Epi Stathopoulo, the great creatorĮpi, as Epaminondas, Stathopoulo’s eldest son, was known, adapted easily to American life. He attended Columbia University and graduated with honors. Years later, in the early 1900s, the Stathopoulo family moved to the United States and settled in Manhattan. Once in America, Anastasios continued his trade in musical instruments. On March 25, 1909, Anastasios filed his first and only patent for an Italian-style mandolin. Here, we see the first similarities to Gibson’s origins, since the first relevant step in Gibson’s history was the patenting of a novel mandolin, although Orville did it a decade earlier. A common brand to find during the decades of 20s and 30s in nightclubs, recording studios and radio broadcasts. Epiphone is synonymous with tradition, craftsmanship, quality and innovation in musical instruments, not just guitars, but mandolins, basses and other musical instruments as well. The history of Epiphone guitars begins with a Greek family, the Stathopoulo, who in 1879 were based in Turkey and then, in search of the American dream, emigrated to the United States in the early 1900s.
The first guitars and the beginning of the rivalry with Gibsonīrief introduction to the history of Epiphone.
