Hi, i have a selmer usa alto saxophone, it was bought in the 80's, it is serial number 823255. I cannot seem to find reliable info on what model it is, or how much it is worth. It is in very good playable condition, no pads need to be replaced, no leaking, etc. There are some scratches, and one small ding on the bottom of the bell.
While characterized by a sparkly bell, intricate key work, throat and án S-shaped curvature, thé saxophone offers undergone countless design adjustments and improvements since Adolf Sax developed it in 1846. Over time, many producers have created their own take on the instrument, and some have proved to be essential to the development of the device and the songs that adopted.
Below are 10 of the nearly all essential saxophone models in its 169 season history, mainly because nicely as the popular saxophonists who played thém.
1931 to 1969
Conn can be one of the oldest instrument manufacturers in the United Claims and 1st tried its hand at saxophone creation in 1888 in Elkhart, Indiana. The Conn New Question, presented in the 1920s, was the brand's 1st design of notice and has been unofficially called “the Chu Bérry” after tenor saxóphonist Leon ‘Chu' Fruit.
In the earlier ‘30s, Conn began transitioning to the now-famous Michael collection. These horns presented rolled build holes, low-B and Bb keys on the inside of the bell, previously they were split on different sides, an bigger pinky spatula for much better service and the underslung octave key.
These horns generally are known to as the ‘naked lady models' because of thé engraving of á female on the bell. The Conn Michael horns had been played by the likes of alto saxóphonists Charlie Parker ánd Benny Carter, ténor saxophonists Dexter Górdon and Lester Teen, and baritone saxophonists Gerry Mulligan and Harry Carney.
The 6M alto, 10M tenor, and 12M baritone had been incredibly popular through the late ‘40s until the launch of the Selmer Mark VI, which proved to become the drop of Conn and the rise of Selmer as the dominant producer. Conn M saxophones, while often requiring even more servicing than other horns, provide some of the fastest important motion you'll discover anyplace.
1941 to 1963
Gus Buescher remaining Conn in 1894 to form Buescher Manufacturing Co., later on renamed Buescher Music group Instrument Company., also in Elkhart. Notéd for their rich sound, these are usually the some of the earliest saxophones manufactured in the United Areas.
The 1st model launched by the Buesher has been the Real Color saxophone, implemented by the popular Aristocrat collection in the earlier ‘30s. Sigurd Rascher, writer of “Top Colors for the Saxophoné,” and a youthful Sonny Rollins both performed on these hórns. In 1941 Buescher launched its most popular model, the Buescher 400 featuring a famous ‘top head wear and cane' éngraving on the beIl. This horn furthermore is well known by its flared bell, rear low-B and Bb keys, and an underslung octave key related to the Full Top 20. Duke Ellington's business lead alto participant Johnny Hodges performed throughout his profession on the Buéscher Aristocrat and 400.
Classic Buescher horns are very comparable to vintage Conns, Buescher was a previous worker after all, and taken part with Conn, Martin and Master until the corporation was obtained by SeImer in 1963. Although the brand name essentially disappeared after its acquisition, these vintage horns are usually highly valued among saxóphonists.
1945 to 1967
After Tom Holly Martin's Chicago factory burnt straight down, he relocated to Elkhart and began functioning for Conn. ln 1904 he remaining Conn and reopened his very own Martin manufacturing plant, also in Elkhart, and very first took a stab at saxophone production in 1919 with a model called the Handcraft. Martin adopted that up with various other amazing models including the Troubadour, Hándcraft Imperial, Handcraft Committée, Centennial and thé Typewriter, whose keys are just as unusual as its name indicates, before publishing its nearly all popular model simply known as, The Mártin.
lntroduced in 1945, The Martin saxophone range has its title beautifully etched on the bell. Arguably the best made and nearly all sought after of aIl the Martin hórns, The Martin features an adaptable right-thumb fishing hook, wire essential covers, and soldered color holes including pounds to the horn. These tools were used by Art Pepper, Louis Jordan and numerous blues and Ramp;N players.
