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“KENMORE VIOLINS. If you need a violin, viola, cello, bass, or
mandoline, this is THE PLACE to go! Jeff Loen, owner and master luthier will
take good care of you.”
-from a Mom & Daughter duo who perform locally
“I just wanted to take a
minute to THANK YOU for taking time today to share your knowledge and your
kindness. Your gentle way of
listening and teaching holds the same peaceful energy as does the shop, and
the beautiful pieces awaiting homes that rest in it.
Within a month, I plan to visit again to purchase one of those special
instruments.
Thank you again for sharing stories and your passion for creating.
See you soon”
-from a violin enthusiast
“We want to thank you for your excellent
workmanship and expertise on the cello repair. We have so enjoyed doing business with
you and appreciate your honesty and integrity. Our daughter who plays violin still
cherishes hers and you will be glad to know that it is still in beautiful
shape and sounds even richer than when we first purchased it from you. We recommend your shop whenever we can!”
-from a parent of string players
“Your violin
is in very appreciative hands. I'm sorry I haven't sent a note sooner
to say how pleased I am with the violin. I am enjoying it more and
more every day.
You may also
be pleased to know that after I left your shop calling it my own, we went
to the other shop to return the other bows, and they had two instruments
ready for me to try at three times the price. I thought I still had bought the best
instrument.”
-from a teacher and symphony member
“I am still enjoying your violin. It sounds good
wherever I play, and I just love how well it stays in tune from day to day.
It has been a real pleasure to play.”
-from
the same teacher and symphony member, 9 months after violin purchase
“Just a note to
thank you for the work you did on my bow.
I realize you went the extra mile for me. Thanks so much. You’ll be hearing from me again.”
-from a violinist
“Thanks again
for your expert job in rehairing my Sartory
violin bow. It plays like a dream.”
-from a teacher and performer
“I am very impressed
with the level of service and knowledge you provided during my undertaking
of looking for a new violin. During
my visit to your shop, you were very friendly and patient. Furthermore, you went the extra mile by
giving interesting insight into the history and care of the violin. Overall, a wonderful experience and I
look forward to doing business with you in the future!”
-from a classical violinist
“I have been very pleased with the
quality of service you have given me and my students.
Most recently, you patiently walked a
family through a violin purchase, helping them make a difficult
decision. Earlier you restored the
camber on my bow, bringing it back to its original playing capability, and
gave me thorough and prompt appraisals of my instruments for
insurance. I trust your
professionalism, and regard you as a very honest and capable technician”
--from a
classical string teacher
“You rebuilt the bow for my violin built
in 1902 by my grandfather for his daughter, my mother. You thought it was a
good bow, and proved it by rebuilding it. You were right. I wouldn’t have trusted just any
repairman with it. I have enjoyed visiting with you, picking your brains
for expertise on stringed instruments. You’re a good man and a good
craftsman.”
--from a fiddle/mandolin player, age 75
“Just wanted to thank you for your fine
work on my violin! It sounds terrific! The harmonics ring! You’ve worked
miracles on it! I was just about ready to trade it in.”
--from a
classical violinist
“I have found your work to be
excellent. You have been honest with
us in terms of what amount of repair our instruments truly need.”
--from a Public School Fine Arts Administrator
“We purchased two violins and two bows.
All have been of excellent quality.
He pays meticulous attention to setting
up each violin properly, and thoroughly
backs up the work he does. He also pays close attention to the
quality of the violins he selects to restore, and prices them fairly.
Besides restoring high quality instruments and bows, He has a love of the
instruments, and takes great pleasure in seeing them placed in the hands of
deserving students and professionals. We have always recommended him to our
friends.”
--from the parents of two
violin students
“Thank you so very much for both selling
that nice old violin and for the education about violins! It was an
absolute delight to work with you and now I feel I have a luthier that I
can count on for repairs as well. It was an all around pleasant and
profitable experience and for that I thank you very much. I hope to do
business with you again in the not too distant future.”
