After I retired six years ago I decided, at 62, to follow a dream of learning to play the violin. I visited a number of good violin shops in Western Washington but had my most welcoming and interactive experience at Hammond Ashley. I met Bryce, who I later learned was the general manager of Hammond Ashley, and he was very knowledgeable about violins and the needs of adult students like me. He asked me a number of questions and spent time educating me. That first day, I ended up renting a violin and took it home to begin experimenting with it. In time, I started lessons and really began to enjoy this wonderful instrument. I stoped by the shop a few months later and told Bryce that I wanted to invest in a nice violin. Once again, he didn't rush me into a purchase. He showed me 5 violins in the shop that were in the $1K - $2K range that I was willing to spend. He continued to teach me about the qualities and features of different manufacturers and countries of origin. I did not buy a violin that day, but started a process of looking for "my violin". I spent another month on the Internet looking at the different woods and options like chin rests, tuning pegs, and other accessories. I visited the shop a number of times to check in with Bryce to see what new violins were available. I also decided that it would be a better long term musical and financial investment to spend more to get the best quality violin I could afford since I was doing well in my lessons. Bryce told me that $5,000 was a good price point for a high quality violin. I agreed and asked him to let me know when a German violin came available. A few weeks later he called to invite me to check out a newly arrived German violin. I showed up the next day and it was perfect! A beautiful Heinrich Holste blonde violin made in 1927. It was in excellent condition and had a new bridge installed by Hammond Ashley's lead luthier Scott Marshall. I played a few notes and it played well and sounded beautiful. Bryce also had printouts of the historical research he had done on Heinrich Holste and his shop in Germany. This violin was not a shop violin made by apprentices and multiple luthiers, it was one of the last ones Holste completely and totally made himself when he was at the height of his art. I was so impressed. I made my big purchase that day with the reassured feeling that I was doing the right thing and had been helped by Bryce and other members of the Hammond Ashley staff to make a good investment in myself and my quest to learn to play the violin. My violin teacher was also impressed. She owns a VERY expensive French violin and made the comment that I was not only very well taken care of by Bryce in the whole process, but that I had also received a unique and high quality instrument for the money I spent. Every time I take my violin out of the case to practice, I enjoy how nice it looks, how well it plays and enjoy a deep pride of ownership in the fine instrument that Bryce found for me. read more