. More than 140 years .
Nestled in the foothills of the Ore mountains (Erzgebirge) lies the picturesque town of Luby formerly Schönbach which can be described as the cradle of the Bohemian and German instrument making tradition dating back more than 400 years. The relatively mild climate and the protection of the mountains, the pine and acorn forests provided the ideal circumstances and materials for the making of various string instruments. The Hannabach family was also amongst those who were attracted by the rapid growth of Schönbach and they settled there to make a living from the many opportunities that the music trade offered in those days.
It is in the year 1869 that Anton Hannabach founded the “Anton Hannabach, Musikinstrumenten- und Saitenfabrikation” musical instruments and string manufacturing company in Eger, Bohemia . Besides the trading of high quality string instruments, Anton started with the making of fine instrument strings by hand. Anton Hannabach’s son Karl followed in the footsteps of his father and took over the management of the family business in 1910. He married Rosalia Müller who gave birth to 5 children of which two sons, Arthur and Adolf continued the family tradition.
After the Second World War, both Arthur and Adolf leave Schönbach for the German province of Bavaria where they settle in Bubenreuth and Egglkofen respectively. Arthur specializes in guitars and even today his son, Gerold Karl Hannabach, is a well known and respected guitarmaker in Bubenreuth.
Adolf together with his wife Elisabeth and his son Werner start in their new hometown of Egglkofen with the specialization of string making. The business had to be rebuilt from scratch with only their acquired knowledge and tradition and hard work as the main attributes. Adolf started off in the passage of a family home and then moved to the ballroom of the local tavern (Gasthof Schober).
In time, 3 machines were acquired and in 1956 he was able to purchase some land in Sonnenweg in Egglkofen where the first formal production site was settled in a small workshop. The company is still located on the same premises even today.
Werner Hannabach, the son of Adolf and Elisabeth joins the company in 1962. In 1965 he marries Maria (Maridi) Schwaiger whom he met during a holiday in Austria. Maridi joins Werner in the management of the company and they build up the company to what it is today. Their two sons Uwe (1966) and Jörg (1971) are involved in the company from their early ages. While Jörg decides to follow a career as a musician, Uwe again follows in the footsteps of his father and grandfather and carries on with the family tradition of string making. In 1991 Uwe joins the company and in 1995 becomes the General Manager of Hannabach.
After the tragic and untimely death of Uwe, Werner and Maridi again take over the management of the company until June 2008 when it is sold to Larsen Strings Holdings of Denmark.
The tradition of the Hannabach family is so closely knit with the company that even a new ownership cannot change this. Werner Hannabach is still active in the company on a daily basis and assists with product training, repairs and custom made items. He has been active in an advisory capacity on the development of new product lines and in the optimization of production processes. This also ensures the continuation of the Hannabach legacy.
