Ute Brinkmann, Geigenbaumeister

Very pleased. Ute spent a lot of time looking over my violins and gave some really great insight on my violins. She comes from a very knowledgeable backround. She is an expert in her field who I can trust. She did a beautiful job with my bow re hair too. I cant recommend her enough. Shes great!

It was an absolute pleasure to have Ute masterfully complete challenging work on a very special instrument of mine. Her honest assessment, kind manner, thoughtful approach, and exceptional skill in her work make her the perfect person to bring any instrument or task to.

Ever since moving to CT, I've been a regular in Ute's shop. Ute has fixed just about everything under the sun for me, for dozens of my orchestra students. There are people who want to go to high-priced fancy shops and have the staff "suck up" to them--go ahead and do that. I'm going to be here every time where I actually get to talk to the luthier that does all the work, and it's impressive work every time.

Frau Brinkmann is an outstanding artisan, brought my bow back to life. She has my highest recommendation - on the level of the legendary Donald Cohen. She could triple her prices and I wouldn't complain 😀 the improvement to my playing enjoyment is priceless. If you are a sensitive string player in New England, she is the one to go see.

Ute has been rehairing my wife’s bow and repairing her violin for a couple of years now. She does excellent work and always does it promptly. What we particularly like about Ute is that she always explains very clearly and carefully exactly what needs to be done for the instrument, and why; she also explains what does not need to be done, no matter what others may have said. My wife says she has learned a lot by listening to Ute’s explanations.

Can't say enough about Ms. Brinkmann! She rented us a very nice antique violin for my daughter and she refurbished a family heirloom. She is an expert on fixing violins and bows and is a wonderful person to talk with. Highly recommended! A+

Ute fixed my grandfather's violin and restrung the bow. She was done in no time and was very sympathetic that I needed it back quickly for practice. She did excellent quality work.

Ute takes time to listen to what you are looking for and provides expert craftsmanship and insight. Highly recommended.

An incredible artist and consummate professional.

the best

Very helpful and has a wealth of information

I bought a basic cello on amazon, a student one to play on my free times because I used to play on a orchestra and needed to have the bridged and soundpost placed. I called her, and she refused to "waste her time" with me, because I didn't have an expensive instrument. She was extremely rude and even refused to give me contact of others luthiers around, it's sad to see that apparently she only wants to help rich people who can afford expensive instruments. Hopefully people with more resources than me will advocate for her to change her attitude towards less privileged people.

Yes, the last time I came in was in 2011 but I sent at least three emails to her asking for information on my grandmothers violin. I would gladly remove this review if I had information on the whereabouts of my grandmothers violin but Ute still hasn’t responded to any on my emails. She can’t even email back to say she has no information. And the John Juzek violin you sold me had a huge crack running along the sound post besides the other cracks along the body of the violin. So no I never received a healthy instrument. I just want information on the whereabouts of my grandmothers violin. I’ll even buy it back from you if you have it. You have my contact information Ute :)