Sylvie and James Fawcett both trained at the Newark School of Violin Making and went on to combine forces in a joint workshop established in 1983, very quickly establishing a reputation for fine new instruments as well as high class repairs. They have a joint approach to any major work – unlike many maker couples who tend to work separately, their new instruments carry a joint label: experience has shown that even an informed eye is unable to distinguish between their work on the same instrument. The route taken by each towards this point was however somewhat different: