Helen has a somewhat sizeable collection of vintage saxophones, and many of them them are quite obscure. If you would like to check them out, you can see them for yourself on her website.
If you have particularly unusual saxophone that you haven’t been able to find any information about, use the Contact page on this site and perhaps Helen can assist you in finding out more about it.
The photos on this page of the bari, and at the Arty Awards, were taken by Jason Brown, the owner Revival Arts Studio. I can say I knew Jason before he became über famous in the photography world! He was my pianist in the Bassic Sax Jazz Ensemble. If you are looking for a photographer who with an amazing eye, Jason is your man.
I have put that tenor on my watch list, so I would also like to hear anything you discover about that brand. It’s pretty apparent from the left-side bell keys that it’s going to have the dreaded “American” pinky cluster, but this can be managed to a degree. If it sounds good and plays in tune, mechanical issues can be forgiven to a degree.
I find it interesting that if it’s made in Italy, it sure has a French name. That of course has absolutely no bearing on how well it plays!
Well James, all it would take is for someone to buy this Henri Lavelle tenor that’s on eBay right now, and you’d have your movement. 😆
Well, it appears that Henri LaValle saxes are crawing out of the woodwork. To paraphrase Arlo Guthrie… 2 people is an organization…three people is a movement. :devil1:
I just today purchased a “Henry Lavalle” stamped Made in Italy, at a charity shop for $150. I have always loved the sound of the sax, so thought I might learn to play. I had played clarinet in HS band, in the 1960s. It has pearl keys, very heavy. I thought it looked like it might have some “age” to it, and wonder how I would find out what the date of manufacture might be? The only paperwork with it is from a repair in 1984. I would be happy to email photos if that would be of help to identify it.
Thanks in advance for any light you can shed on this instrument.
Hi Marilin. Welcome to my site!
Congratulations on your decision to learn to play the sax, and on the purchase of your Henry Lavalle.
Yes, photos would definitely help in identifying the manufacturer. From that, you can then sometimes figure out when it was made. Send the photos to my gmail account, and then we don’t have to worry about file size. Bigger is better actually, and all sides of the horn would be helpful. Photos of the neck too would be good.
You don’t mention if the sax is an alto or tenor. Or is it something else?
So send me the pictures, and I’ll be happy to help you out.
Regards,
Helen
Helen: I just wanted to make sure that you got the pics of My Henri Lavalle Sax. I’ve had some trouble with my e-mail and pics.
Hi James. Yes I did get the pics of your Henri Lavalle. Sorry I haven’t had a chance to do much checking into the horn yet though. I thought I emailed you, but I must have forgotten to do that. Sorry about that too. Me bad… 😳
Your horn is definitely older than what I thought it would look like. The letter before the number could very likely indicate it to be an Orsi stencil, but I’d have to do a bit more digging before I’d want to say that with any real certainty. I’ll do some hunting around, and send you an email with the info I uncover. (Really, I’ll send you an email. Promise.) :devil2:
Hello Helen,
Chris here, thank you for the message. and yes I do play Bass, Baritone, Tenor, C Melody, Alto, and Soprano Saxophones.
my youtube channel is stk38349 for videos. I’m getting better at it, but I will post more in the future. Hope everyone is having a great year. 🙂
Great to see all those bass sax videos of yours Chris! Keep up raising the public’s consciousness of this rather rare sax.
So, whatever got you into playing bass? And how did you end up with 5 vintage ones?
Hi George. Welcome to my site.
Do you have any photos of your saxophone you can send me? The manufacturer is usually fairly easy to identify by certain characteristic features.
If you could send me some pictures to my gmail account, then I would be happy to try and help you identify your sax.
With regards to horns made of shell casings, there’s no truth in that. It’s just an urban myth. The horns that that claim is usually made about, is the Selmer Mark VI. I actually wrote a tongue-in-cheek article about that last summer.
There are many horns that don’t have any lacquer on them because they came from the factory that way. It is possible that your Andre Rivan was just an unlacquered horn.
Send me some pics, and let’s see if we can solve the nearly 3 decades old mystery of your Italian saxophone.
Regards,
Helen
Hi, I purchased an alto in the early 1980s, made in Italy, branded “Andre Rivan” with a ser # A10XX. At that time the horn had essentially no lacquer (if it ever had any?) so I figured it must have been in the neighborhood of 30-40 years old then. I have read discussions about the possibility of some of the post WWII European saxes being made from recycled shell casings. This horn has a quite solid body as it shows few dents compared to the tough college life it got when I purchased it, so wonder if it may be one. I have had no luck finding more about the manufacturer of this horn, and only once seen mention of another horn of this make.
Have you any info about Andre Rivan?
Thanks.
Hi James. Welcome to my blog.
Check you email inbox. I’ve sent you a note.
There are very few Italian saxophone manufacturers, so your hunt will be fairly short.
Take a look at the photos of my La Monte tenor, and also of my Gallotone tenor. Does your Henri Lavalle look like either one of those?
