In April 2010, I wrote an article about a busker from Prague who played a full-pearl model Weltklang tenor. Since then, this elderly fellow has shown up in many Flickr photos. Apparently, he is a staple in the heart of the historic capital of the Czech Republic.
A couple of weeks ago I noticed a new photo of this mystery saxophone player. Ghetu Daniel shot a photo that showed how the ravages of time had caught up with not only the man, but also with the sax. (The original photos I posted by Ian Press Photography were from 2006, thus are now 6 years old.)
Sultan of swing
Photography by: Ghetu Daniel Source: Flickr
Sultan of swing shows the man’s face and hands extremely weathered. His horn is also showing signs of age. What’s up with that front F key? And that clip on the neck of the horn, what’s it for?
If you look at the full-size photo, you can really see this weathering in detail. (Note too, how the dust and dirt has ground its way into the pearls.) When you consider some photos clearly show him playing in cold weather, it’s not surprising that both he and his horn are looking older than they did in 2006.
Based on the newspaper articles on display, the man is clearly something of a local celebrity. I wonder how many years he and his Weltklang have been performing in Prague?
There are so many great stories out there waiting to be told. I suspect this man has one of them.
