1875 the musical instrument maker Anton Tutz (1842-1919) of Trinksaifen in German Bohemia (Deutschböhmen) established his own operation in Innsbruck. He had worked for Johann Groß before that and continued to do repairs for him. Rudolf (I) Tutz (1880-1952), Rudolf (II) Tutz (1909-1963) and Rudolf (III) Tutz (*1940) each took over the workshop of their respective father. Rudolf (III) Tutz is still building all kinds of wood and brass wind instruments, including excellent copies of old master instruments in Innsbruck at the present time. Anton Brein(d)l of Graslitz, Bohemia, built wind instruments in Innsbruck from 1857 to about 1875. Tyrolean musicians acquired their wind instruments not only from Bohemian makers then living in the Tyrol but could also order directly from Bohemia, for instance through Paul Fatka (†1860). He had come to Innsbruck from Bohemia in 1815 to join the newly founded imperial riflemen’s orchestra (Kaiserjägerkapelle) and was able to establish himself in town as a trader in instruments from his former homeland. After his death this trading business passed over to Johann Groß.
The following are some of the wind instrument makers active in the 19th century: Fridolin Berktold in Bichlbach (about 1826, clarinets), Hans Prockl in Schwaz (about 1900), C. Hauser in Waidring (first half of the 19th century, clarinets), Peter Eder and Mathias Seissel (about 1900) in Kufstein, Franz Mayr in Lienz (about 1800), and in Bozen there were Johann Schgaguler (mid- to second half of the 19th century) and Franz Hetfleisch (about 1850), Johann Plaschke of Graslitz (establishment of his enterprise in 1882) and the German-Bohemian Wenzel Zöttel (about 1910).[62] A local instrument builder in the Zillertal was the carpenter and joiner Franz Dreml (1825 Schwendberg - 1914 Laimach). He was a clarinetist who had learned instrument making on his own and knew how to repair church organs and even how to set up a new, small, chamber organ. He was mostly occupied with creating woodwind instruments that were, however, built like brass instruments with keys, for example a Bombardon from a piece of tree trunk and a Bombardin from fence posts. Instruments of this kind were played by the Holzknittel-Musikkapelle, a band founded by Dreml, which traveled as far as America for concerts. The instruments for the Mayrhofener Holzknittelkapelle around 1900 had been created by August Knauer.[63]

Fussnote

[61]Willibald Leo Freiherr von LÜTGENDORFF, Die Geigen- und Lautenmacher vom Mittelalter bis zur Gegenwart, 1st edn, Frankfurt am Main 1904; 6th edn repr Tutzing 1975, vol. 1, p. 167; vol. 2, p. 218;
Karel JALOVEC, Deutsche und österreichische Geigenbauer, Brünn 1967, p. 178;
TOTENBUCH der Pfarrkirche Schwaz 1902 (film in Tiroler Landesarchiv Innsbruck, no. 705).
 
[62] Information kindly provided in verbal communication by Univ.-Prof. Dr. Walter Senn (†) and Rudolf (III) Tutz;
Manfred SCHNEIDER, Franz Krismer 1790-1847): Traversflöte Innsbruck, um 1825, CD booklet Musikinstrumente des Ferdinandeums 7, Innsbruck 19, p. f;
Erich EGG and Wolfgang PFAUNDLER, Das große Tiroler Blasmusikbuch, Vienna etc. 1979, p. 162f;
Egon KÜHEBACHER, 150 Jahre Musikkapelle Innichen 1834-1984, Innichen 1984, p. 17;
Herbert HEYDE, Das Ventilblasinstrument: Seine Entwicklung im deutschsprachigen Raum von den Anfängen bis zur Gegenwart, Leipzig 1987, p. 71, 234, 142;
John Henry VAN DER MEER, Verzeichnis der Europäischen Musikinstrumente im Germanischen Nationalmuseum Nürnberg 1 (Quellen-Kataloge zur Musikgeschichte 16), Wilhelmshaven 1979, p. 42, 50ff, 63, 175;
Hildegard HERRMANN-SCHNEIDER, “‘Mit lieblichen Stimmen sich lustig hören lassen’ - Vom Musizieren der Bergleute in Tirol,” Silber, Erz und weißes Gold: Bergbau in Tirol, exh. cat. Tiroler Landesausstellung 1990 in Schwaz, Innsbruck 1990, p. 429.
 
[63] Karl FRONTULL, “Franz Dreml, ein Zillertaler Instrumentenmacher,” Tiroler Heimatblätter 30 (1955) p. 70f;
TIROLER Tageszeitung (17 August 1978) p. 4.