Eastman String



After graduating from Boston University School of Music, Qian Ni, a talented flautist from Beijing, created Eastman in 1992. He never thought that the company would expand from a modest operation run out of the trunk of his car to a global music supplier over the course of 30 years.

He made a strategic decision in 1994 that would pave the way for Eastman's rapid growth over the next three decades. He opened his first master workshop in the style of these great German luthier workshops, rather than running a distribution business. Eastman Strings' reputation for tonal beauty and standard-bearing craftsmanship was established at this workshop on the outskirts of Beijing.The top two luthiers he worked with then are still managing the string shops today.The Eastman workshop works in the same way that late-nineteenth-century European workshops did. The principal tools needed to produce these modern instruments are chisels, knives, and scrapers in the hands of exceptionally talented craftspeople.

Each model is given a wonderful voice and appearance that can only be accomplished by hand using these techniques. Every day, Eastman honors this legacy, as it has for the previous 500 years in the shops of renowned luthiers.

Eastman's pedigree may be traced back hundreds of years to German luthier traditions from the 17th century. While many of the most valuable instruments from the 17th and 18th centuries are regarded to be Italian today, many of the most well-known "Italian" builders, such as Steiner, Goffriller, and Tecchler, were actually German.

Making instruments for a wide range of performers in many genres is a labour of passion for me. EASTMAN STRING is constantly striving to provide high-quality instruments for musicians so that they can enjoy wonderful music as well.