Past Henri Lavalle saxes have been described as being identical to the La Monte. If that is true for your sax, then you have yourself an Orsi stencil.
Let me know what you think. Also, please do send me some pictures of your sax. It would be nice to see what a Henri Lavalle horn actually looks like… Regardless if it looks like either one of the saxes I’ve linked to above or not. I’m really just curious about the brand.
I am a guitar player and I recently bought an alto sax in a pawn shop for $100 to do some simple phrases on a soul gig. I had a hard time reading the engraving on the horn but, after some research, it turned out to be “Henri Lavalle.” Here is what I now know: Mr. Henry Grossman owned the Grossman Music Company, Inc., of Cleveland, Ohio, and, beginning in 1921, he imported musical instruments like clariinets and brass from France and Italy and sold them in the US under various trade names, including “Henri Lavalle,” until about 1948. Henri Lavalle was a song writer in the early 20th century sheet music days who wrote “Blue Birds Call” in 1910 and “American Legion March” in 1921. I don’t know if Mr. Grossman had a contract with Mr. Lavalle for use of his name on the instrument, but I have to presume that he did. Mr. Grossman became very prominent in the music business, and even bought Rogers Drums and enlisted Buddy Rich as his star endorser. The horn is stamped “Made in Italy.” I would like to know the name of the company that manufactured the horn, and the circumstances under which this transaction occurred. I am a writer and am always looking for an interesting story. If you have any insights into how I could research Italian sax manufacterers in the pre and post WWII era, I would be very grateful. Thanks, Jim. P.S.The Grossman Music Co. still exists, and I have a call in to the company’s president, but we have not hooked up yet. Again, thanks.
Is there any chance we could get a few pictures of this horn? It sounds intriguing. I wouldn’t mind having a mezzo-soprano in the collection myself. From the few samples I’ve heard, it sounds a lot like Paul Desmond’s alto.
Thanks for the clarification. Your horn sounds intriguing to say the least.
I’ve sent you an email, so if you didn’t get it, please make sure you check your spam folder.
Sorry for the confusion it is a F pitched horn.
It is in the key of F. No stamp, no serial #, no country of origin. Saul Fromkin said, “it was made by an indian in a tent somewhere”, when he looked at it more than ten years ago. It is crudely made in that there appears to be file marks on all the keys and is unlaqured. Thanks for the help though. I’ll try to throw you some pics of the horn sometime tomorrow.
Hi Zeb. Welcome to my website.
I can honestly tell you I have never heard of Matzeo as a brand name. Running the name through a variety of search engines didn’t turn up anything either.
Can you be a bit more specific about the horn? Things like: How old (approx.) is it? Does it have a country of origin stamped anywhere on it? Is it a tenor? An alto? A soprano? A baritone? Something else? Any info you could provide would be helpful.
If you like, you could send me a few photos, and I’d be happy to look at them for you. Send them to my gmail account, that would be the easiest place to reach me.
I’m a bit confused when you say your horn is in the key of F. Do you mean it’s an actual F pitched horn? If so, it would be an F mezzo soprano, and Conn was the only company that made them, and that was in 1928 & 29, although there have been reports that other companies might have made “one-ofs”. So unless your horn is nearly an antique, it’s unlikely to be an F mezzo soprano.
Off the top of my head, I would say that your sax would be considered a “stencil” sax, in that it was made by another manufacturer, and then had its brand name stenciled on. The age of your horn, and perhaps the country of origin (if it’s stamped on the instrument) might help us narrow down which company made it. Although if it is quite new, that may not be possible.
So all of this to say… The more blanks you fill in, the more I can try to help unravel the mystery for you.
Has anyone ever heard of the brand Matzeo. The horn I have is in the key of F. Any info about the brand or any ideas of where to obtain more info would be greatly appreciated.
I’m glad that the info was of some help Rhys.
It seems to me most likely, that the dealer you bought the sax from, most likely acquired the Nouveau-branded horns from whomever had them stencilled to begin with.
Good to hear that you’re happy with your horn, and that your instructor thinks it’s a good, solid little horn as well. So many times we hear bad things about “no-name” brand saxes, especially in the intonation department.
BTW, 15 years playing experience is not insignificant. Don’t sell yourself short. I hope you keep on playing, and your Nouveau keeps providing you with good service for years to come.
Regards,
Helen
Thanks Helen thats very helpful.
I did buy my horn from Australia… Sydney to be precise. I paid $1500 AUD approx 10yrs ago and had it valued for insurance 2yrs ago at the same price. It is exactly the same as the alto in melbourne, besides mine being in slightly better condition.
I know the (small) dealer I bought it off ordered two altos, 1 for myself and one for another customer but not much more. Which means they did not badge the saxophones themselves, although they do manufacture their own oboes exclusively.
I find it quite a nice sax to play. I have never felt the need to fork out the large amount more to buy anything more expensive. Myself, I only have 15yrs playing experience but whilst I was still having lessons my jazz teacher (of 40+yrs experience) thought his Yanagisawa was in no way better than my Nouveau (using the same meyer mouthpiece), and hence thought it was an absolute bargain.
