Alto saxophone, E-flat
Maker
Adolphe Sax
Date1857 ca.
Place MadeParis, France, Europe
Serial No.16149
SignedEngraved vertically on bell: (script) No 16149 / Saxophone alto en Mi b breveté / Adolphe Sax à Paris / Fteur de la Mson Milre de l’Empereur / AS (monogram)MarkingsStamped horizontally on bell, the underside of the flare: 1857
DescriptionOne-piece body and separate neck. Brass. Dual octave keys. Side Bb only – no bis-Bb key or automated 1:1 Bb fingering combination. The Bb key tone hole is inline on the front of the instrument. No side C, forked Eb, alternate F# or G# trill keys. Eb/low C keys as well as G#/low C#/low B keys are “button” style and without touchpieces or rollers. Soldered tone holes.
DimensionsHeight: 600 mm
Bell diameter: 140 mm
ProvenancePurchased from Tony Bingham, London, 1986.
Published ReferencesLarson, André P. _The National Music Museum: A Pictorial Souvenir_. Vermillion: National Music Museum, 1988. (p. 40).
Ingham, Richard, ed. _The Cambridge Companion to the Saxophone_. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1998. (p. 17).
Howe, Robert S. "The Invention and Early Development of the Saxophone, 1840-1855." _Journal of the American Musical Instrument Society_ 29 (2003): 172.
Kendall, Bryan. _In Search of the Saxophone: Its Origins and Functions_. Hutchins, Texas: Kendallhouse Publishing, 2022. (p. 344).
Credit LineArne B. and Jeanne F. Larson Fund, 1986
Object number04038
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