omo
Episodes
Episode 86: Denver Violins
22 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Aquiles and Liz interview Mackenzie Miller about Denver Violins. Special Guest: Mackenzie Miller .
Episode 85: The Texas Violin Shop
20 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Aquiles and Jerry interview Estafan Cortez on he and and Samantha's journey to becoming business owners. Special Guest: Estefan Cortez .
Episode 84: Generations: The Bennings
12 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Aquiles and Becka interview Nancy, Eric, and Nathan Benning about working in a multigenerational violin shop. Special Guests: Eric Benning , Nancy B...
Episode 83: The Bromberg Book
22 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Brandon Godman interviews David Bromberg about his lifetime of collecting American violins. Special Guest: David Bromberg .
Episode 82: Lifetime Of Learning Part 2
25 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Becka and Liz talk with Roman Barnas and Lisbeth Butler about education. Special Guests: Lisbeth Butler and Roman Barnas .
Episode 81: Lifetime of Learning, Part 1
27 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Liz Perry and Becka Hannigan talk with Alex Wilson of the VMSA and Antoine Nedelec of the CSVM. Special Guests: Alex Wilson and Antoine Nedelec.
Episode 80: The Future of English Violin Making
16 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Elizabeth Perry talks with Benjamin Hebbert and John Wright about the future of training violin makers in the UK. Special Guests: Benjamin Hebbert and...
Episode 79: Bear Necessities: Navigating Economic Uncertainy
25 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The market keeps changing. Luthiers, shop owners, and resellers are doing their best to stay profitable in a economic uncertainty. What are some pract...
Episode 78: You asked, we answered.
16 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Team Omo answers listener submitted questions
Episode 77: Model Behavior
16 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Jerry interviews violin makers Michael Doran and Ryan Soltis about making new models and personal models. Special Guests: Michael Doran and Ryan Sol...
Episode 76: Bows & Riches with Richard Morency
28 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Katherine and Joshua talk bows with bow maker Richard Morency. Special Guest: Richard Morency .
Episode 75: Killer Business Apps!
18 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Guest host Becka Hannigan talks with Rozie DeLoach-Zimmerman and Anya Burgess about applications to make running your violin shop easier. Special Gue...
Episode 74: The Linda Chronicles
18 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Omo meets the Violin Chronicles! Special Guest: Linda Lespets .
Episode 73: The Bespoke Bow
13 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Katherine and Brandon talk with Bow Maker Darrell Hanks about his process for creating a bow tailored to the players needs. Special Guest: Darrell H...
Episode 72: Bruce Babbitt and the Music Region of Markneukirchen and Schönbach
16 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Brandon and Jerry talk with Bruce Babbitt about studying instruments and bows of the Music Region of Germany, publishing books, and being a "pollinato...
Episode 71: Origin Stories
25 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Katherine Kidwell and editor Joshua Litton go over community submitted responses of what got listeners into the trade, and what keeps them there.
Episode 70: The Baton with Philip J Kass
21 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Rozie and Brandon talk to Philip Kass about his involvment with the VSA over the years. Also covered is the 50th anniversary of the VSA, and the upco...
Episode 69: Oberlin For Everyone
17 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Rozie and Liz talk with Jerry Lynn and Jerry Pasewicz about what it takes to put on a workshop. Special Guests: Jerry Lynn and Jerry Pasewicz.
Episode 68: The American Violin, with John Montgomery
19 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
“The American Violin” is a 2016 publication by the American Federation of Violin and Bow Makers (which we may refer to as AFVBM or “The Federati...
Episode 67: ViolinABox (The World Violin)
15 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
What happens when you put ten luthiers from nine countries in a box? Learn more about the ViolinABox, it's makers, and it's journey: https://violinabo...
Episode 66: Unlocking Inspiration
17 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Elizabeth and Katherine are joined by guest Kristin Siegfried Ballenger to discuss creativity and getting the job done. Special Guest: Kristin Sigfr...
Episode 65: Interpersonal Relations
20 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Katherine and Elizabeth talk to Korinthia Kline and Robyn Sullivan about navigating personal mistakes in dealing with the public. Special Guests: Kor...
