About L. Dalton Potter Expertise I have been involved in the violin trade for over 28 years. I am currently the President of The Potter Violin Company in Bethesda, MD. I can offer clients initial advice on the value, authenticity and quality of almost all bowed string instruments (violins, violas, cellos & basses) using good quality digital photos. I would decline to give final evaluations without examining instruments in person.
Experience Experience in Music Business: Charlie Byrd's Music House; 1977 - 1980
Senior violin technician: Violin House of Weaver; 1980 - 1996.
President: The Potter Violin Company; 1996 - Present
Organizations: Founding member;String Industry Council, Violin Society of America, American String Teachers Association, Guild of American Luthiers,
Suzuki Association of America, Publications; Journal of the American String Teacher's Association, American Suzuki Journal Education/Credentials;Berklee College of Music 1974 - 1977
Awards and Honors: Chester J. Patranek Award for Excellence in the Music Industry
Traugott Rohner Leadership in the Music Industry Award
(26 years of service - too many to list)
Expert: L. Dalton Potter Date: 4/2/2008 Subject: German Violin
Question I have an old 4/4 violin, I belive it was German made based on the case and bow that were with it that had german markings, and appeared to be roughly the same condition as the violin. I boroscoped the interior and found a fancy D 75 written on the front / bottom , but no other markings. Is there any way to determine the maker from that mark? I thought maybe it stood for December 1875, but that's just a guess. Thanks
Answer Hi David,
It's hard to work from just a text description but I can tell you that with a couple of notable exceptions, most of the German-made violins from the past century were not signed or inscribed by the "maker" in any way. The often have facsimile labels denoting the model after which they were copied. However, it is quite common for instruments which have been repaired or restored in some way to be marked in someway by the repairman. Often, these inscriptions were merely a way of keeping track of the separated parts because they might have been working on several instruments at the same time. You are welcome to email me photos at dalton@pottersviolins.com and I will try to give you some more information if I can..
Dalton Potter
