Klarinet Archive - Posting 000172.txt from 2003/11

From: "Lelia Loban" <lelialoban@-----.net>
Subj: [kl] please excuse a saxophone question....
Date: Tue, 11 Nov 2003 18:10:46 -0500

In addition to what Bill Hausmann and others wrote about Martins.... Okay,
disclaimer first: I'm no expert. I'm nothing but an opinionated amateur.

But, FWIW, I believe that all of the post-WWII Martins, including the pro
models, have the soldered-on tone holes. Another characteristic of Martins
is the striking, Art Deco design of the engraving, key guards and keys. An
unusual, patented octave key (several different styles, all distinctive)
gives away the identity of a Martin stencilled with a house brand --
something to look for, because these stencil Martins can be first-rate
saxes, for very little money. I own and love two Martins, both
silver-plated: a 1951 Committee made for the US Navy (has both "The Martin"
and Navy engraving) and an alto made for sale in the Weymann music store
(Philadelphia) and stencilled Weymann (but not Martin), probably made in
1928.

The Committee tenor, $130 (!) at a flea market, was tarnished black when I
bought it, and the case smelled like a cess pit. That sax cleaned up
splendidly. It's a monster. Nothing surprising about that. The Navy
didn't buy junk. The Navy of that era purchased these saxes directly from
the manufacturers and offered them to Navy musicians at bargain prices, so
that the performers in the band could afford to upgrade to high-quality
instruments. Even in dirty, "as is" condition, this 1951 sax looked as if
it hadn't been played to death, since it still had 1950s-era clutter in the
case, so buying it was an easy decision.

The "Weymann" alto was a less-easy decision. It was unmistakably a Martin,
because of the patented, Art Deco, "curved peace sign" octave key and other
Martin design characteristics. It came with its original Martin
mouthpiece, a selling point because old saxes often don't play well with
new mouthpieces. So, despite the stencil brand name, I bought this sax at
a flea market for $170, more than I usually paid for a no-name, with the
intention of reselling it to a student who wanted an interesting vintage
sax but couldn't afford a big name. It just looked like a sax that
shouldn't end up at the junk yard. I cleaned the instrument and case, and
decided that before I tried to sell, I should have the necessary minor
restoration done by a good local repairman, for another $80. He resoldered
a key post and the leg of a key guard that had popped up on the bell, and
bumped out a small dent at the same location; and he replaced the upper
pads and a couple of springs. (Popped posts look terrible to a buyer, and
hold down the selling price, even though they're usually not a big deal to
get fixed -- in fact, I eventually learned to solder them myself.) Then,
naturally, I had to test the repairs, so I tried the sax out, and....

The Weymann probably isn't worth much more money than the $250 I spent on
it, because no-names are always suspect. Sometimes manufacturers reserved
their own brand names for the best instruments and put store brand names on
the inferior goods. That stigma is why, when I intended to sell the
Weymann-Martin after reconditioning, in 1997, I planned to ask $325, hope
for $300 and take $275, at a time when restored Conn altos from the 1920s
were retailing for around $800-900 --- I'd only make $25 or maybe $50 on
the deal. The Weymann turned out to be such a honey of a player that I
never did put it up for sale. Brand name or none, it's one of the best
bargains I ever found, and it's a keeper. Dollar value doesn't always tell
the whole story.

Lately, nothing good has turned up at the flea markets where I prowl. This
was a bad summer, with rain nearly every weekend, but even so, I think eBay
is hurting the flea markets, a comedown from the golden age in the late
1980s through late 1990s, when dealers apparently didn't know about any
saxes except the Selmer Mark VI. Fine vintage saxes of other types crawled
out of the basements and sold "as is" for next to nothing. Condition
ranged from total wreckage to near- mint, and condition seemed to have next
to nothing to do with the price. With a local "buyer beware" auction as a
safety net where I could dump my mistakes, I bought everything I could
afford that looked even half-good.

Once I'd played sax long enough to know what I liked best, I decided it
would make sense to keep nothing but the Conns from the 1920s, but I
couldn't stand to let go of a King Saxello soprano and these two Martins.
And, uh, I guess I kept a Buescher or four, and a stencil Conn ("Grand
Opera") C-melody.... Anyhow, The Martins both have excellent intonation,
with an especially beautiful, clear-toned upper register. Altissimo is a
breeze on them both. They're my favorite saxes for music with a lot of
high tones. Bonus: the keywork on these Martins is comfortable for my
small hands. That's unusual in vintage saxophones, most of which seem to
have been made for the Jolly Green Giant.

Lelia Loban
E-mail: lelialoban@-----.net
Web site (original music scores as audio or print-out):
http://members.sibeliusmusic.com/LeliaLoban

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