My 1923 Conn C Soprano Sax is almost done!

Posted on March 12, 2006 by Gandalfe
Sarge (Worldwide Sax in Everett) has been working on my 1923 Conn C Soprano Sax (Soprano Saxes now-a-days are Bb) since November. See pics of the complete restoration work here: http://gandalfe.dudecheckthisout.com/Blog.aspx?startGuid=66008a81-d093-4076-a646-07a0fc38c421&focusGuid=66008a81-d093-4076-a646-07a0fc38c421#focus 
 
 
 
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Sarge is workin’ on the Conn C Soprano Sax

Posted on March 7, 2006 by Gandalfe
Sarge is trying to save the rusty time capsule that is a Conn C, yes you read it C not Bb, soprano sax. The springs were so rusted they looked like cheetos. I get monthly reports and I cross my fingers that this baby will recover because of Sarge’s TLC the last few months.
 
To get the rods to break loose takes spraying them down, using a little heat, but not enough to start a fire, and then gentle pressure. Fortunately the body of the sax isn’t in too terrible shape. Suzy has finished refurbishing the case with a nice alligator material and new felt interior.
 
Now, will I be able to do justice playing it? I have a number of candidate mouthpieces that I have selected based on other people’s experiences with the Conn C soprano sax. You can read more about that on the SOTW forum. It is truly a labor of love for an instrument that is no longer in production… anywhere.
Posted in Repair, Saxophone, Vintage | Leave a comment

Playing the refurbished Selmer Paris silver clarinet

Posted on February 4, 2006 by Gandalfe

I picked up my Selmer Paris silver (I’ve taken up this term instead of metal) five-piece clarinet from the repair shop. I spent about a half hour with my fav tech talking about this instrument.

After having spent a half year on a Leblanc Paris and periodically picking up my wife’s Buffet R-13 Festival I must say I was disappointed. I guess I had unrealisitic expectations for this instrument made ~1930. The keywords and action feel clunky compared to a modern instrument. The Leblanc and Buffet keyworks feel buttery smooth by comparison.

The tone is a little buzzy and there are interesting overtones and multiphonics happening. Given time I could overcome these sound disappointments. But then moving to a modern instrument would be very challenging. I must say the intonation is superb. Not as good as the Leblanc, but very doable.

The ergonomics are nasty. For example the bottom Eb key is placed so close to the surrounding keys that both the tech and I hit them when releasing the key. And if we change our hands to accommodate this interesting key placement, the other keys are hard to hit.

A good player would make this instrument sound fine and it is a looker! (Will post pictures later.) But alas it won’t become my primary instrument because I need every bit of edge that I can get to become a decent player.

I have a lot of money in this instrument. But it is a beautiful piece of art, that I will pull out and play for special occasions. Everyone I’ve showed it to is awed by it. I suspect that in the coming years it will be easy to get my money and a little more out of the deal. But I am in no hurry to do so just right now.

 
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Leblanc vs. Buffet – Part I

Posted on February 1, 2006 by Gandalfe
I have spent a little more on the clarinets I buy. For example I bought a Leblanc Paris rather than a Leblanc Paris Noblet. But it doesn’t mean I sound better than a great player with either of these. Here is an incomplete list from cheapest to most expensive are the Leblanc models:

Leblanc Vito – Beginner plastic
Leblanc Normandy – Step up from Vito, currently wood but the older ones are plastic and were beginner horns. Leblanc switched them to wood and made them a step up instrument when they introduced the Vito.
Leblanc Noblet 40 – Intermediate, comparable to Buffet E-11
Leblanc Noblet 45 – Intermediate, comparable to Buffet E-13
Leblanc Esprit and Leblanc Sonata – step up between intermediate and pro grade instruments
Leblanc Infinite – pro grade, comparable to Buffet R-13
Leblanc Concerto – a notch above a “standard” pro grade
Leblanc Ambiance – premium pro grade
Leblanc Pete Fountain – premium pro grade with extra “goodies” and more open bore
Leblanc Opus – premium pro grade with extra “goodies”

You see LL (top model ’50 – 60s), L7, L-series, and Symphonies periodically as vintage professional horns too. I know I’m forgetting some others.

