František F. Špidlen

He was born in 1867 in Sklenarice, a small village in the Krkonose mountain region. His father was a farmer. He learned the violin-making craft in the workshop of his brother-in-law Frantisek Vitacek and later with Josef Cermak in Cesky Sumburk. In 1886, at the invitation of his compatriot Jindrich Jindrisek, he left for Kiev to head the department of musical instruments in his department store. He had to return to Bohemia in 1889 in order to do his military service; he was stationed in Terezin and became involved in the military music scene. Afterwards, in 1892, he returned to Kiev to work for Jindrisek. He was already working independently in 1895 and also married a Czech girl, Anna, née Lorencova. They had four children: Otakar (*1896), Marie (*1898), Vaclav (*1900) and Josef (*1902).

After a time he gained the reputation of leading violin-maker in Russia, as testified by the insistence of the Czech professors Sevcik and Hrimalsky and the Czech Quartet that he enter the competition for the post of violin-maker at the Imperial Academy in Moscow, which he won. He moved his family to Moscow where he spent the best and most productive years of his life.

Like many people from the Krkonose region, Frantisek Spidlen suffered from bronchitis. The climate in Moscow was not favorable to his health and so, on the advice of a number of doctors, he returned to Bohemia. He left his workshop to Jindrich Vitacek, the son of Frantisek Vitacek whom he had previously invited to come to Russia from Sklenarice to work for him. He bought a house in Pokratice near Litomerice and his health recovered. At that time violin-maker K. B. Dvorak was working in Prague because of whom Spidlen, as an unknown violin-maker, was unable to establish his trade. Dvorak died in 1909, however, and Frantisek decided to open a shop in Prague in Krizovnicka street near the Academy. Here he also soon acquired universal respect.

After Anna’s death in 1913 he married a native of Sklenarice Marie, née Slavikova, and had another son by her, Frantisek. Frantisek Spidlen snr. died a year later, however, on 16 February 1916.