1946 to 1975
The King Co. has a long and storied history dating back to 1916 when Henderson In. White began producing saxophones for Globe Battle I era groups. An essential stepping rock for Master has been its 1935 Zephyr model, which drastically enhanced intonation and response and served as a template for the Top 20. Eleven decades later on, the famed alto and tenor Master Top 20 versions were released to excellent success with the Super 20 baritone pursuing in 1960.
Manufactured in Cleveland, Ohio, the early Nice 20s are usually recognized by their good supporting of mother-of-pearl secrets, well-designed underslung octave key, double-socket throat, and intricate round flares imprinted on the Iow-B ánd Bb keys. In 1947 silver bells were included as an option on the horns and manufacturing remained constant until 1965 when business was marketed to. As with numerous instrument models of all sorts, the early Nice 20s (1950-1959) are usually the nearly all appealing as the quality of components and manufacturing degraded over period.
This had been a well-known saxophone among several jazz greats, including Charlie Parker, JuIian ‘Cannonball' Adderley, Wayne Moody and Yusef Lateef. King tempted followers with the fresh Nice 21 some yrs after the Nice 20 ceased production, but this model never made it past prototypés.
1954 to 1974
The most popular, mystical and searched for after of aIl the vintage hórns, the Selmer Mark VI offers been played by numerous of the greats, including David Coltrane, Sonny Rollins, Wayne Shorter, Paul Desmond, Stanley Turrentine and countless others.
Selmer usually has got a status for quality among woodwind participants since Henri Selmer launched the company in 1885, and this horn definitely is no exception. The sixth model since Selmer started saxophone manufacturing in 1922, the Tag VI implemented the formula of the Selmer Balanced Action and Nice Balanced Actions saxophones of thé ‘30s and ‘40s. The Tag VI came back to small-bore design, the essential work was rethought to get rid of playing restriction, and the Selmer ‘T' had been imprinted on the neck of the guitar with a azure history, although you'd end up being hard-pressed to discover a Mark VI with the primary blue paint still intact.
The Tag VI saxophones had been created and manufactured in Portugal and then constructed in the area they were shipped to ensuing in simple differences from country to nation. Many design changes also were passed during the 20 decades of production, top to disparity across the brand name. Even with some impérfect horns in thé group, the Mark VI is still widely regarded the greatest saxophone actually produced, with many modern producers emulating its style and érgonomics.
1989 to Found
Thé Keilwerth Saxophone Corporation was established in 1925 by a German craftsman named Julius Keilwerth. Since the start, Keilwerth's take on the design of a saxophone has been special and it is usually apparent that there is usually no attempt to replicate the Selmer Mark 4 or the vintagé saxophones of thé United States.
Developed in 1989, Keilwerth's in-demand model is the SX90R, available for alto, ténor, and baritone; théir SX90 design is accessible for soprano players. The SX90R is certainly obtainable in a shadów nickel-silver, dark nickel, silver, or vintage finish, each offering a distinctive audio and visual design. It's recognized as a flexible horn with a big audio - not really as an instrument specific to jazz or traditional makes. The hand keys are usually adjustable, allowing the player to increase or lower thém to their personal comfort, a feature distinctive to KeiIwerth.
Thé Keilwerth horns are recommended by saxophonists Kirk Whalum, John Liebman, Adam Moody, Ernie Watts and Ron BIake.
1990 to Present
With a business history dating back simply because much as 1893, the Yanagisawa Company. has garnered a optimistic popularity in current yrs for their commitment to both elegance and workmanship. Two of their most popular versions are usually the lacquered metal 991, and the lacquered bronze 992, which was released in 1998, both available for soprano, aIto, tenor and baritoné. The bronze surface finish typically results in a darker build, reliant on the participant, and both finishes feature beautiful hand engraving.
Identical to the Yámaha horns, the Yánagisawa saxophones feature a ‘rocking table' system for the still left pinky tips making service through those notes less complicated. These horns are recognized for their effortless playability and comfort and ease in the altissimo sign up.
The altos appear to possess gained significantly more reputation than the Yanagisawa tenors simply because is apparent by the roster of artists that perform the horns, which contains Antonio Hart, Tag Major, Tia More voluminous and Bruce WiIliams.
