Valve and slide trumpet, B-flat
Maker
Frank Holton & Company
Date1985
Place MadeElkhorn, Wisconsin, United States, North America
ModelFirebird (MF Horn ST 303)
Serial No.592773
SignedEngraved on bell: HOLTON / ELKHORN, WIS. U.S.A.Engraved alongside bell: MF Horn
MarkingsStamped on second valve casing: 592773
Engraved on inner first and third valve slides: 2773
Stamped on leadpipe: ST 303
Stamped valve casings and spring stems, respectively: 1, 2, 3
DescriptionBrass, burnished and lacquered, nickel-silver (slides, leadpipe, ferrules, braces, valve caps, finger buttons, and valve stems), mother-of-pearl inlay (finger buttons), single loop with upward-pointing bell, single slide with pull ring and lock for four half-step positions, maximum extension adjustable with stop rod, main tuning slide at first bow, three Périnet valves (1, ½, 1½), top-sprung, spring inside hollow stem, alignment by two unequal lugs on spring anchor plate, nickel-plated brass pistons, Amado water keys at main tuning slide and third valve slide, windway: slide 3-2-1.
Silver mouthpiece, stamped: Holton / MF 3
The MF Horn line of the Holton Co. was developed in cooperation with jazz trumpeter Maynard Ferguson (1928-2006). It includes a tenor trombone with three valves and full slide, a large bore trumpet, and this slide-valve trumpet. Characteristics of the MF Horn ST 303, also called Firebird, are the upward-tilted Dizzy Gillespie-style bell and a four-position slide in combination with three normal valves. The slide is intended for glissandi and can be used for pitch bending up to four half steps.
DimensionsHeight: 421 mm
Tube length: 1308 mm
Bore diameter (initial, minimum, slide, valve slides): 11.2 mm, 8.6 mm, 11.9 mm, 11.9 mm (0.468 inches)
Bell diameter: 127 mm (5 inches)
ProvenancePurchased from the Woodwind & Brasswind Company, South Bend, Indiana, 1985.
Credit LineJoe R. and Joella F. Utley Collection, 1999
Object number06774
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