Project
5th edition | August 28, 2026 – September 5, 2026 | Freilichtmuseum Ensemble Gerersdorf, Güssing, Austria
A 8-day workshop situated in a open air museum-village in the Austrian lowland Burgenland. This course focusses on passing handcraft knowledge to everyone interested, especially to whom interested in learning the craft of luthiery for probably entering into a professional career. The making of modern, early or baroque stringinstruments is on what this course is specialized. You will complete with a high quality, handmade instrument crafted from quality tonewood by your own hands. Depending on the project it might take you two to three courses until the projects complete finishing.
How can I do it? – Maintained tools, workspaces and reference materials are provided. Participants are guided by professional master craftsmen with teaching and instructional skills, tailored to best suit each participant’s abilities. No prior knowledge is required!
For further information and registration, please send us an e-mail! paredes-meias@constructlab.net
3rd edition | May 2, 2026 – May 8, 2026 | Associação De Moradores Da Bouça, Porto, Portugal
A 7-day workshop in Porto, where you can build an instrument of your choice. You will complete this workshop with a quality, handmade instrument crafted from quality tonewood.
What can I build? – Classical and modern string instruments or whatever has strings.
How can I do it? – Maintained tools, workspaces and reference materials are provided. Participants are guided by professional master craftsmen with teaching and instructional skills, tailored to best suit each participant’s abilities. No prior knowledge is required!
For further information and registration, please send us an e-mail! paredes-meias@constructlab.net
Fotos: Ana Carvalho dos Santos, Illustration: Ana Simões
2nd edition | prevision autumn 2026 | KUGA – Kulturna zadruga, Veliki Borištof, Austria
Similar to the above mentioned courses, this focusses on the making and preservation of traditional pannonian stringinstruments, present in folk music in the Austrian state Burgenland, western Hungary, Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and other regions in the Balkans – the Tamburica! Similar to the macedonian tambure, both originally beeing brought to Europe from Persia.
The tamburica consists of several instruments, from the smallest to the biggest: Bisernica/Prim, Brač/Basprim, Bugarija/Kontra, Čelovic, Berda/Bass. Also other traditional instruments can be made in this course.
Veliki Borištof is a Burgenland-Croatian village. This Austrian ethnic group has been at home in Burgenland for over 450 years – Croats, Hungarians and German speakers in this European border region provide one of the few examples of centuries of peaceful coexistence between several ethnic groups. The KUGA – Kulturna zadruga – is the intercultural center of this region and reflects its cultural and linguistic diversity. The most important goals of the association are to promote multilingualism in Burgenland, organize cultural events, expand the cultural and educational offerings in the region, promote creative work and promote intercultural communication through courses, discussions and workshops.
For further information and registration, please send us an e-mail! paredes-meias@constructlab.net
Fotos: Margit Szombath
This workshop, held in collaboration with the Violin Making Atelier Szombath, Porto, aims to pass knoledge to teachers and students how to do basic maintenance and servicing treatment of their instruments, a brief introduction to the history of the instruments and their evolution over time, from antiquity to the present. The topics covered in the workshop are:
Proper treating of varnishes / wood treatment and string longevity / maintenance of tuning pegs / bridge maintenance and its influence on the sound / provision for surface protection / annual maintenance.
During the workshop, participants have the opportunity to try out the mentioned techniques using their instruments. The workshop covers classical instruments, such as the violin, viola and cello, as well as ancient instruments, such as the viola gamba, renaissance and baroque guitars and the lute.
