Eliot Smith

Eliot Smith (he/him) is a violin maker based in Boone, North Carolina. He built his first instrument, a guitar, when he was 14 years old, and has studied violin making at Surry Community College in Dobson, North Carolina, and the North Bennet Street School in Boston, Massachusetts.

“I greatly enjoy that in violin making you can create a piece of art that allows others to create their art,” Eliot says. “I make all of my instruments from quarter sawn curly maple and spruce… primarily using hand tools and traditional techniques. The hand tools that I use are primarily chisels, knives, planes, and scrapers. Building with these tools allows you to have very precise control over your work, and to make a consistent and quality product out of a naturally inconsistent material.”

Eliot is also a musician and has taught music classes to children through the Junior Appalachian Musicians (JAM) program. With his Emerging Traditional Artists Program award, he will connect with other violin makers by attending the Violin Makers of America annual conference and competition. He also plans to enroll in the Hans J. Nebel Violin Repair Workshop at the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts, to further his craft in pursuit of building a full-time career in his hometown of Boone.

“We are currently in a new era of violin making where there is so much more information readily available, and so many more people who are willing to help you along than ever before,” Eliot explains. “However, there is still a long way to go before we have an approachable profession that young people even know may be an option for their career. I hope to help this through encouraging the next generation of makers and continuing to help spread awareness of this growing craft.”