Episode 64: 5 years in review
14 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Jerry and Rozie are joined by fellow Omo founder Chris Jacoby to talk about 5 years of Omo. Later, Gerard KilBride joins Brandon Godman to talk about...
Episode 63: Love, Fear, and Learning
20 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Katherine Kidwell gets real with Rozie and Jerry about taking direction of her own learning.
Episode 62: Cultivating Focus
15 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Editor at large Jason Peoples puts Rozie and Jerry on the hotseat to talk about focus along with Omo host alum, and now guest, Christopher Jacoby. S...
Episode 61: Sam I am
18 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Rozie sits down to talk with Brooklyn based violin maker Samuel Zygmuntowicz. Special Guest: Samuel Zygmuntowicz .
Episode 60: Building Bridges
20 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Brandon and Katherine talk to Grand Rapids, MI based restorer and maker Matthew Noykos about all things bridges. Special Guest: Matthew Noykos.
Episode 59: The National Music Museum
16 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Rozie and Jerry discuss the importants of museums. We find out about the National Music Museum and it's reopening. For our Coda, we catch up with Be...
Episode 58: Cutting Necks
19 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Rozie and Jason record live from the Oberlin Restoration Workshop with too many guests to list!
Episode 57: Rest Insured
14 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Brandon and Rozie talk about the riveting world of insurance.
Episode 56: What is tone wood?
17 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Jason and Jerry talk to Shannon Rogers of Shannon's Lumber Industry Update about tone wood. Liz gives her reaction to the interview. Special Guest:...
Episode 55: Project Blue Book part 3: Beyond the Bluebook
21 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Jerry and Liz talk with Joe Grubaugh and Sigrun Seifert on their career in instrument restoration and their time at the Weisshaar shop. Special Gues...
Episode 54: Pernambuco part 2
15 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Rozie and Brandon talk with Yung Chin regarding the latest CITES developments. Special Guest: Yung Chin.
Episode 53: Project Blue Book part 2
15 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Rozie and Jerry talk with Bill Scott regarding his role with the Weisshaar book Special Guest: Bill Scott.
Episode 52: Project Blue Book
21 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Rozie and Elizabeth discuss the importance of Weisshaarr book. Rozie interviews Margaret Shipman on it's creation. The book can be found at https:/...
Episode 51: Sharpening, how to cut corners.
23 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Doran is back on Omo to talk about all things sharpening. Special Guest: Michael Doran.
Episode 50: Pernambuco
26 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
It’s time to dive deep into Pernambuco! This is a deeply consequential topic for stringed instrument musicians, music shop owners, and makers alike....
Episode 49: VSA 2022
21 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Brandon talks all things VSA with Anya Burgess and Chris Ulbricht. Items for the VSA scholarship auction can be brought to the convention and droppe...
Episode 48: Vienna
24 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Rozie talks about her recent trip to Vienna, and the Viennese tradition of instrument making with Ben and Jerry (not the icecream guys.) Special Guest...
Episode 47: The Experts Part 3: The path to attribution
27 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Team Omo is joined by Christopher Reuning, Claire Givens, and Stefan Hersh to discuss their process for instrument attribution. Special Guests: Bran...
Episode 46: The Experts: Tools and Resources
22 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
On Rozie and Brandon's continuing search to understand experts in the identification field, in this episode we explore the tools and resources of the ...
Episode 45: The Experts: Origins
25 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Three experts in the violin identification field share with us how they got their start. Join Rozie and Brandon as they chat with Christoper Reuning, ...
Episode 44: Tsukomogami: The Will of the Instrument
13 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Do inanimate objects sometimes have a will of their own? Does a violin have it's own agenda? Tsukomogami is a japanese folk belief that tools become m...
Episode 43: A Sticky Situation
16 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
What are the origins of hide glue, and how did it become THE glue of choice for violin makers? Join Rozie DeLoach and Jerry Lynn as they interview vio...
Episode 42: Peaches: the Matchmaker
16 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Brandon Godman joins Rozie & Jerry, discussing the thrill of violin hunting, along with his multifaceted career. Splitting his time between The Fiddle...
Episode 41: The Egg and I, and Antoine
15 Dec 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Rozie and Jerry talk with the executive director of the Chicago School of Violinmaking, Antoine Nedelec. Special Guest: Antoine Nedelec.
