Josef P. Gabriel, born in Erlangen in 1960, initially trained as a power electronics fitter at Siemens after leaving school. After completing this training, in 1982 he embarked on an apprenticeship in string instrument bow making under Alfons Riedel in Bubenreuth, where he continued to work after his apprenticeship.

In 1987, Josef P. Gabriel successfully passed his bow makers’ master craftsman’s examination and in the same year opened his own workshop in his parents’ house in Erlangen. Due to lack of space there, he moved his workshop to Erlangen Kosbach in 2001.