Emily Dixon, Sales

Emily’s love of music began at the age of seven with piano lessons in her small hometown of Roanoke, Alabama. Although piano remained a big part of her musical life, she found herself exploring other instruments while studying music composition at Birmingham-Southern College. After the completion of her masters degree at the University of Miami, she took a job teaching orchestra in the public school system in Atlanta lasting almost ten years.

This period of her life instilled a passion for education and for people. When the county chose to eliminate the elementary instrumental programs in 2012, Emily decided to chase that same passion and make a career shift. She opened Beau Vinci Violins alongside husband, Mike. Carving out a place in the local community and beyond, Emily has built a regional brand specializing in fine stringed family instruments for almost ten years.

Being a part of delicately pairing the player with the right instrument or bow continues to make her the happiest. She also enjoys cooking, traveling and spending time with her husband, Mike, and children, Fiona and Beau.

Michael Dixon, Office Manager

Mike’s passion for small business can be traced back to his teenage days, bussing tables at his aunt’s restaurant in Savanah Georgia. He saw how her customers were not just customers, they were raving fans. She did this by concentrating on having the best steaks and seafood in Savannah and always trying to figure out a new way to make her guests say, “Wow!”. That spirt of pride, service and entrepreneurship was brought forward when Mike and Emily created Beau Vinci Violins.

In Mike’s early years as a musician, he quickly realized the importance of a well crafted instrument. When he joined the corporate world of multifamily real estate management, he realized the importance of efficient business processes and hiring great people. Today at Beau Vinci, Mike dedicates his time to creating and running business systems that empower it’s employees to create a “Wow” product and customer experience.

Sally Mullikin, Luthier

Sally cannot remember a time when music and woodworking were not a part of her life. As a young girl, her mom shuttled her to and from violin lessons while her dad taught her basic carpentry. Later, while getting a music degree from Carleton College, she developed an interest in violinmaking and began visiting the shop of a local luthier. He eventually tired of her just standing around and handed her a block plane. Before long, she had made a viola under his tutelage.

In 2002, Sally gained entry into the world-renowned Newark School of Violinmaking in Nottinghamshire, England, where she studied violinmaking, varnish and restoration. She also spent time in the workshops of Reuning and Son, Christophe Landon, and Damien Merrer. Three years later, Sally returned to her home state of North Carolina to work as a restorer for Triangle Strings. She also built new instruments for a growing clientele out of a studio in her home. Creating beautiful tone and optimal playability are the mainstays of her work.

As a member of the Beau Vinci family though, her main focus is restoration and repair. A regular attendee of the Violin Society of America’s summer intensive at Oberlin College, Sally has had the opportunity to work and exchange ideas with respected luthiers from all over the world.

Sally enjoys gardening, baking, and spending time with her husband and 2 children.

Daphne Hsu, Workshop Apprentice

Daphne Hsu began playing violin at age 5, guided by her mother, a music teacher. Throughout her early years, she spent time in choirs and other ensembles, developing an ear for both stringed instruments and the music they played. While she eventually earned a doctorate in veterinary medicine, her true passion was in the violin. In 2018, she moved to the United States to attend the Violin Making School of America.

When she wasn’t busy building instruments at her bench in school, Daphne spent her time learning with other prominent makers, conducting varnish experiments at home, and attending lectures from established institutions (The Oberlin Acoustics Workshop, VSA Conference, etc). She strove to achieve the highest levels of craftsmanship, even with her earliest instruments, and used her keen ear and experience with playing to better serve her journey in becoming an accomplished luthier.

She married in April of 2021, has recently moved to Marietta, GA, with her husband and his family, and is eager to begin her apprenticeship at Beau Vinci Violins.

Josh Barger, Workshop Assistant

Josh started playing the violin when he was fifteen years old.  As a huge nerd, he was first inspired to pick up the violin by listening to different video game and movie soundtracks and was hooked. As he began really sinking his teeth into the skill,  Josh started drawing inspiration from players like Sarah Watkins (“Nickel Creek, I’m with her”) and Gabe Witcher (“Punch Brothers”), as well as various other bluegrass and Celtic fiddle players.

He is a woodworker, and loves everything about violins, their history, and their craftsmanship.  Josh is beyond thrilled to have the opportunity to spend even more time around them, and the staff here at Beau Vinci Violins.

John Patrick Livingston, Workshop Assistant

John Patrick was inspired to play the cello when he was in middle school. However, it wasn’t until his 13th birthday that he started renting a cello and taking lessons. He has since played with the Alpharetta Youth Symphony for two seasons. He is also interested in chemistry, authors such as Tolkien and Chesterton, and the Latin Language. In addition, he enjoys transposing music, playing guitar and piano.

As a homeschooled student, he has extra time to help out in the Beau Vinci workshop. He enjoys many types of exercise such as swimming as well as hanging out with his Catholic homeschool friends. He also enjoys spending time with his family as much as possible.