Your research has cleared up some questions in my mind, it’s great to know a little bit more about the instrument hiding in my house.
Cheers.
Hi Rhys. Welcome to my website.
Before you wrote to me, I hadn’t heard of the brand Nouveau before, but I pretty much can guarantee you that it isn’t made in France. It’s all in the language. A saxophone actually manufactured in France, would say “Made in France” on it. That is something the company would be boasting about.
When the language used says something like “supervised by French technicians”, that’s code for: Made in an undisclosed Asian country, in a factory where French technicians were involved at some point in the training of the staff. (Or something along those lines.)
There is some weird loophole that allows manufacturers to not stamp the country of origin on a horn, but I can’t remember what it is now. I’ll have to look into it again. I heard about it a few months ago, so I’ll do a bit of digging and write something about it when I do find out again what it is. Bottom line: this only happens, or more to the point, doesn’t, when the company is trying to hide where the instrument is coming from. If a sax was made in France, they’d be screaming it from the roof tops.
Now about the Nouveau brand, I did a little bit of research and did come up with a couple of For Sale Listings, but no other info interestingly enough.
The first one was for a used soprano in Melbourne, Australia. This wasn’t really all that helpful, since it didn’t have any pictures, but at least the model was a Nouveau 90s II. At $1000 Australian Dollars (AUD) that works out to be approx $700 USD as of Jan ’09.
The second horn was at least an alto, but it didn’t specify the model. This horn too was in Melbourne, but this one was a private listing and had some photos. Check them out and let me know if this looks like your horn. This alto is clearly a Selmer style reproduction horn. It has the Selmer style key guards, keys, & body to bell support ring. This horn too is listed for $1000 AUD, which would be approx $700 US.
The fact that both references to Nouveau saxophones that I found were from Australia, and specifically Melbourne, lead me to speculate that perhaps a company Down Under had these horns “stenciled” from an Asian factory.
It’s a bit similar to the I&K bass saxophones that are being sold by a dealer in Australia, coincidentally enough, in Melbourne too. These I&K saxes are made in an undisclosed Asian country, and are found no where else except through this one dealer.
I don’t know if any of this has been helpful to you, but there you have it: Some actual info, some educated guesses, and some wild speculation. 😉
Let me know if if those photos look similar to your sax. Also, where did you happen to get yours? Was it Australia by chance?
Hi, I have been searching the web for sometime for the “Nouveau” brand of saxophones and cannot find a thing. I own a Nouveau 90’s II alto that i purchased about 10 yrs ago from a specialist repairer/importer. I’m assuming it is French as part of the name inlay it says “supervised by French technicians”. All I know about the brand is that the factory they were manufactured in shutdown for some reason not long after I bought it. I would love to find out any more information about it, any help would be appreciated.
Thanks.
Hi Chris & welcome to my site.
I’m not sure of bass saxophonists in NJ, but I know a number of them in NY City. I take it you already play bass sax? What kind do you have?
If you aren’t already a member, the best place to find other bass players is through the Bass Saxophone Cooperative. It was founded almost 7 years ago to the day, by Steve Weinert & is moderated by Paul Coats (the player I bought my bass from).
As of today, we have 358 members, and among them, are some of them are the best & most knowledgeable bass sax players in the world.
Also as of today, there are 5183 messages in the group’s archives: all of them bass sax related. Over the years we’ve discussed things such as the proper care of our vintage silver horns, case rebuilding, mouthpieces, stands, reeds, upcoming performances, repairs, emergency, repairs we can do ourselves, for sale listings, etc. etc.
In order to view the messages, you have to be a member of the group. Membership is of course free. All you have to do is go to the Bass Sax Co-op’s home page, and send a request for membership. Steve or Paul will send you all your membership details.
BTW, anyone can join the Bass Sax Co-op. We have a number of players who don’t yet have a bass, but hope to get one in the future.
Hello, my name is Chris H. and I am from NJ. Just wondering if there are any other bass saxophonists in NJ. Thank you
(by the way, wonderful picture of you playing the tenor)
As it turns out, there was an Acme brand of saxophone, and it was indeed a stencil horn. It was made by the French saxophone maker Malerne.
Thank you Steve for sending me the link to the eBay ad, that got me started in my research, which lead to my post on Acme saxophones.
Helen
Hi Steve.
Thanks for stopping by my site and asking that question. You wouldn’t believe how many people type in “Acme saxophone” as search words. I get lots of people looking for information on the brand name.
I have never heard of a saxophone brand named Acme. To my knowledge no such brand existed.
Now, having said that, if the Acme name did appear on a saxophone, it would have most likely been a “stencil” horn, meaning another instrument maker manufactured it, and then simply stamped it with the ordering company’s name. But as I said, I have never heard of any saxophones carrying the name Acme at all.
Hi. Did you ever hear of the brand name Acme Saxophone? Where were they made if so. Thank you.
Regards.
Steve