Emile Grimshaw Plectrum Banjo with Hard Case

More information about Emile Grimshaw

Emile Grimshaw was a noted English banjo player who played for many years in a quartet in the early part of the 1900s and eventually extended his contributions to composition and instruction. He also formed a company with his son that manufactured both banjos and guitars, including the highly valued “Grimshaw Guitar”. Many of Emile’s classical banjo compositions are played to this day. He is credited with about 70 compositions.

Emile was born October 7, 1880 in Accrington and died December 12, 1943 in London. He apparently lived in Burnley until about 1933, when he moved to London and set up shop with his son. It is not known which line of Grimshaws Emile was descended from.

Emile Grimshaw Sr, the famous author, composer, arranger and banjoist, severed connections with the Clifford Essex Company to form his own Firm in conjunction with his son in 1933. Previous to this date he had sold banjos to his private pupils which he had made for him by Robert (Bob) Blake of Finchley, London.  These Instruments bore the mark ” E G” or “Hartford“.

When Emile Grimshaw & Son came into existence in Piccadilly, London, in 1933 Bob Blake was responsible for the prototypes and early model banjos sold by them but when demand increased these instruments were copied and made in Houghton‘s Factory in Birmingham. The “Vivavox” models in the Grimshaw range (based on the type of instrument made in America by Vega and called by them “Vegavox” were made for them by Sidney Young. Starting their own workshops in 1940 (to meet the demand for Guitars), Grimshaw & Son employed Will Mitchell from 1942 (after the closure of the Clifford Essex Workshops) and he was responsible for many Grimshaw Banjos (often made from parts acquired from the Essex Workshops) until his death in 1947. Since that date the Firm has been noted for its Guitars for over 20-yrs, but started to make an occasional Banjo again from 1965.