This morning I happened across a fantastic little gem on YouTube. In this video four saxophonists from the United States Army Field Band are given a tour of some of the more unique saxophones that Dr. Paul Cohen has in his collection of his approximately 150 horns.
Dr. Cohen and the other saxophonists demonstrate quite a few rare, and in most cases vintage, saxophones in this 11 minute video. Included in this demonstration are: the Conn-O-Sax; a Reiffel & Husted slide saxophone; one of the remaining, original 12 contrabass saxes; a Tubax; the only curved King sopranino ever made; a King slide saxophone (I had never seen or even heard of this before), and one—of only two ever built by the company—Selmer keyless saxophones. Enjoy…
For those of you not in the know, Dr. Paul Cohen is one of America’s premier classical saxophonists, and a world-renowned saxophone historian. I have the utmost respect for him, and consult with him on occasion when it comes to some of the rarer members of the saxophone family and their cousins.
Dr. Cohen is currently a faculty member at the: Manhattan School of Music, Mason Gross School of the Arts at Rutgers University, New York University, Columbia University and the Aaron Copland School of Music at Queens College. In short, Dr. Paul Cohen is Dr. Saxophone.
He has studied with the world’s greatest; performed on some of most prestigious stages; and passes his knowledge of the instrument on through his work on as a saxophone professor and author. There are very few performers in the world who have his résumé.
If you are interested in finding out more about Dr. Paul Cohen, check out his website.
Is there a museum where I can see Dr Cohen’s collection?
To the best of my knowledge no, but I could be mistaken. Last I heard Dr. Cohen’s collection was a personal one, and not on public display. There are quite a few professional musicians like Dr. Cohen who have an extensive collection of rare and unusual saxophones that they use in their performances.
If you are interested in seeing a large collection of rare saxophones, I suggest you check out the museum at Saxquest.
Yes, my museum is open to anyone! Contact me for more information. Paul Cohen
Paulcohen.saxo@gmail.com
I play the alto and baritone saxophone.
I have been shopping for toy saxophones online that resemble the instuments above. My children desire to look like their dad who is a professional saxophonist!
Well there are lots of choices. I focus mostly on vintage ones on my website, but a quick on eBay with the search words “toy saxophone” or “toy sax” will net you a wide variety of new items as well.