A Phase 1 Hohner President tenor and what it tells us about the evolution of Max Keilwerth saxophones In early April 2019, I happened across this interesting, and quite rare, Phase 1 Hohner President tenor sax on eBay. Unfortunately the horn sold before I could email any questions to the…
I was visiting friends in the US the weekend before last, and finally was able to make the trek to a music store that I have heard so much about from my friend and sax teacher who also lives south of the border. If you’re a vintage sax lover like…
Since we moved into our current home just over 8 years ago, I have had my collection of mannequins in my studio space. Some of these mannequins have been with me for over 2 decades now, and harken back to my days as a communications major when I wrote a…
Last September I wrote about a beautiful Max Keilwerth-made Globemaster Luxus that was sent to my tech by a fellow in New York. Long story short, the owner, Timothy, couldn’t get the sax to play in tune, and previous techs who he had taken it to had not been able…
It was 15 years ago today that I bought a Swedish steel wagon to haul all my gear and to be my daily driver. Yup, April Fools Day 2004, was the day that a 1991 245 Volvo came to live with me. Back then 200 series Volvos were still a…
If you think about all the 365 days of a typical year, very few of them stand out because they were great days. In 2019 I have already had two great days. Why were they both great days? Because they involved the person who got me started on saxophone the…
Towards the end of 2018, I published the first of what will be a number of really important pages on my website. Bassic Sax has long been known as the go-to site for hard-to-find brands like Hammerschmidt, Hohner, Oscar Adler, et al. When I hit the publish button on the…
I take a lot of photos. Usually these photos are of my saxophones. However, I do like to take shots of other inanimate objects as well. When a A Shure 55 was standing all by itself on stage, it seemed to be calling out to be photographed. Despite the fact that…
How the simple Sax-Stick is saving me right now I am in the middle of a musical that requires my bari skills, but unfortunately my old injuries are catching up with me. I have suffered from chronic back pain ever since a career-ending ambulance call back when I was in…
Kakapo Photo by Kimberley Collins on Flickr Given this is a website about saxophones, the title of this article might seem a bit obscure at first glance. However, make no mistake about it, the kakapo is in big trouble, and wildlife conservationists are doing everything in their power to try…