Not sure you need to know how to play them, to sell them. Heck, I had a bow re-stringing apprenticeship under a guy named Howard Needham. He can repair any damage done to any violin. He doesn’t play a lick. He ensures that at least one of his apprentices can properly play a scale to test the instruments. Or he used to anyway. Haven’t talked to him in a couple decades, so he may not be with us anymore as he was in his late 60s back in '99-'00
Once you learn, your fingers never forget. I haven’t had a lesson in almost 3 decades at this point. I pick mine up and practice once a month or so, but I can still just whip out songs at the drop of a hat. Unfortunately I never learned to sight read, and only play by ear. I can “read” music, slowly. I just can’t read it at tempo.
Not sure you need to know how to play them, to sell them. Heck, I had a bow re-stringing apprenticeship under a guy named Howard Needham. He can repair any damage done to any violin. He doesn’t play a lick. He ensures that at least one of his apprentices can properly play a scale to test the instruments. Or he used to anyway. Haven’t talked to him in a couple decades, so he may not be with us anymore as he was in his late 60s back in '99-'00
Yes, that’s what my colleague told me. They did specify that the luthier school requires that they can play a little, but not much.
Once you learn, your fingers never forget. I haven’t had a lesson in almost 3 decades at this point. I pick mine up and practice once a month or so, but I can still just whip out songs at the drop of a hat. Unfortunately I never learned to sight read, and only play by ear. I can “read” music, slowly. I just can’t read it at tempo.
Practicing every month is the whole reason you can still play.
I haven’t touched my French horn or piano in years and I couldn’t just sit down and play anything, and I was really good at both.