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Frank Kovanda: bow man to the stars

2026-07-10T08:55:00

Poss lead -Kovanda working in Lewis workshop colorized c1930s

Frank Kovanda is acknowledged as one of America’s finest 20th-century bow makers. Gennady Filimonov tells his story and examines some examples of his work

The American bow maker Frank Kovanda (1904–93) enjoyed the prestige of international fame in his own lifetime. During his tenure at William Lewis & Son in Chicago, he numbered among his patrons practically all of the world’s great soloists. These included such names as Mischa Elman, Jascha Heifetz, Emanuel Feuermann, Zino Francescatti, Raya Garbousova, Louis Kaufman, Fritz Kreisler, Yehudi Menuhin, Nathan Milstein, Gregor Piatigorsky, William Primrose, Joseph Schuster and Joseph Szigeti…

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