HARRY BENSON
In Memoriam
February 23, 1911-April 9,2009
I am saddened to write that Harry Benson, the former president of William Lewis & Sons and my mentor, passed away on April 9 at 98. He was much loved by his family and highly respected by his employees and colleagues. Harry gave me my start in the violin business as a salesman thanks to an introduction in 1963 from my great friend and mentor Dr. David Young. David fostered my interest in the violin when I was in high school and meeting Harry channeled my enthusiasm into the violin business where I continued my education and career. I stayed with the company for about eight years before founding Bein & Fushi with Robert Bein.
Harry's career is one of the great American success stories. At William Lewis he worked his way up through the ranks from the company's errand boy as a teen to become its president. He stayed at the firm for his entire 52-year career. Harry helped shape our industry. Under his leadership, William Lewis & Sons expanded its violin line and won the esteem of leading violin makers – including Carl Becker, Sr., the shop's expert, business colleagues, and customers.
I was delighted to have the opportunity to work with Harry again in the late 1990s on the enlarged and expanded edition of How Many Strads? Our Heritage from the Master by Ernest Doring. I bought the copyright for the book from Harry and he made many valuable contributions to the Bein & Fushi edition. It was wonderful to collaborate with him again after so many years.
Harry was a great storyteller and enjoyed sharing anecdotes from his career. Take a look at this video online to see and hear Harry talk about how his career got started: www.namm.org/library/oral-history/harry-benson. He is missed.
Geoffrey Fushi
Shop Hours: Tuesday-Saturday: 10:00 am - 5:30 pm