{"id":36663,"date":"2013-03-15T09:59:39","date_gmt":"2013-03-15T17:59:39","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/bassic-sax.info\/blog\/?p=36663"},"modified":"2024-06-06T10:32:22","modified_gmt":"2024-06-06T17:32:22","slug":"john-coltranes-yamaha-alto-for-sale-the-first-115000-takes-it","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bassic-sax.info\/blog\/2013\/john-coltranes-yamaha-alto-for-sale-the-first-115000-takes-it\/","title":{"rendered":"John Coltrane’s Yamaha Alto For Sale: The First $115,000 Takes It"},"content":{"rendered":"

Are you a John Coltrane fan? Do you secretly covet owning a saxophone that the man played? If so, then this Yamaha alto, currently for sale on eBay<\/a> is likely the answer to your dreams.<\/p>\n

\"Yamaha<\/a><\/p>\n

Source: <\/span>RECORDMECCA<\/p>\n

The horn is being sold by Recordmecca.<\/a> The man behind the company, Jeff Gold, has been buying and selling high-end music collectibles for 40 years.<\/p>\n

This is how this very experienced dealer, and collector, of high-end music memorabilia describes this interesting collectible:<\/p>\n

We are extremely proud to offer John Coltrane’s personal alto saxophone, owned by the jazz giant and played during his 1966 tour of Japan. This prototype Yamaha saxophone was sold by the John Coltrane Foundation at the legendary Guernsey’s Jazz Auction in February 2005, and is extensively documented. The auction description reads, in part, “Yamaha Nippon Gakki Alto Saxophone, made in Japan, serial #015 with case. This alto saxophone was produced in 1966…and was gifted by the Yamaha Corporation (who) requested that John Coltrane inspect and evaluate it. This prototype saxophone became the model “YAS-1″ in 1967.”<\/p>\n

While best known for playing tenor and soprano horns, Coltrane first began playing saxophone on the alto in 1940, at at age 14. He played alto intermittently until mid 1951, when he devoted himself almost exclusively to the tenor sax, though he did play alto on a 1958 Prestige recording as a member of the Gene Ammons All Stars. In 1966, Coltrane toured Japan with a band that included Pharoah Sanders, and he and Sanders were each given Yamaha prototype saxophones to promote the company’s new line of instruments.<\/p>\n

Coltrane played this horn extensively during his two week tour, much to the delight of the Japanese audiences. He is heard playing it on various live albums recorded in Japan including “Second Night in Tokyo,” and pictured using it on the cover of the 4 CD set “Live in Japan.” Coltrane can also be heard playing the Yamaha alto on the album “Stellar Regions.” A number of photographs exist of Coltrane playing this horn, and photos from a 1969 issue of the Japanese jazz magazine Swing Journal picture it in Coltrane’s home studio in Dix Hills, New York.<\/p>\n

This is one of only two Coltrane saxophones to be sold by his family to benefit The John Coltrane Foundation, and as such has impeccable provenance. With the original case, copies of the original Guernsey’s receipt and catalog pages, digital copies of photographs of Coltrane playing the horn, and our lifetime guarantee of authenticity. A truly museum quality collectible of the highest order. Scroll down for more photographs.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Here are just a few of the photos from the original eBay ad.<\/p>\n

\"Yamaha<\/a><\/p>\n

Source: RECORDMECCA<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Yamaha<\/a><\/p>\n

Source: RECORDMECCA<\/span><\/p>\n

\"John<\/a><\/p>\n

Source: RECORDMECCA<\/span><\/p>\n

See all the rest of the photos on the auction page<\/a>.<\/p>\n

How much would you spend on a horn that belonged to John Coltrane? And Why?<\/h2>\n

How much would you be willing be to spend for a saxophone that once belonged to a player who you revered? Would you spend $20,000? How about $50,000? Would you go as high as $100,000? Well, you if want this John Coltrane horn, youll have to pony up $115,000. \ud83d\ude2f<\/p>\n

I will leave it to you to decide if you think this amount of money is  :loco:  or not, but I did find a very thought-provoking article about this on the music review site, tinymixedtapes.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n

In the article, Ryan Simpson offers up the following thoughts:<\/p>\n

This got me thinking; what\u2019s the point of owning memorabilia? …they only have as much value as an individual puts on them. Coltrane\u2019s saxophone is valuable to the whole world, and here\u2019s why: cloning.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

He goes on to say that using the residual DNA in the horn, would allow for the creation of an army of John Coltranes who could, “conquer the world with jazz”.<\/p>\n

I think Simpson’s concluding thoughts are brilliantly on the mark:<\/p>\n

…the eventual owner of this massively important cultural artifact should get in touch; I may not have the resources (or knowhow) to clone a human, but with our combined intellects, I\u2019m sure we could puzzle it out. Also, being able to touch a saxophone owned by Coltrane would be rad.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

If you want to be the one to try to clone John Coltrane from the DNA left in any residual saliva, or you just want a unique, \u00fcber expensive collectible, from one of the world’s most influential jazz players, you have until April 4, to get your $115,000 Buy It Now offer in to Recordmecca. (Unless someone beats you to it, of course.)<\/p>\n

\n
…this is just my blog<\/em>. <\/span> My \u201creal\u201d <\/b> website is<\/span> www.bassic-sax.info.<\/a> If you\u2019re looking for <\/span> sax info<\/strong>,<\/span> you should check it out too.<\/span>There\u2019s lots<\/em> there! <\/span><\/div>\n
 <\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Are you a John Coltrane fan? Do you secretly covet owning a saxophone that the man played? If so, then this Yamaha alto, currently for …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[272],"tags":[625,209,660,653,644,199,213],"class_list":["post-36663","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-saxophone-collectible","tag-alto-saxophone","tag-asian-made-saxophones","tag-ebay","tag-famous-not-so-famous-sax-players","tag-photos","tag-saxophone-collectibles","tag-yamaha"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t