--from a partner in a violin consignment sale
“When you made changes/repairs or adjustments
to my instrument or bow I could always hear and feel the
improvement. You have made the single most significant contribution to my
enjoyment of and quality of my violin and fiddle playing”
--from
a classical violinist
“I had a chance to finally play the
violin and it sounds great! Specifically it seems to have more resonance
and sounds a bit louder. The tone seems to ring, as if you opened up
something inside of it! The pegs are working much easier and the G is much
easier to adjust. Thanks for your magic touch!”
--from a classical violinist
“Repair work has been high quality. We’ve
appreciated the fairness with pricing as well”
--from a music store owner
“He’s been a true trooper & help to
musicians in our community. He’s been a big help in the repair/refurbishment
of two string instruments I inherited—a violin and viola. Both will soon be
active as loan instruments to the Symphony.”
--from a local Symphony Board Member
“I just wanted to tell you how glad I am
with what you did to my violin. I just played Mendelssohn’s concerto with a
piano player on a Knabe Grand. My Rocca soared better than any Strad,
Guarneri, or Amati. I was just delighted. Thanks so much for your wonderful
shop.”
--from a teacher and performer
“He treats each instrument that comes
into his shop as his own and gives each the individual care it deserves.
You can trust him to be careful with your prized instruments. You will get
more than your money’s worth in any repair work done. And to top it all
off, he’s a nice guy and easy to work with.”
--from
a violin owner
“You carved a new bridge and soundpost
for my 1890’s cello.
The improvement in sound has been
phenomenal! I found your work of the highest quality, and the prices
reasonable. You have done work beyond my expectations.”
--from a cello performer and teacher
“Your violin #12 came yesterday. It is
just what I wanted and expected—I love the tone and lively action. My
conductor at symphony will be pleased.”
--from a soloist and orchestral player
“I purchased a Stradivarius copy from you
in April ’97. You were very helpful in making adjustments over the
following period of time to adapt the violin to my particular needs. I
found you to be knowledgeable about the instrument and meticulous in your
work.”
--from
a classical violinist and fiddler
“I am writing to express my satisfaction
with the excellent string instrument repair work you have done for our
Public Schools. Your shop is over 150 miles away, but the quality of your
work leads us to do business with you in spite of the distance. You attend
to details, point out, and correct problems that could lead to more costly
repairs if left unattended. I can recommend you without reservation.”
--from
a Music Supervisor, Public Schools
“I sincerely appreciate the work you
have done. You really did a fine
job. I will recommend you at every
opportunity.”
--from
a fiddler/violinist
“Your work is most professional and your
stand behind your repairs. Several years ago, I was able to purchase one
the fine instruments that you had restored. It’s a terrific instrument. You
were even able to provide a history of the instrument—interesting. Since my
purchase, I have assisted students in getting their instruments. You have
been fair and equally accommodating. It is a pleasure to work with you. You
are knowledgeable and excited about your work.”
--from a string teacher (Public Schools & private lessons)
“We had a cherished family violin
restored at his shop last year. The
work was far beyond our expectations.
He analyzed the instrument’s problems and knew how to correct them.”
--from a classical string teacher
“He knows and loves his instruments, and
as a result provides very personal and high quality service to his
customers.”
--from a classical violinist
“I recently bought a new bow from
Kenmore Violins; the bow is much more responsive, I notice I don’t have to
use as much bow to make the same amount of loudness with my old bow.” --from an internet blog
“You take a sincere interest in your
customers and your service is outstanding.”
--from an award-winning fiddler
“Hey there-
I'm a 21 year old college student and I've decided to learn the
fiddle. I got one today! It
seems very nice, has a very nice tone to it, and I got a great deal on
it. I'm already having a blast with
it.”
“If you don't
mind me asking, where did you find it?”
“I got it from
a shop called Kenmore Violins. The guy in there was
SUPER nice and helpful. I've been
playing it a LOT the past few days. I've been trying
to get vibrato down too, but that is very tricky. But it sounds fantastic!!!!!”
--excerpts from thread posted on www.fiddleforum.com
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