Nestled in the foothills of the Ore mountains (Erzgebirge) lies the picturesque town of Luby formerly Schönbach which can be described as the cradle of the Bohemian and German instrument making tradition dating back more than 400 years. The relatively mild climate and the protection of the mountains, the pine and acorn forests provided the ideal circumstances and materials for the making of various string instruments. The Hannabach family was also amongst those who were attracted by the rapid growth of Schönbach and they settled there to make a living from the many opportunities that the music trade offered in those days.

It is in the year 1869 that Anton Hannabach founded the “Anton Hannabach, Musikinstrumenten- und Saitenfabrikation” musical instruments and string manufacturing company in Eger, Bohemia . Besides the trading of high quality string instruments, Anton started with the making of fine instrument strings by hand. Anton Hannabach’s son Karl followed in the footsteps of his father and took over the management of the family business in 1910. He married Rosalia Müller who gave birth to 5 children of which two sons, Arthur and Adolf continued the family tradition.

The tradition of the Hannabach family is so closely knit with the company that even a new ownership cannot change this. Werner Hannabach is still active in the company on a daily basis and assists with product training, repairs and custom made items. He has been active in an advisory capacity on the development of new product lines and in the optimization of production processes. This also ensures the continuation of the Hannabach legacy.