Oleg Semenukha
Handbuilt violins, violas and cellos that carry the heart of their maker — and become an inseparable part of their musician's life.
Every instrument is born with love and care — from the precise selection of wood to the final tuning of its sound.
A craft he has devoted his life to
Oleg Semenukha was born in Ukraine in 1974. He studied art carving and sculpture at the Academy of Arts in Lviv; he learned the foundations of violin making in Ukraine, where in 1996 he built his first violin. He has devoted himself to the craft of violin making for over thirty years.
Since 2009 he has worked in his own workshop in Kladno, building new violins, violas and cellos and carrying out repairs and restoration. He trained under the leading Czech violin makers Dalibor Bzirský and Jan Špidlen, and is a member of the Prague Guild of Violin Makers and the Circle of Violin Making Artists.
More about the maker →
Gallery
A selection of master violins, violas and cellos from Oleg Semenukha's workshop — each instrument handbuilt after classical Italian models.
completed in March 2026
Viola op.75,
after the Model of Nicolo Amati
A small master viola with a 38 cm body length — a body stop of 212 mm and a neck stop of 141 mm, likely about as small as viola scales commonly get. The instrument was inspired by Nicolò Amati's violin "Alard" — the maker essentially scaled the violin's shape up to viola size. He chose the Amati model deliberately for its high arching: on such a small instrument, this increases the internal air volume of the body, helping the viola sound as deep as possible.
Made to order
Every instrument is built by hand in the Kladno workshop — from quality acoustic wood, step by step, according to the customer's wishes and vision.
The full building process →
Video
Recordings of instruments from the luthier's workshop in the hands of concert players — hear how copies of the classical Italian violins and violas sound.
Events
Competitions, workshops and gatherings from the life of the workshop — a chronological overview, most recent first.
Workshop with master violin maker Markus Klimke at the Czech Museum of Music in Prague
In March 2026 a five-day workshop was held under the internationally renowned master violin maker Markus Klimke. Over the first two days the master presented the complete process of building a violin on the Antonio Stradivari model, sharing many details and characteristics of it.
All events →3rd place for tone — international violin making competition in Prague
Meeting of the Circle of Violin Making Artists in Hradec Králové
Meeting of the members of the Prague Guild of Violin Makers
Participation in international competitions
Since 2006 the instruments of Oleg Semenukha have been judged at leading international violin-making competitions in Italy, Germany, France, the Czech Republic and Slovakia.