Episode 40: Family: Oberlin
18 Nov 2021
Contributed by Lukas
What feels like family? For us, its Oberlin. Rozie and Jerry talk with Anna Hoffman, manager of the Oberlin Conservatory summer programs, about what t...
Episode 39: Trevor Davis: Gettin Wood
13 Oct 2021
Contributed by Lukas
From choosing the right tree for tonewood, to safely getting logs down the mountain, award winning bass maker Trevor Davis shares with Chris and Rozie...
Episode 38: Women in Lutherie: The Movement
22 Sep 2021
Contributed by Lukas
What's next for Women at the workbench? Join Rozie as she interviews Jeemin Kim and Jennifer Creadick, co founders of the nonprofit organization (and ...
Episode 37: Take Care of Your Butts: Cameron Robertson
11 Aug 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Cameron has invested countless hours in finding workbench repair hacks, so that he and and other luthiers can have longer careers without sacrificing ...
Episode 36: Jason Price: The Tarisio Effect
14 Jul 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Chris and Rozie chat with one of the founders of the internationally recognized violin auction house Tarisio - Jason Price. We cover some of the hist...
Episode 35: Christopher Reuning: Violins of Good Taste
23 Jun 2021
Contributed by Lukas
With influence far and wide across many levels of the violin industry, Christoper Reuning joins Chris and Rozie to discuss the many turns his career p...
Episode 34: Iris Carr: Doing more, with less
19 May 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Rozie and Jerry interview master retoucher Iris Carr on her many seamless restoration jobs, her history of rubbing elbows with some of the greats in t...
Episode 33: Cajun flavor with Anya Burgess
14 Apr 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Anya shares with Chris and Rozie the history of Lafayette, Louisiana, and it's unique Cajun heartbeat, and the unique challenges of doing luthier work...
Episode 32: Rahmaan Phillip & The Great Covid Escape
17 Mar 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Has anyone else out there had the urge to flee the US in the last year? We found the luthier who did just that. Rahmaan Phillip shares with us his sto...
Episode 31: Quiz Show: Live at The VSA
01 Jan 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Happy New Year! We present an audio version of the VSA Quiz Show we conducted in November. We look forward to seeing you Omosapiens for Season 3 in Ja...
Episode 30: Sell It To Me
02 Sep 2020
Contributed by Lukas
How does a modern maker make money? What's the options for selling and how does one make it work? Chris Jacoby shares his years of experience making a...
Episode 28: Hot! Bow! Action!
05 Aug 2020
Contributed by Lukas
When was the hot hot evolution of the bow? Rozie and Jerry bequeath the history of bowmaking in France, plus bow maker Matt Wehling delights us with h...
Episode 27: Made in the Americas, part 2
01 Jul 2020
Contributed by Lukas
But how did violin making come to Mexico and South America? When European instrument making met indigenous American hands, what sprang from this? Join...
Episode 26: Made in the Americas
07 Jun 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Join us, Omosapiens, as we explore violin making in the greater continent, not just the states. Ben Hebbert chats with Rozie about some earliest known...
Episode 25: That Baroque Life
06 May 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Join Chris, Jerry, and Rozie as they explore baroque style from both a luthiers perspective as well as a player's perspective. Special guests Sarah Pe...
Episode 24: How Are You Coping
15 Apr 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Across the globe, shops are closed, and work for musicians is difficult to find. Listeners contribute: how are we coping? Hosts Rozie, Chris, and Jerr...
Episode 23: Well This is No Joke
01 Apr 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Chris and Rozie chat with Ben Hebbert about the state of our industry, facing Covid-19 pressures. Special Guest: Benjamin Hebbert.
Episode 22: The Chemicals, Part 2 + Corona update
16 Mar 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Continuing our talk on chemical safety! Also we have a talk with Charissa Lynn (BSN, RN, flight nurse) for a discussion on shop & workplace safety in ...
Episode 21: The Chemicals, Part 1
04 Mar 2020
Contributed by Lukas
What kinds of chemicals are we exposed to in this industry, and how can we better protect ourselves? Join us for part 1 where we interview a young can...
Episode 20: Pablo's Adventure a.k.a. Never trust Steve Sincere
05 Feb 2020
Contributed by Lukas
In the summer of 2015 a violin theft ring was operating in in the south eastern United States. Hear the story of how the arrest unfolded in Pablo Alfa...
