Lefima

Lefima GmbH
legal form	GmbH
founding	October 26, 1861
Seat	Cham , Bavaria , Germany
management	Stefan Aehnelt
Number of employees	25th
Branch	Musical instrument making
Website	www.lefima.de

The Lefima GmbH is a traditional manufacturer of percussion instruments in Cham ( Oberpfalz ). The family company, founded in 1861, is the oldest of its kind in Germany. The company manufactures percussion instruments for orchestras , minstrels and fanfares, marching bands , medieval bands , for early musical education in schools and kindergartens and for music therapy .

history

1861-1900

Company founder Ernst Leberecht Fischer

On October 26, 1861, Ernst Leberecht Fischer founded a drum factory. The name "Lefima" is derived from the founder Leberecht Fischer and the Vogtland town of Markneukirchen . The production of percussion instruments in small series enabled a certain standardization and the production of products at affordable prices for a broad group of consumers for the first time. The first articles produced are solo drums, followed by small series of large drums in 1862 . In 1867 the arsenal in Dresden bought 80 military drums. For "Drumming and Temperine" Fischer received an award at the World Exhibition in Paris in 1889 , the bronze medal at the Wittenberg trade and industry exhibition in 1869 and the "Second Class Diploma" on the occasion of participation in the exhibition for fire fighting equipment and equipment in Altenburg from 14-16. June 1879.

Banjos , wind harps and “music stands” soon followed . In 1893, son Ernst Albin Fischer took over the company, which soon got quite modern features for the workforce through health, accident and pension insurance. “Lefima” became a trademark. First concert timpani are built. Lefima produced pools under the “Sultan” brand in-house. In 1897 Lefima received the silver medal at the Saxon-Thuringian trade exhibition in Leipzig.

1900-1961

Lefima logo from around 1930

Despite the First World War and the collapse of the German economy, Fischer managed to keep the jobs and continue the company. A product catalog with new drum models appeared as early as 1927, for the first time also in English.

In 1938, son Curt Fischer took over the company and modernized the machinery. The product range was expanded to include orchestral xylophones and small instruments . It was also in the 1930s that Lefima built the first " double snare " drums. In 1939 the first dance drum kits followed .

After the Second World War , the company in the GDR began in the 1950s with the production of a wide range of instruments for early musical education in kindergartens and schools. Käthe Fischer, the company's daughter, married the engineer and craftsman Karl-Heinz Aehnelt. Its first development was the fast and noiseless working "Rapid" - or the even flatter "Rekord" - foot pedal with double ball-bearing racket holder and adjustable spring tension.

Snare drums from around 1950

The socialist planned economy made running a company difficult. Due to the threat of expropriation of the company, the decision was made to flee to West Germany and began to move important tools and some private items outside of the country through trustworthy customers. In May 1961 the family fled to the west.

1962 until today

Lefima was reopened in Cham, Upper Palatinate . In 1962 the first two employees could be hired. With the integration of "TA-Werkzeugbau" in 1961, Lefima was able to build devices and machines for the manufacture of new products itself. Today's Lefima logo was created. The first third of the 1960s was marked by innovations in the field of drums. Karl-Heinz Aehnelt designed retractable screw-on tips, a hi-hat stand, lugs for the “Hobby” series, a new miniature lifter and supports for the new “Roxie” drum kit.

In 1973 a new and modern production hall was built in the industrial area of Cham. Despite the good order situation in the drum set area, the danger of series production from the cheap Japanese market was recognized in good time and the production of drums stopped in 1974. They concentrated on the marching area and shifted the focus to orchestral instruments. Karl-Heinz Aehnelt constructed a crank machine drum for traveling and musical education in schools. Orchestral sticks came out in the late 1970s. The large orchestral drums of the "Classic Series" were created, and portable bass drums with veneered and stained wooden cylinders were produced for the marching sector.

Baroque strap timpani

In 1981, in close collaboration with Siegfried Fink from the University of Music in Würzburg, a special line of historical instruments was created. In 1983 Karl-Heinz Aehnelt took over the company. At the end of the 1980s, the product range comprised 120 different drum and 10 timpani models. In 1990, the “Exclusive Series” was a drum series for the high demands of wind bands. In 1991 "historical drums with modern technology" followed, equipped with screw tensioning and a decorative cord.

1997 son Stefan Leberecht Aehnelt took over the company. For the development of the first fine foot tuner for concert timpani and a "servo support" the company received the "Bavarian State Prize in Gold" in 2000. In 2001 the “lightest marching drum in the world” was included in the Guinness Book of Records . In 2006 a new production hall was inaugurated. In 2009 Lefima built the millionth drum at the Cham location. In spring 2011, the company celebrated its 150th anniversary.