Karl Höfner GmbH & Co. KG is a German manufacturer of musical instruments, with one division that manufactures guitars and basses, and another that manufactures other string instruments.
Much of Höfner's popularity is attributed to Sir Paul McCartney's use of the Höfner 500/1 bass throughout his career. This violin-shaped model is commonly referred to as the "Beatle bass."
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The Höfner company was founded by luthier Karl Höfner in the city of Schönbach in 1887, at a time when the city, later to become Czech, was German. He soon became the largest manufacturer of string instruments in the country. His sons Josef and Walter joined the company around 1920, and began spreading the brand's reputation worldwide. The company suffered some upheavals during and after World War II, but survived and continued to thrive. The company built new factories in Bubenreuth, Western Germany in 1950.
In the 1950s and 1960s, Höfner instruments were distributed by Selmer of London. They were considerably more accessible to budding musicians than American-made guitars, which were expensive if obtainable at all, giving Höfners a place in history as the "starter" instruments of several well known 1960s musicians.
In 1994, Höfner became part of the Boosey & Hawkes Group, and was able to expand and upgrade its facilities with the influx of cash. In 1997, the company moved from Bubenreuth to Hagenau.
After a near-bankruptcy in 2003 Boosey & Hawkes sold its musical instrument division (including the Höfner and Buffet Crampon companies) to The Music Group, a company formed by rescue buyout specialists Rutland Fund Management, for £33.2 million.[1]
Höfner remained a part of this conglomerate until January 2005, when The Music Group sold the company to Klaus Schöller, who has been the General Manager of Höfner for many years.
In 2005, Höfner's USA distribution was picked up by Chicago firm Classic Musical Instruments (CMI).
The names of these guitars were devised by the Selmer company for the UK market. Elsewhere, they were know by model numbers.
The company was made famous through its association with The Beatles and Paul McCartney, principally through their Höfner 500/1 model hollow-body electric bass, first manufactured in 1956.[3]
McCartney played two left-handed 500/1 basses during most of the group's career – a 1961 model with pickups mounted close together towards the neck, and a 1963 model, with the second pickup mounted closer to the bridge. McCartney used the 1961 bass until the recording of With the Beatles in late 1963, when he obtained his second 500/1. McCartney used his 1963 bass almost exclusively during The Beatles' touring career, using his 1961 bass (which was repaired and refinished in 1964) as a backup. Although by 1966 McCartney had begun using a Rickenbacker bass in-studio, he did break out his 1961 model for the "Revolution" promo film in 1968 and for the documentary Let It Be the following year. During the shooting, however, the 1961 bass was stolen, and McCartney used his newer Höfner for the remainder of the film, including the famous rooftop performance. McCartney has continued to use his 1963 Höfner extensively throughout his solo career and continues to use it today.
Beatles guitarists George Harrison and John Lennon also used Höfner electric guitars (Club 40 and President models) during the formative years of the group's career, and the band's former bassist Stuart Sutcliffe also played a Höfner 333 Bass.[4]