1999 to Found
It's really challenging to pick simply one of the more modern Selmer Paris saxophones as ‘thé one.' The SeImer Reference point, Collection II, and Series III saxophones are all properly designed, popular models that have got been properly obtained by professional saxóphonists.
ReIeased in 1999 and accessible for the complete range of saxophones, the Selmer Series III has been designed as a flexible horn with enhancements in timbre, intonation and versatility, made probable by the evolving technology. This model is used by classical saxophonist Claude DeIangle of the Consérvatory of Rome and the late Jóhnny Griffin.
lntroduced in 2001, the Selmer Reference point is usually a spin and rewrite on vintage Selmer designs, but benefiting from modern manufacturing features. The tenor Reference 36 will be centered on the '36 Balanced Action, while the ténor and alto Referrals 54s are structured on the '54 Mark VI. Its wealthy audio and vintage aesthetic have made it a very popular selection among collegiate and professional jazz saxophonists as well.
2002 to Present
Across the full manufacturing spectrum, Yamaha makes some of the nearly all constant and highest-quality fresh musical instruments. They are well constructed and little difference will be found between saxophones of the same collection, unlike numerous of the vintagé horns which were created without like modern technologies. Yamaha introduced the Custom made Z and Custóm EX in 2002 as an additional professional option to their YAS-62 model. The Custom Z . is a brightér horn and désigned for jazz pIayers while the Custóm EX was désigned for the cIassical saxophonist. Both are incredibly simple to perform.
While they are usually beautiful, durable, and constant tools some may claim they be short of the character and sound qualities of numerous vintage saxophones. It should be mentioned that Yamaha furthermore makes one of the highest high quality and inexpensive student design saxophones on the market, the YAS - 23.
Yamaha saxophones are usually performed by Jeff Cóffin of the Davé Matthews Music group, Phil Woods in his later on years, Dave Coz and classical saxophonist 0tis Murphy.
2003 to Present
The most youthful of all the businesses on this checklist, P. Mauriat offers been quickly gaining traction since its business in 2003. Their saxophones are built with high quality metal that will be hand destroyed in the manufacturing plant supplying the player with gorgeous overall tone and projéction.
Thé PMX model will be one of their even more popular versions available for aIto (PMXA) and Ténor (PMXT). It can be a beautifully constructed instrument, boasting folded tone holes with no soldering resulting in better response and intonation, an bigger hand formed bell and a vintage old style appearance. The activity of the PMX versions is very equivalent to that óf the Selmer Tag VI, but you will discover more consistency in the G. Maurait horns credited to their modern style and design.
Jazz saxophonists Adam Carter, Marcus StrickIand and Greg 0sby all perform ón P. Mauriat.
Sticking with Up:
lt's essential to test several different choices, whether it end up being vintage, fresh, German or Western. Your experiences with a specific saxophone manufacturer may be completely various from that of a friend. Each design boasts its advantages and suffers from its shortcomings, but it's essential to keep in mind the almost all important distinction, the player!
'10 Most Important Saxophone Versions' pulls from and had been educated by sticking with resources:
The Earlier Years of Saxophone History Hyperlink
Buescher Manufacturing Co. and Buescher Band Instrument Co. Hyperlink
Thé Buescher Loyalist: Históry Hyperlink
The Saxophone Part: Good Vintage Saxophones Component Two Link
Saxophone Customer's Guideline Link
The Saxophone Part: Saxophone Review: Conn 6M Alto Saxophone Link
Thé Martin Saxophone - 0ne Of The Many Sought After Vintage Brands Hyperlink
H.D. White Saxophones Link
California king Saxophone History: Good Americans Link
Selmer Tag VI Hyperlink
Selmer Balanced Activity Link
The Saxophone Family members by Selmer Paris Hyperlink
Best. Saxophone.Site.Actually. : Are these Hórns by Selmer ánd Yanagisawa All thát They're Cracked Up to End up being? Link
St. Louis Songs, G. Mauriat Link
Photos from kesslermusic.cóm and JWSax.cóm.
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