[Dixielandjazz] More on Sopramno Sax

[Larry Walton Entertainment - St. Louis]

Paul - Remember that our concept of saxophone tone has changed radically 
over
the years, and few of today's players would be satisfied with the sort
of tone the early models produced, and even less comfortable playing
on the mouthpiece facings that were prevalent in the 1920s. But
matched with an appropriate mouthpiece of the right vintage, these
instruments could be played rather well in tune.

LW - Well that could account for a lot of it.

 Paul - I might even go so
far as to say they could be more in tune than what some players manage
on contemporary instruments!

LW - It seems that there is almost a soprano mania going on with young 
players since KG started playing his stuff.  I suppose a lot of players are 
buying them who just shouldn't.  I have said it before that the soprano 
isn't for the average player and never for the beginner or even intermediate 
player.  I would even go so far to say that many of the semi pro guys should 
think about finding a nice closet to store theirs in.  The horn is simply 
capable of some really awful sounds and even on a modern horn the intonation 
is problematical for the average player.  It's really hard for a teacher to 
tell a good student that he just isn't ready for the instrument without 
discouraging them or seeming to be a put down.
Larry
StL
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Paul Edgerton" <paul.edgerton at gmail.com>
To: "Larry Walton" <larrys.bands at charter.net>
Cc: "Dixieland Jazz Mailing List" <dixielandjazz at ml.islandnet.com>
Sent: Wednesday, March 12, 2008 12:51 AM
Subject: Re: [Dixielandjazz] More on Sopramno Sax


> On Tue, Mar 11, 2008 at 5:42 PM, Larry Walton Entertainment - St.
> Louis <larrys.bands at charter.net> wrote:
>> Yes, I think the other writer meant the C melody sometimes called a C 
>> tenor.
>>  As far as I know there were never any C soprano's but I suppose there 
>> could
>>  be.
>
> Yes, there were C sopranos and C tenors, which as you noted were
> usually called C-melody saxophones. In fact, there was a whole family
> of saxes pitched in C and F. The F alto was also called a
> mezzo-soprano. The oldest saxophone in existence is an F baritone with
> a range only to low B that was made by Adolphe himself. This family of
> saxophones was intended for orchestral use while the more familiar Bb
> and Eb models were intended for military bands.
>
>>  Most if not all sopranos made before 1950 are pure junk.  Virtually
>>  impossible to play in tune and the tone is pretty bad.
>
> I'll add a couple of comments to this: While many old saxes were never
> more than cheap mass-market horns and haven't aged well, some
> Bueschers, Conns, Holtons and Martins were quite good, not to mention
> Selmer, Buffet and SML.
>
> Remember that our concept of saxophone tone has changed radically over
> the years, and few of today's players would be satisfied with the sort
> of tone the early models produced, and even less comfortable playing
> on the mouthpiece facings that were prevalent in the 1920s. But
> matched with an appropriate mouthpiece of the right vintage, these
> instruments could be played rather well in tune. I might even go so
> far as to say they could be more in tune than what some players manage
> on contemporary instruments!
>
> One critical variable is mouthpiece chamber volume. Mouthpieces are
> constructed to replace the truncated portion of the saxophone's
> conical bore. Nearly all of the old ones were made with very close
> facings. Most of the original mouthpieces that have been refaced to a
> more modern and more open style were typically filed down enough to
> reduce the internal volume significantly -- ruining the intonation.
> That is especially true for tiny soprano mouthpieces.
>
> But as JD says, some of those old horns have a gorgeous sound.
>
> -- Paul Edgerton
>
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