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Framus is a German
string instrument In musical instrument classification, string instruments, or chordophones, are musical instruments that produce sound from vibrating strings when a performer strums, plucks, strikes or sounds the strings in varying manners. Musicians play some ...
manufacturing company, that existed from 1946 until 1975. The Framus brand was revived in 1995 as part of
Warwick Warwick ( ) is a market town, civil parish and the county town of Warwickshire in the Warwick District in England, adjacent to the River Avon, Warwickshire, River Avon. It is south of Coventry, and south-east of Birmingham. It is adjoined wit ...
GmbH (; ) is a type of Juridical person, legal entity in German-speaking countries. It is equivalent to a (Sàrl) in the Romandy, French-speaking region of Switzerland and to a (Sagl) in the Ticino, Italian-speaking region of Switzerland. It is a ...
& Co Music Equipment KG, in
Markneukirchen Markneukirchen () is a town in the Vogtlandkreis district, in Saxony, Germany, close to the Czech Republic, Czech border. It lies in the Elster Mountains (part of the Fichtel Mountains), southeast of Plauen, and northeast of Aš (Czech Republic) ...
, Germany. The company has offices located in Markneukirchen,
Shanghai Shanghai, Shanghainese: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: is a direct-administered municipality and the most populous urban area in China. The city is located on the Chinese shoreline on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the ...
and
Nashville Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...
.


Timeline

* 1946: The foundation of Fränkische Musikinstrumentenerzeugung ("Franconian Musical Instruments Fabrication") by Fred A. Wilfer KG in
Erlangen Erlangen (; , ) is a Middle Franconian city in Bavaria, Germany. It is the seat of the administrative district Erlangen-Höchstadt (former administrative district Erlangen), and with 119,810 inhabitants (as of 30 September 2024), it is the smalle ...
, Germany, to help resettle
luthier A luthier ( ; ) is a craftsperson who builds or repairs string instruments. Etymology The word ' is originally French and comes from ''luth'', the French word for "lute". The term was originally used for makers of lutes, but it came to be ...
s displaced from Luby in the
Sudetenland The Sudetenland ( , ; Czech and ) is a German name for the northern, southern, and western areas of former Czechoslovakia which were inhabited primarily by Sudeten Germans. These German speakers had predominated in the border districts of Bohe ...
). * 1954: A larger factory was built in Bubenreuth, Germany, to house the 300-strong workforce. * 1967: Further expansion saw the building of a second facility in Pretzfeld, Germany. * 1975: The rapidly changing market forced the company to close. * 1995: Framus musical instruments resumed production under Warwick GmbH & Co Music Equipment KG.


History


Early years

Framus originated in the town of Luby (now in the
Czech Republic The Czech Republic, also known as Czechia, and historically known as Bohemia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the south ...
), until 1946 known as Schönbach, which was the world centre of making of violins and other
string instruments In musical instrument classification, string instruments, or chordophones, are musical instruments that produce sound from vibrating strings when a performer strums, plucks, strikes or sounds the strings in varying manners. Musicians play some ...
. The founder of Framus, Fred Wilfer, was born in the
Bohemia Bohemia ( ; ; ) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. In a narrow, geographic sense, it roughly encompasses the territories of present-day Czechia that fall within the Elbe River's drainage basin, but historic ...
n area in 1917. After
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
, when he heard about plans to expel
Sudeten Germans German Bohemians ( ; ), later known as Sudeten Germans ( ; ), were ethnic Germans living in the Czech lands of the Bohemian Crown, which later became an integral part of Czechoslovakia. Before 1945, over three million German Bohemians constitute ...
from post-War II
Czechoslovakia Czechoslovakia ( ; Czech language, Czech and , ''Česko-Slovensko'') was a landlocked country in Central Europe, created in 1918, when it declared its independence from Austria-Hungary. In 1938, after the Munich Agreement, the Sudetenland beca ...
, he decided to build up a new basis for his countryman and the music industry in the west. Even before the first train transported violin makers from Schönbach to other areas, Wilfer contacted different government authorities in
Bavaria Bavaria, officially the Free State of Bavaria, is a States of Germany, state in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the list of German states by area, largest German state by land area, comprising approximately 1/5 of the total l ...
and told them about his plans. The Bavarian government welcomed his approach and asked him to create all the conditions needed for the industry in Bavaria. In 1946, he founded the FRAMUS works, the name being a
portmanteau In linguistics, a blend—also known as a blend word, lexical blend, or portmanteau—is a word formed by combining the meanings, and parts of the sounds, of two or more words together.
of FRAnconian MUSical instruments, and designed to draw attention to the fact that the celebrated violin makers of Schönbach had made
Franconia Franconia ( ; ; ) is a geographical region of Germany, characterised by its culture and East Franconian dialect (). Franconia is made up of the three (governmental districts) of Lower Franconia, Lower, Middle Franconia, Middle and Upper Franco ...
their new home. When the first train transporting violin makers from Schönbach arrived in Erlangen, Wilfer was the man in charge of finding housing for them. He also made arrangements for the establishment of the first workshops.


