Frank Passa (1916–2001) was an internationally known American maker of bows and violins (archetier and luthier). A native of New York City, Frank Passa was born in 1916 to poor Sicilian immigrants. He was a pupil of Simone Fernando Sacconi a very talented violin maker from Italy. Sacconi and his shop (Rembert Wurlitzer Co.) helped develop many of the modern techniques of restoration that are still being used today. About a dozen pupils of his spread out across the United States, and Frank was one of them.Frank served in the Army during World War II and then began his career in San Francisco crafting and restoring violins and bows, a job he kept for 51 years until he was forced to retire in 1999 due to illness.