Episode 19: Body Ruin
11 Dec 2019
Contributed by Lukas
What happens when the work you love endeavors to cripple you? How do luthiers maintain when the work they love is excruciatingly painful? Ryan Davidso...
Episode 18: St. Omobono Confessionals at the VSA
27 Nov 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Chris, Jerry, and Rozie report on the Violin Society of American Convention in Dallas, luthiers confess to St. Omobono
Episode 17: Is The Violin Evil?
30 Oct 2019
Contributed by Lukas
The violin has a dark side, so much so that there are legends it was a creation of the devil. Chris and Rozie explore the Romani tale of the creation ...
Episode 16: Rise of the Machines with Greg Sapp
02 Oct 2019
Contributed by Lukas
How much advanced technology is acceptable in instrument making & repair? Greg Sapp and Jerry Lynn disclose some of the machinery they work with and g...
Episode 15: VSA Past Present & Future with Marilyn Wallin
18 Sep 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Marilyn Wallin joins us for a guided tour of the Violin Society of America - sharing her early years submitting some of her very first instruments for...
Episode 14: Next Generation part two: Mohr and Mohr and Mohr
21 Aug 2019
Contributed by Lukas
How do we pass on our training to the next generation, today? Join us for a chat with Ben Hebbert, and following an interview with Rodney Mohr and his...
Episode 13: Next Generation with Sofia Vettori
07 Aug 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Italian luthier Sofia Vettori joins Jerry & Rozie to talk about making and coming from a family of makers. Her grandfather's shop barely survived the ...
Episode 12: Love, Oberlin
17 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Rozie reports live from the Oberlin Ohio restoration workshop, chatting with luthiers from various parts of the world.
Episode 11: Luthier Vs. Luthier - The Quiz Show!
03 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
We take Luthier vs. Luthier one step further - in Guadagnini Trivia. Guests Chris Ulbricht and Jeff Thorell battle for dominance. Who will tell us the...
Episode 10: Luthier Vs. Luthier
19 Jun 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Chris and Rozie interview major contributors to this field: guitar luthiers. We celebrate our similarities as wew welcome Beau Hannam, custom guitar a...
Episode 9: Listener feedback: Grab bag edition
05 Jun 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Cohosts Rozie, Chris, and Jerry catch up! Chris gets technical on what's going on with the restoration of the River Fiddle, Jerry and Rozie discuss th...
Episode 8: Women at the Bench
15 May 2019
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode we celebrate the many women who are part of this field. Chris & Rozie start by exploring the lore of Catarina Guaneri. We interview Au...
Episode 7: Listener Feedback: Neuroses
01 May 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Rozie & Jerry read listener mail and talk about their own continuing struggles with balance. This episode was made with a lot of gratitude for our kin...
Episode 6: Neuroses
17 Apr 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Chris & Rozie explore the mental health challenges that come with violin building. While some bring OCD tendencies to the bench (which has its benefit...
Episode 5: Listener Feedback with Ben Hebbert
08 Apr 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Join Chris & Rozie along with Ben Hebbert as we take listener questions. Do you want to go to violin making school? We discuss some great options. Do ...
Episode 4: Sea Change
20 Mar 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Chris and Rozie discuss Jean Baptiste Vuillaume and speculate over the kind of person he was in 19th century Paris. He was a modern man in his own tim...
Episode 3: Listener Feedback
06 Mar 2019
Contributed by Lukas
We talk to you! The community! Further discussion on one of Antonio Stradivari's other mysterious children, imposter syndrome, fake labels, and inappr...
Episode 2: Fakes & Forgeries
20 Feb 2019
Contributed by Lukas
How can you tell a violin is what the owner says it is? What qualifies a person as an expert? Why are some people in the field reluctant to tell you a...
Episode 1: Imposter Syndrome
23 Jan 2019
Contributed by Lukas
With the exception of a trip he made when he was 18, Omobono Stradivari spent his entire life in the workshop of his father, Antonio. In his will, he ...
Episode 0: Welcome to Omo, Episode 0
20 Dec 2018
Contributed by Lukas
A podcast about violin makers Special Guest: Jerry Lynn.