Progress

In March 1946, the first group of Schönbach violin makers arrived in Erlangen, with Fred Wilfer and the refugee commission arranging accommodation. A factory was set up in autumn 1946, in a former wheel warehouse in Möhrendorf. At the end of 1948, the factory was moved to a former brewery in the nearby town of Baiersdorf. Soon, even that large space proved inadequate. In late 1949, Bubenreuth became the centre of settlement for the Schönbach violin makers. There, Wilfer began building one of the most modern factories of the time and, in the summer of 1954, about 170 employees went to work at the new facility. With 2200 square metres of space at their disposal, they were soon producing more than 2000 instruments in a month. Framus archtop guitar (1959).jpg, Framus archtop Framus archtop guitar of Edward Lund's dad (clip).jpg, Framus archtop Framus 5-168-54 Strato de Luxe (ca.1963-end 1960s).jpg, 5/168-54 Framus 5-296 Texan 12 string - owned by Sir Theo, Belgaum, India (2011-11-23 08.10.44 by julian correa) clip.jpg, 5/296 Texan 12string The
guitar The guitar is a stringed musical instrument that is usually fretted (with Fretless guitar, some exceptions) and typically has six or Twelve-string guitar, twelve strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming ...
—particularly the
electric guitar An electric guitar is a guitar that requires external electric Guitar amplifier, sound amplification in order to be heard at typical performance volumes, unlike a standard acoustic guitar. It uses one or more pickup (music technology), pickups ...
—became the new best seller. Sales increased enormously due to the popularity of
rock and roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock-n-roll, and rock 'n' roll) is a Genre (music), genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It Origins of rock and roll, originated from African ...
music at the end of the 1950s. Because of that development, several technologic advances were introduced, such as putting truss rods in guitar necks. In 1966, a second factory was built in Pretzfeld, 25 km north of Bubenreuth, in
Franconian Switzerland Franconian Switzerland (, ) is an upland in Upper Franconia, Bavaria, Germany and a popular tourist retreat. Located between the River Pegnitz in the east and the south, the River Regnitz in the west and the River Main in the north, its relief ...
. Framus became the largest guitar producer in Europe, employing around 300 workers by that time. In the 1950s,
Paul McCartney Sir James Paul McCartney (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained global fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and the piano, and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John ...
owned a model of a Framus
Ivor Mairants Ivor Mairants (18 July 1908 – 20 February 1998) was a Polish jazz and classical guitarist, teacher and composer. With his wife Lily Schneider in 1958 he created the Ivor Mairants Musicentre, a specialist guitar store in London. Early years ...
"Zenith" guitar. He had originally been given a
trumpet The trumpet is a brass instrument commonly used in classical and jazz musical ensemble, ensembles. The trumpet group ranges from the piccolo trumpet—with the highest Register (music), register in the brass family—to the bass trumpet, pitche ...
for his 14th birthday in 1956 but realised he could not sing and play a trumpet, so he swapped it for a Framus "Zenith" model 17. He used the guitar to compose some of his first songs, including "
When I'm Sixty-Four "When I'm Sixty-Four" is a song by the English rock band The Beatles, written by Paul McCartney (credited to Lennon–McCartney) and released on the 1967 album '' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band''. It was one of the first songs McCartney ...
". It still hangs in his studio. Although their guitars were more popular by far, Framus made other stringed instruments. In particular, their four-string tenor banjos were very popular among Irish traditional musicians. The company included a musical kindergarten in the Bubenreuth factory. It employed a young teacher, Gertrud Fischer, who used with small, colored "note men" that helped children start learning musical notation at the age of three. Visitors to the factory in Bubenreuth included the Vienna Saengerknaben (Boys Choir), who performed a special concert in the workshop, and German Chancellor
Konrad Adenauer Konrad Hermann Joseph Adenauer (5 January 1876 – 19 April 1967) was a German statesman and politician who served as the first Chancellor of Germany, chancellor of West Germany from 1949 to 1963. From 1946 to 1966, he was the first leader of th ...
, who toured the factory and its musical kindergarten during a visit to the violin-making village.


