For well over 200 years, handmade piccolos from the Philipp Hammig workshop have been recognized as instruments of superior design, innovation and craftsmanship. The Hammig family legacy of crafting woodwind instruments began around 1780, and started with Christian Gottlob Hammig (1759-1836), who worked as an independent maker producing transverse flutes, piccolos, clarinets, and oboe in Markneukirchen, Germany. The profession of musical instrument making has been passed down from generation to generation and came to Philipp Hammig’s hands in the early 1900s. During the period between 1906 to 1920, Philipp Hammig developed his instrument making skills, learning the profession in his father’s workshop, then went on to Berlin to the firm Rittershausen to study specialized flute making. Philipp Hammig returned to Markneukirchen upon finishing his vocational training. In 1959, Gerhard Hammig, Philipp’s son, took over the family business; however, the flutes and piccolos remained in the name of "Philipp Hammig," as they are known today. In 1994, the long tradition of the family business passed to Gerhard’s four children.
Hammig piccolos are sought after all over the world due to the character found in their sweet, dark sound; a response only found in the traditional use of aged woods.