Here is the beginning comparison of Buffet to Leblanc:

  • Buffet B-12 vs Leblanc Vito
  • Buffet E-11 vs Leblanc Noblet 40
  • Buffet E-13 vs Leblanc Noblet 45 or perhaps Leblanc Sonata
  • Buffet R-13 vs Leblanc Infinity or perhaps Leblanc Eternite

Some people compare the Leblanc Opus or Concerto to the Buffet R-13 which may not be a valid comparison as the Opus & Concerto fall in the category of premium pro instruments rather than standard pro instruments. However Buffet also makes premium pro instruments.

The Buffet R-13 is to the clarinet industry as the Selmer Mark VI is to the saxophone industry.

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How I came to play sax – redux

Posted on January 25, 2006 by Gandalfe
In Iowa you started band in fifth grade. The local band instrument salesman would come to town and layout the instruments for the parent and kids to look at. This was after each student tooted on a woodwind and brass mouthpiece.

I had my heart set on a trumpet. But my pre-test showed that I had a slight overbite so my teacher was recommending woodwinds. I was very unhappy when my mom told me that. But when I saw the saxophone, I forgot all about the trumpet. The sax was a ’50s Buescher ‘crat alto and used, but to me it was beautiful.

I saved my paper route money every year for band camp, usually at the University of Northern Iowa. I never took lessons until my senior year when I heard how hard it would be to get a position in the University of Minnesota band. When I auditioned in my Freshman year of college (with more alto saxophone players than I wished to count for one position) I heard someone say, “Man that guy can play. How do we stand a chance.”

I went in to the two professors and played my canned piece. Then they handed me some gnarly music to sight read. I totally blew it and didn’t make the band. They asked me to be a flag carrier and try again in the Summer after the Seniors graduated but decided that the Architecture criculum coursework at the university was more important and took to much time.

27 years later, in Fall 2002, I started playing again and never looked back. My first gig was an unaccompanied solo at the funeral for my instructor and friend who died suddenly of liver cancer.

I agonize over what sax to play. I’ve played bari, tenor, and alto sax for a number of bands. But I’m leaning towards making the tenor my main axe because there are more gigs for tenor and I really like that sound.

Last year I got my wife, a high school clarinetist, to join me. I bought her a superba Leblanc Paris and then Buffet R-13 Festival clarinet. She started playing the sax in July so I bought her a Kessler’s Custom with a Kessler’s New York mouthpiece.

She now plays with me in the jazz ensemble and I’ve started trying to learn how to play the clarinet. My goal is to put together a sax quartet consisting of my wife, son, grandson, and I in the near future.

Posted in Hobbies, My World, Saxophone | 2 Comments

Guyll Talks Basic Jazz Articulations

Posted on October 2, 2005 by Gandalfe
Ray Guyll (pronounced gwill as in quill pen) told me this my first year as part of the Woodinville Jazz Ensemble:
1. Quarter notes should be played short.
2. Eighth notes on the down side of a beat should be 2/3rd of a count.
3. Eighth notes on the up of a beat should be 1/3rd of a count.
4. Quarter notes, eighth notes and anything shorter which are followed by a rest and/or end a phrase should be played short and accented.
5. Attacks should be with a soft and smooth doo instead of too.
6. The following markings and rhythms should be played as indicated:
    > full value accent
    ^ short and accented – dot
    .  short and unaccented – dit
If you listen or play along with music from the greats like Sonny Rollin or Gerry Mulligan you will be able to pick this out rather quickly. During practice play the piece slowly to help you place the articulation and get the notes under your fingers. Then bring it up to speed.
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Learning to Play the Clarinet

Posted on October 1, 2005 by Gandalfe

A couple of months ago I started to learn to play the clarinet. Having played saxophone for many years both helps and hinders me. For the first month, I suffered listening to the terrible tone that I was able to create. It wasn’t as noticeable as when my wife, an accomplished clarinet player played.

