Cremona

CALL FIRST [and this is not a review]
If you’ve heard of the Tenderloin you’d know not to make unnecessary trips there.
Despite the «open» label on Unilocal,the place was closed when I got there. And because you have to dial the security code and wait for an answer, you’re essentially on complete alert (or should be) and a bit exposed to all the «nomads» around you until someone buzzes you in.
I’ll try again, but found this a bit frustrating. So wanted to let it be known: please change your Unilocal hours to ‘call first’ or ‘by appointment only’.
Thanks!

Do not give this crook your money
He charged me $ 75 to rehair my bow on the 1^st of September. The website says that a violin bow rehair service is $ 60. He assured me that the website was being fixed. It still has not been updated to $ 75 to this day. Not only did he use very cheap hair, the minute I got home to play, the frog completely popped off with broken parts inside. I have had this bow rehaired before and nothing has been broken before. I told him the frog came off and he finally had time to fix it the next Tuesday the 8^th. When he saw the bow he began to say that he had no idea that this is what happened. He continued by complaining that the break was not his fault and that the bow was cheap and he hates this type of bow. He was very very wrong about the value of the bow and said that I should take it back to my teacher who I bought it from to get a replacement. I bought it in 2009 and that was not a possibility. He continued to tell me that the bow was not at all good quality and laughed in my face when I assured him that my teacher knows what she was talking about with this bow.

Jose is great, very professional and easy to work with, and he knows his violins. Good spot for repairs or acquiring one or its accoutrements.

RIP Nash! May you continue to create beautiful instruments in heaven! Thanks for the decades of wonderful instruments & great repair work!

CLOSED as of 1÷31÷12. I just called. I went here years ago to buy a new violin bow; I just remember a grumpy old man being extremely critical of my abilities and said I didn’t deserve such a nice bow because I wasn’t good enough. Think I ended up buying one anyways. They did a great job with a bow rehair. Extremely knowledgeable. Extremely sketchy area.

I tried going here a couple of weeks ago and pouted on the inside for awhile when i couldn’t find it. Then I googled them to see if there was info about them closing. Nothing. Then I called the phone number I found for them. Several times. No answer, but the answering machine said cremona violins. I left a message. No reply. Ever. I found Reed L.‘s review and discovered the secret! I went back the next weekend, followed instructions and got in! I asked them about it and they said they do it on purpose.
It makes sense that a violin maker wants serious buyers. They even ask you what you want when you buzz them so be prepared (#002 on the keypad). You have to know the code and you have to have a solid idea of what you want. If you care to and they have time to take you into the area where they work on instruments you’ll be fascinated.
The man that works there is super knowledgeable… and blunt in a good way. I left adoring him. He threw in complimentary bass rosin and gave me a discount on a part. Nash.

good luck getting them to answer the phone or the door. if you can get past that hurdle, it’s probably a great place.

These guys have been around since the 50’s apparently, and the loveable old man (nash) who helped me restring the old violin I inherited knew that it was a 1900’s european number just by looking at it (no brand on it). It needed a new peg and he gave me a basket of them to look through till i found one that worked. no charge.
Basically they’re the kind of people that you’re not sure how they stay in business while being so nice. He gave me Rossin, I declined and he insisted.
Go check them out, and give them some money.

The place was a little hard to find because the only sign over the door is for Child’s Legal Services but I dialed #002 on the intercom and the woman buzzed me in.
I looked around a little bit and will definitely go back again — to get a new bow and to continue exploring — but the guy was very friendly and nice, even though all I was buying was a D string for my violin.
Let’s keep these guys in business!

I have got a put in a word about this place. I have just gotten home after picking up my cello from there.
I am a beginning cellist with a low-​end instrument I picked up used. My instructor had tried it, approved of its basic sound, but told me the action was much too high. I could tell! Going down the neck had a forced feel to it. On top of it, my bridge began to warp, and the previous owner had put a hole in its side. I brought it here.
The old gentleman here picked up on my instrument’s flaws and explained to me what I was dealing with. I was willing to put money into it to fix it all around, but he showed me the quality of the wood was like, what the downsides to my instrument were, what it still had going for it — namely, a nice bridge that could be repaired. Then he showed me a nice cello to save my money for, rather than fix up a cheap plywood thing with painted flames on the wood with misfit tuning knobs. You know what? It was an education. I learned how better to distinguish a nice instrument.
What I got back was an instrument that felt and played like something new. The gentleman made a silk purse out of a sow’s ear. At my level, I have further to go before I drop money on a better cello, but the setup it has now handles beautifully.
This was not easy for him. My cello is a real crank to tune. I wasn’t a bit surprised when he told me he’d broken the D string — sure enough, it looked new. That wasn’t cheap. I sat and finished the tuning, because he was already set to make no money on me. When I was done, I wanted to pay credit, but he took cash — and I gave him all I had to furnish him a tip. He more than deserved it.
I had a wonderful experience here, and I think San Francisco’s cello community would do well to support someone who puts so much into his work. Cremona is fabulous!

Jose the luthier fixed up my 1918 J.B. Collin-​Mezzin with care. He retouched the varnish on one corner that was starting to wear away from the previous owner’s poor maintenance, changed my strings, adjusted my bassbar and re-​fitted my bridge. He also made recommendations and gave me a really good deal on other repairs — such as filing my fingerboard, chalking up my pegs, and fixing a crack under the frog on my bow. i completely trust him with my violin. The old man at the counter also gave me a deal on my dark rosin — a $ 12 product, he was just like «give me what cash you have» and gave it to me for $ 7.

I love this place. It’s really like stepping back in time. I’ve only been here twice to have bows rehaired. Both times it was a good experience.

Extremely helpful and nice people. One of the guys even offered to stay later jsut so I can make it in to have my violin restrung. And the old man who works there is no fuss, and straightfoward. When I first went in I wanted to get some rosin, and I had just recently started playing. I asked him which one I should get and he showed me the cheapest one, saying, «You won’t notice the difference yet, so there’s no point in spending actual money.» It cost one dollar and I was prepared to spend loads more.
A friend of mine plays the cello and she went in to get some string and they let her played a half million dollar cello for a long time – knowing fully well she could never afford it. That’s how cool they are.
They’re honest and old-​fashioned. Highly recommended.