Bankruptcy

In an interview, Wilfer summarized his all-embracing concept: "It's not only important to produce instruments, over a long period it is important to 'produce customers' ". That motto also related to other Framus projects. Eventually, dumping by companies from
Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...
, along with other factors, both external and internal, forced Framus into bankruptcy in the mid-1970s. Many aspects of the history of Framus are still unclear, due to the company archives being lost as a result of the bankruptcy.


Framus today

In 1995, Hans-Peter Wilfer (son of founder Fred Wilfer) revived the Framus name to produce musical instruments as part of Warwick GmbH & Co Music Equipment KG in Markneukirchen, Germany. Along with a range of electric guitars, the company produces replacement parts, such as knobs, tuners, bridges, and tailpieces, for their vintage models, as well as a small range of high-end
tube Tube or tubes may refer to: * ''Tube'' (2003 film), a 2003 Korean film * "Tubes" (Peter Dale), performer on the Soccer AM television show * Tube (band), a Japanese rock band * Tube & Berger, the alias of dance/electronica producers Arndt Rör ...
amplifier An amplifier, electronic amplifier or (informally) amp is an electronic device that can increase the magnitude of a signal (a time-varying voltage or current). It is a two-port electronic circuit that uses electric power from a power su ...
s.


Notable users

In the early 1960s, Framus Star Bass guitars were among the first bass guitars imported into Britain. Many of the early British rock and roll bass guitarists—including
Jet Harris Terence "Jet" Harris (6 July 1939 – 18 March 2011) was an English rock and roll musician. He was an original member of Cliff Richard's backing band the Shadows, serving as the bass guitarist from the group's inception until April 1962, aft ...
,
Brian Locking Brian "Licorice" Locking (22 December 1938 – 8 October 2020) was an English musician and songwriter known for his tenure as bassist with '' The Wildcats'' in 1959 and The Shadows, between 1962 and 1963. During his time with the Shadows he ap ...
, Brian Gregg,
Heinz Burt Heinz Burt (24 July 1942 – 7 April 2000) was a German-born British rock and roll bassist and singer who performed under the stage name Heinz. He was also known as a member of the instrumental group the Tornados. Life Heinz was born in De ...
, and
Bill Wyman William George Wyman ( né Perks; born 24 October 1936) is an English musician who was the bass guitarist with the rock band the Rolling Stones from 1962 to 1993. Wyman was part of the band's first stable lineup and performed on their first 19 ...
—played Framus basses. In 1964, Wyman signed a three-year sponsorship deal endorsing the Star bass. Guitarists in the
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
who endorsed Framus guitars at that time included Charlie Mingus and Jim Hall. * Billy Lorento (later known as pickup designer Bill Lawrence) played his signature 5/120. He was also the Framus tech for Dan Armstrong. * (Sandy) Alex G plays a Framus Panthera. * Peter Kraus played various signature models of
tenor guitar The tenor guitar or four-string guitar is a slightly smaller, four-string relative of the steel-string acoustic guitar or electric guitar. The instrument was initially developed in its acoustic form by Gibson and C.F. Martin so that players o ...
, including a small-bodied flat-top acoustic and the two-pickup 5/141 semihollow electric. *
Jan Akkerman Jan Akkerman (born 24 December 1946) is a Dutch guitarist. He first found international commercial success with the band Focus (band), Focus, which he co-founded with Thijs van Leer. After leaving Focus, he continued as a solo musician, adding ja ...
plays his signature model. *
Lamb of God Lamb of God (; , ) is a Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, title for Jesus that appears in the Gospel of John. It appears at wikisource:Bible (American Standard)/John#1:29, John 1:29, where John the Baptist sees Jesus and exclaims, " ...
