While perusing eBay while drinking my morning coffee, I came across this tenor sarrusophone:
A good silverplated Tenor Sarrusophone bearing the original stamp: Buffet Crampon & Cie. à Paris, Evette & Schaeffer, Ance Mon Buffet Crampon & Cie, 18 & 20 Passage du Gd Cerf, Paris, 149, made in France. Also stamped with the seller’s name: Carl Fischer New York. Good original condition with the usual wear, some scratches and tiny dents, restored to playing condition some years ago. Comes with original case and original reedbox including some old reeds. Total length 71.5 cm or 28 1/4 inches.
“Evette & Schaeffer (earlier Buffet-Crampon) used the occasion of the Exposition Universelle de Paris of 1900 to reintroduce the complete sarrusophone family. The key positions had been made completely identical to those of the saxophone. The Sarrusophones à méchanisme perfectionné Système Evette & Schaeffer are advertised in the 1907 catalog at about the same prices as the best saxophones of the same register; nevertheless, from 1919 to 1923 only forty-nine sarrusophones were manufactured, of which twentytwo were contrabasses in E-flat. Between 1920 and 1930, French manufacturers stopped producing the sarrusophone.” (Gunther Joppig)
Source: eBay.com
I remember this exact same photo on eBay earlier this year, spring I think it was, so I’m guessing that the instrument didn’t sell then. At $10,000 for the Buy It Now price, I suspect it might not this time either, unless exactly the right buyer happens to stumble upon the auction.
If you’re interested in finding out more about these rare instruments, then Grant Green’s sarrusophone page will give you lots of information. Another good resource is the Wikipedia page on Sarrusophones.
Anyways, if you’re looking for a sarrus, and a run-of-the-mill contra isn’t rare enough for you, 😉 then this might just be the ticket.
Update: This sarrusophone did not sell.
My prediction: We’ll see it again. Hopefully by then the economy will have improved enough so that this rare beauty will find a new home.
Hi Grant. Welcome to my site!
Yes, this sarrus picked a bad time to go on the auction block.
It is a very pretty horn, although I would still prefer a roth. I must say after trying Quinn’s alto, I’m smitten. I had really wanted a sarrus for years, but after playing both, the rothophone won me over.
During the dot.com bubble, this horn would probably have sold for US$10K fairly quickly. I’d say it was still within the range of reasonable prices for a horn of this rarity, but perhaps at the high end of the scale these days. Given today’s economy, I will not be surprised to see it listed again next year…