This very well-made guitar is from the Max Amberger workshop. Max Amberger, (1838-1889) was a luthier in Munich who founded a company that built zithers, violins, and guitars around 1860. When he died, his son, Henry Amberger (1863-1910) took over company and continued building under his father’s name (R.Vannes 1951:8). After his death, Henry's widow took over the company. The Amberger’s were close friends of the Hauser’s and some writer’s claim that Hermann Hauser worked for Max Amberger before opening his own shop.  Hermann Hauser III denies this. “My grandfather never worked in the shop of Max Amberger, rather Hermann bought the company from Amberger’s widow in 1921, and moved his workshop from Bayerstr. 33 to the Amberger workshop on Müllerstr. 8” (personal communication). Under Hauser, the Max Amberger company continued to build zithers. Hauser Sr. simply added “Inh Herm. Hauser” to the label as its proprietor. In fact, the Max Amberger company now under Hauser III continues to manufacture zithers even today. This guitar was probably built between 1895 and 1921, and is a Munich style guitar which is nearly identical those that Hermann Hauser built into the 1920s. Hermann Hauser III has a Max Amberber guitar much like this one in his own collection that he has photographed next to his grandfather’s Munich model for comparison.

1910 Max Amberger Classical Guitar played by Cale Hoeflicker.