guitarist Willie Adler uses Framus speaker cabinets with four 12 inch speakers. In their DVD entitled '' Killadelphia'', Adler praises Framus for giving him "A backdrop to fuckin' die for." *
John Lennon John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer-songwriter, musician and activist. He gained global fame as the founder, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of the Beatles. Lennon's ...
bought a Framus Hootenanny in 1965, which
George Harrison George Harrison (25 February 1943 – 29 November 2001) was an English musician, singer and songwriter who achieved international fame as the lead guitarist of the Beatles. Sometimes called "the quiet Beatle", Harrison embraced Culture ...
occasionally also played. It was used by Lennon to perform the song
You've Got To Hide Your Love Away "You've Got to Hide Your Love Away" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles. It was written and sung by John Lennon (though credited to Lennon–McCartney) and released on the album ''Help!'' in August 1965. Composition and recording Len ...
in the 1965 film ''
Help! ''Help!'' is the fifth studio album by the English Rock music, rock band the Beatles and the soundtrack to their Help! (film), film of the same name. It was released on 6 August 1965 by Parlophone. Seven of the fourteen songs, including the sin ...
'' (He also used it on '' It's Only Love'', as well as on title-track for the 1965 Parlophone record). George used the instrument during the recording of '' I've Just Seen a Face''. In 2024, the guitar was sold for $2.9 million by Julien's Auctions of Gardena, California. * Paul McCartney's first guitar was a Zenith (built by Framus on commission from Boosey & Hawkes), which he still owns.Miles, Barry. Paul McCartney: Many Years From Now. Vintage-Random House 1998, . * Phil Campbell of
Motörhead Motörhead () were an English rock music, rock band formed in London in 1975 by bassist and lead vocalist Lemmy Kilmister, guitarist Larry Wallis and drummer Lucas Fox. Kilmister was the primary songwriter and only constant member. The band a ...
uses several Framus guitars. *
Earl Slick Earl Slick (born Frank Madeloni; October 1, 1952, in Brooklyn, New York) is an American guitarist best known for his collaborations with David Bowie, John Lennon, Yoko Ono and Robert Smith (musician), Robert Smith. He has also worked with other ...
, guitarist for
David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer, songwriter and actor. Regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century, Bowie was acclaimed by critics and musicians, pa ...
and
New York Dolls New York Dolls were an American rock music, rock band formed in New York City in 1971. Along with the Velvet Underground, the MC5, and the Stooges, they were one of the first bands of the early punk rock scenes. Although the band never achieved ...
, uses a Framus signature guitar. *
Rik Emmett Richard Gordon Emmett (born July 10, 1953) is a vocalist, guitarist, and member of the Canadian hard rock band Triumph (band), Triumph. Career In Toronto, during the mid 1970s, several local musicians formed a progressive rock group called Act ...
( Triumph) played a Framus Akkerman (AK74 or AK1974) early in his career * Phil X ( Triumph,
Bon Jovi Bon Jovi is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Sayreville, New Jersey in 1983. The band consists of singer Jon Bon Jovi, keyboardist David Bryan, drummer Tico Torres, guitarists John Shanks and Phil X, percussionist Everett Bradley ...
) plays a Framus signature model as well. *
Arcade Fire Arcade Fire is a Canadian indie rock band from Montreal, Quebec, consisting of husband and wife Win Butler and Régine Chassagne, alongside Richard Reed Parry, Tim Kingsbury, and Jeremy Gara. The band's touring line-up includes former core ...
guitarist
Richard Reed Parry Richard Reed Parry (born October 4, 1977) is a Canadian multi-instrumentalist, composer, producer, best known as a core member of the Grammy Award-winning indie rock band Arcade Fire, where he plays a wide variety of instruments, often switchin ...
