Superba I Soprano
I have found that the Superba I soprano has 3 phases based on visual characteristics. These 3 phases are described and illustrated below. Additionally however, there are also some features that the Superba I had over its entire 20+ year production cycle at Keilwerth. Those will be illustrated first.
Features common over the entire production run
Phase 1 – features
Prior to this update in 2025, I was very unsure about this phase of horns—or if it even existed. The problem for me is that I haven’t been able to find more than 1 example of this early style of Superba I. If it weren’t for all the research done by my colleague Steve Sklar, I might have written it off entirely. However, I recently obtained some more photos of this early Superba I which tip the scales a bit more in its favour.
This very early Superba I is almost identical to the Superba II sopranos—except for its left thumb rest and chromatic F# key.
That said, I really do need some more really early Phase 1 examples to cement its details. If you have an early Superba I H. Couf soprano, please reach out to me. I could really use some photos and details. Thank you!
- Black plastic G# key touch
- MOP key touches are smaller, with button inset within brass “cup”. Metal edges encircle the pearls.
- MOP left thumb rest
- Mark VI style left palm keys.
- High D, Eb, F tone holes are inline, and on the front of the body tube—also like on the Mark VI
- Left pinkie cluster attached to rods at the back of the keys
- Bell keys on the top of the body tube
- Right pinkie keys old-school JK-style
- No high F#
- No front F
- Chromatic F# a MOP button
- Lyre holder on the front, just above bell keys.
- Latest (only) serial # seen to date: 76915
Defining features for Phase 1 soprano
- Black plastic G# key touch
- MOP key touches are smaller, with button inset within brass “cup”. Metal edges encircle the pearls.
- MOP left thumb rest
- Flat left palm keys
- High D, Eb, F tone holes are inline, and on the front of the body tube
- No high F#
- Chromatic F# a MOP button
Superba I #76915 – Lacquer
Phase 2 – features
- MOP G# key touch
- MOP key touches are larger, without metal edges. (Like what`s now on the SX90.)
- Black plastic left thumb rest
- Arched left palm keys
- High D, Eb, F keys are on the side of the body tube
- Left pinkie cluster attached to rods at the back of the keys
- Right pinkie keys old-school JK-style
- High F# present
- Sliver-shaped chromatic F# key
- Fixed metal right thumb rest until circa #84000 *
- Circa #84000+ right thumb rest is replaced with fixed black one that remains for rest of the Superba I run
- Lyre holder on the front, just above bell keys.
- Serial # range seen to date: 80896 – 88856
NB: # 80896 is a horn that has A LOT of exceptions. It is discussed separately below.
Defining features for Phase 2 soprano
The Superba I was totally redesigned and lost most of its Superba II look when this first evolution of the model was released. Phase 2 Superba I sopranos by far and away make up the majority of horns you see on the market today. These are the features that will help you ID the Phase 2:
- MOP G# key touch
- MOP key touches are larger, without metal edges. (Like what`s now on the SX90.)
- Black plastic left thumb rest
- Arched left palm keys
- High D, Eb, F keys are on the side of the body tube
- High F# present
- Sliver-shaped chromatic F# key
Superba I # 81332 – Lacquer
Superba I # 84905 – Black Gold
A Phase 2 Superba I that is nothing but exceptions
This Phase 2 is the earliest I have seen, but has features that quite frankly make no sense. A while ago Brian had obtained a lot of items that belonged to Herb Couf himself—including this prototype Superba I alto with a high G key—so I have to wonder if this soprano didn’t have a similar backstory. This whole thing looks like a prototype.
Whatever the case, this soprano is the earliest Phase 2 I have seen, and has features that either: A. Weren’t seen on sopranos until much later, or B. Were never seen on sopranos at all.
- Front F key (not seen until Phase 3), but the over sized button key seen here was never used.
- Black plastic right thumb rest (becomes standard circa 84xxx)
- Strap ring (not seen until Phase 3), but its style was never used. This style is the one used on Superba I horns. For the Phase 3 sopranos a simple ring is used.
Superba I # 80896 – lacquer
Phase 3 – features
- Identical to the post-84xxx Superba I sopranos, but with some additions
- Left pinkie cluster attached to rods at the front of the keys
- Bell keys are on the side of the bell
- Right pinkie keys are now rounder in shape, and look like what’s on the modern Keilwerths
- Front F key present
- Chromatic F# key is MOP button
- Strap ring is present
- Lyre holder has been moved to the back of the body tube above the right thumb rest
- Serial # range seen to date: 91646 – 91912
Defining features for Phase 3 soprano
In the late 1980s, the Keilwerth company introduced their SX90 sopranos, and this roughly corresponds with the last phase we see of the Superba I. From what I have seen in researching this brand for years, very few of this phase was made, since right after their introduction Couf had Keilwerth stop production of all Superba model saxophones.
These Phase 3 Superba I sopranos are by far and away the most advanced, and have the most features of any Couf soprano. They are easily identifiable through their unique features including:
- The left pinkie cluster rods are attached to the front of the keys rather than the back.
- Bell keys are on the side, rather than the top of the bell. (Because of #1.)
- Right pinkie keys now have the rounder, modern JK shape.
- There is now a front F key.
- The chromatic F# is an oversize MOP button like the rest of the key touches
- A strap ring has been added
- The lyre holder has been moved to the back of the body tube from the front.
Superba I # 91646 – Lacquer
Superba I # 91912 – Lacquer
NB: Of course there have to be exceptions. Here are the ones I have found to date:
- #80896 may have been a prototype. It is discussed separately under Phase 2.
- # 83956 has an adjustable metal thumb rest. Presumably aftermarket.
- Multiple Phase 2 Superba I sopranos I catalogued have had strap rings added over the years including #s: 83956, 84911, 84xxx, & 85783.