No Couturier tenor in my collection ...That ad will be going into the music room shortly.
Right now the stripped body of my Couturier sop. is cleaned and polished, and when I finish cleaning up the keys I will post a few pics of it in this new thread.
Since getting the soprano, I ran across a Lyon & Healy Couturier model lacquered tenor for sale not too far away from me that I'm considering taking a look at. Does anyone happen to have one of these that could share their opinions about?
The stuff is nearly complete, but the English/American language is not my mother language. Some delicate details of the Couturier history need (are needing?) precise wording ...So, LaPorte...when is the book going to come out?![]()
That's a great idea! I'm afraid I will need some help.We need a picture gallery!![]()
That was one of the most thrilling questiones during my researches!As an aside, did Couturier make a baritone?:?
Aha, you just revealed the mystery of my Lyon&Healy "Inspiration" C-Melody (King) which has about 2% sliver plating left on the body. Thank you for that interesting input, Mr. Jazzbug!Many lacquered brass saxophones from the 1920s or earlier were once silver plated. In the 1940s-50s, silver plate was considered old-fashioned and these horns were stripped in a relatively simple process using cyanide. You will always find a tell-tale speck of silver on these horns by looking outside or inside. Furthermore, the engraving will be dull, as it was done on top of the silver layer, which is now gone. My guess is that these horns may sound a bit brighter than the original sound.
Any opinions?I wonder if the strictly chronological way presenting the stuff is the most satisfactory for you and me and appropriate to a saxophone discussion forum. I have a lot of material around the Couturier/Lyon&Healy topic - about four times the stuff about Holton. The way started would take months to be completed.
My suggestion is to talk more about certain questiones e.g. someone wants to know more about his saxophone, if it is really a Couturier, which model, when built ...like similiar done in 'The Forgotten American Manufacturer'. The following model-timeline might help to classify the subject that we are talking about at the time.
What do you think about it?
I gave a Lyon&Healy 'Symphony' alto (Artist Model) from 1926 to my repair tech. Testing it after complete overhaul he said that the horn has an astonishing good intonation -"just like a modern saxophone". As the body didn't change, I think all Couturier's have good intonation given the key hights are properly set, pads without 'domed' reflectors.This is fascinating information, Felix. Thanks for posting it. One thing that strikes me is their brag about having perfect scale and intonation. I wonder if these saxes were really any more in tune than other saxophones of the era. Also, did the overall quality suffer in the later Couturier horns?