uses a vintage Framus Billy Lorento model. *
Devin Townsend Devin Garrett Townsend (born May 5, 1972) is a Canadian singer, guitarist, songwriter, and record producer. He founded extreme metal band Strapping Young Lad and was its primary songwriter, vocalist, and guitarist from 1994 to 2007. He has also ...
, uses a number of Framus guitars including several custom made guitars of the model AK-1974, Mayfield and a signature model. He also collaborated with the company to develop The Blank model. *
Stevie Salas Stevie Salas (born November 17, 1964) is an American guitarist, author, television host, music director, record producer, film composer, and former advisor of contemporary music at the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian. Salas ...
, uses the Framus Idolmaker model, which was developed in a collaboration with him. * Wolf Hoffmann, of the German heavy metal band Accept. He made a signature model based on the
Gibson Flying V The Gibson Flying V is an electric guitar model introduced by Gibson in 1958. The Flying V offered a radical, "futuristic" body design, much like its siblings: the Explorer, which was released the same year, and the Moderne, which was designe ...
. *
Simple Plan Simple Plan is a Canadian rock band formed in Montreal, Quebec, in 1999. The band's current lineup consists of Pierre Bouvier (lead vocals, studio bass guitar), Chuck Comeau (drums), Jeff Stinco (lead guitar), and Sébastien Lefebvre (rhyt ...
guitarist Sébastien Lefebvre's electric guitars include the Framus Mayfield and Tennessee models. He used to play Framus Panthera and Renegade models. He currently uses a Framus Dragon head and cabinet amplifier with his Framus custom model. *
Guy Pratt Guy Adam Pratt (born 3 January 1962) is a British bassist. He has worked with artists including Pink Floyd, Roxy Music, Gary Moore, Madonna, Peter Cetera, Michael Jackson, the Smiths, Robert Palmer (singer), Robert Palmer, Echo & the Bunnymen, T ...
, who plays with
Pink Floyd Pink Floyd are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1965. Gaining an early following as one of the first British psychedelic music, psychedelic groups, they were distinguished by their extended compositions, sonic experiments ...
and
David Gilmour David Jon Gilmour ( ; born 6 March 1946) is an English guitarist, singer and songwriter who is a member of the rock band Pink Floyd. He joined in 1967, shortly before the departure of the founder member Syd Barrett. By the early 1980s, Pink F ...
, plays a Framus Triumph. * Clemens Rehbein, who plays with Milky Chance, from
Kassel Kassel (; in Germany, spelled Cassel until 1926) is a city on the Fulda River in North Hesse, northern Hesse, in Central Germany (geography), central Germany. It is the administrative seat of the Regierungsbezirk Kassel (region), Kassel and the d ...
, DE uses a Framus Mayfield. * William DuVall, of the American
grunge Grunge (sometimes referred to as the Seattle sound) is an alternative rock Music genre, genre and subculture that emerged during the in the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington, particularly in Seattle and Music of Olympia, Washington, O ...
band
Alice in Chains Alice in Chains (often abbreviated as AiC) is an American rock band formed in Seattle in 1987. Since 2006, the band's lineup has comprised vocalist/guitarists Jerry Cantrell and William DuVall, bassist Mike Inez, and drummer Sean Kinney. Voca ...
* Kristof Hahn of American experimental rock band Swans plays a Framus 8 string Lap Steel Guitar.


Further reading

*Hoyer, Christian: ''Framus – built in the heart of Bavaria: the history of a German musical instrument manufacturer 1946–1977''. Edition Framus, Markneukirchen 2007, .


References


External links

*{{official, https://www.framus.de/en/Framus.html
Framus Vintage website

Framus Forum (official)
Guitar manufacturing companies Banjo manufacturing companies Markneukirchen Musical instrument manufacturing companies of Germany Companies based in Saxony