 

Initially I was more than 5 cents flat. The embouchure was the major culprit; that and overblowing the instrument. To fix the embouchure I found that if I smiled a little, the tone would blow closer in tune. The sax embouchure is an ‘O’ shape, so this is a significant change for me to get used to. Using this new embouchure I have found that I can hit higher notes easier too.

 

I am using my wife’s Leblanc Paris with a Hite Premier mouthpiece and lig. My wife is using the Buffet R-13 Festival with a Ralph Morgan RM14 (jazz), Vandoren 45* (legit) with an Optimum lig. I gave my Leblanc Paris Symphonie (1930s) to my son, the music major.

 

My daughter has just returned to clarinet playing after a ten year break. She has my wife’s old Selmer Signet. I set her up with a Selmer C80 and a Hite Premier, but she like the Vito mouthpiece she used in High School. We are such a musical family.

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The Sarrusophone and Conn-O-Sax

Posted on August 5, 2005 by Gandalfe
A friend of mine dropped $30k on a mint Conn-O-Sax and some more on a mint Sarrusophone. I took pictures for the SOTW calendar project. Then my friend let me play the Conn-O-Sax which is an F mezzo instrument. It had a very sweet sound and the keyworks were surprisingly excellent for a sax of this vintage. I wanted to play longer.
 
This friend sells hundreds of instruments on eBay every year. Indeed, he has sold me some of my favorite instruments including a Couf Superba I alto sax. I also purchased a Buffet R-13 Festival Bb soprano clarinet for my wife. She loves it and certainly practices more than I do.
 
I also purchased my grandson Nicky a student model Martin alto saxophone. I love to hear him noodling around on it. He doesn’t really practice it very much but next week he starts taking regular lessons on it from me.
 
 
 
 
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Full Saxophone Orchestra

Posted on April 30, 2005 by Gandalfe

Okay class, who can name all the saxophones. Yes Timmy?

  • Bb sopranissimo
  • Eb sopranino
  • Bb soprano
  • C soprano
  • Eb alto
  • F alto and Mezzo-Soprano
  • C melody tenor
  • Bb tenor
  • Eb baritone
  • Curved F baritone
  • C bass
  • Bb bass
  • Eb contrabass
  • Bb contrabass (coming soon from Eppelsheim!)

Very nice. 

Posted in Band, Saxophone | 2 Comments

Took Pics of the Couf Twins ;o)

Posted on February 14, 2005 by Gandalfe

I took some pictures of my all-time favorite saxophones.

After trying a Selmer Mark VI and VII, Keilwerth SX90, Buffet SuperDynAction (SDA), Yamaha 62 Mark II, Yamaha 82Z, Gary Sugal series III, I have found a Couf Superba I tenor that practically matches my Couf alto sax. They are both part of the 81,xxx serial number series. I love them to death and call them the twins.

The Couf twins have been adjusted and had pads replaced. Last week a new alto player showed up with a Silver Selmer Mark VI. She has a degree in sax performance and she blew us away. But part way through the session her sax keyworks started acting up. Since I was on the Couf tenor, I lent her the Couf alto which was in the stand behind me. She loved it–most players do.
Then I came to piece that didn’t have a tenor part which happens in community bands. So I grabbed her Mark VI (we were each using our own mouthpieces) and played with the bari player. The had an excellent sound but the keywords were way out of whack and there were leaks. I guessing it will cost more than $300 to get this horn back in shape.
But she is just out of college and doesn’t have the money to get the horn fixed. She was able to fix the sticking key for the time being. If you have a nice horn, and most of the favs listed are very nice, and your horn is well regulated with decent pads… Well sometimes I just think we don’t appreciate how good we have it.
_________________
Sop, alto, tenor, and bari sax
Community Band Geek
Posted in Photograph, Saxophone, Vintage | Leave a comment