Inventory of Bari Players & Their Horns

Yup. No regrets at all. Done a lot of minor tweaking to it with spring tensions and what not. I repadded it over Thanksgiving since the overhaul done on it at Oleg was terrible. It now plays much better than when I got it. I think BariSaxDiva is also doing a LOT of modifications to the Selmer as well. I miss the VI, not gonna lie. It's a monster of a horn, but since I don't do much combo work, I needed a killer low A bari and that's what I've got.
 
I am almost ashamed to reply to this thread...I need intervention!

1908 Buffet (Carl Fischer) silver plated, dual octave keys
1919 Selmer New York (Buescher) silver plated
1923 Conn gold plated, artist engraving
1924 Conn gold plated
1930 Buescher True Tone bare brass (not sure if it was ever lacquered)
1959 Buescher Aristocrat silver plated, 400 style keys
1963 Martin RMC, getting serious mods currently :)
1970's Buescher 400
1980 Vito VSP (Yanagisawa)
2008 Barone

The '23 Conn needs a full rebuild and wasn't treated very well before I got it and Selmer New York is getting rebuilt right now. I am not sure why I picked a 90+ year old bari for my 1st attempt at a rebuild, but it certainly is a learning experience!

The Barone is my main bari though with the '24 Conn 2nd (I love the Conn sound, but the Barone is so much easier to play, especially for big band work).
 
DavidW said:
I am almost ashamed to reply to this thread...I need intervention!

1908 Buffet (Carl Fischer) silver plated, dual octave keys
1919 Selmer New York (Buescher) silver plated
1923 Conn gold plated, artist engraving
1924 Conn gold plated
1930 Buescher True Tone bare brass (not sure if it was ever lacquered)
1959 Buescher Aristocrat silver plated, 400 style keys
1963 Martin RMC, getting serious mods currently :)
1970's Buescher 400
1980 Vito VSP (Yanagisawa)
2008 Barone

The '23 Conn needs a full rebuild and wasn't treated very well before I got it and Selmer New York is getting rebuilt right now. I am not sure why I picked a 90+ year old bari for my 1st attempt at a rebuild, but it certainly is a learning experience!

The Barone is my main bari though with the '24 Conn 2nd (I love the Conn sound, but the Barone is so much easier to play, especially for big band work).
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Hi David. Welcome aboard.

Well, yes. While at first blush it might appear you need an intervention because you have 10 horns, you really only have 1... (kind that is). So you're OK. I wouldn't worry about your horn situation at all, unless of course it is causing problems in your work, home, or family life.

Having only 1 type of saxophone is really not problematic, since we all know that they all sound different from each other. For example, take my 7 tenors... Each and every one of them sounds different from the one before it...

1) Martin Handcraft
2) Dörfler & Jörka stencilled De Villiers
3) Mark VI
4) King Zephyr
5) Conn 10M
6) Hammerschmidt Klingsor circa '59
7) Hammerschmidt Klingsor circa '60s sometime (different model altogether)

I know they sound different from each other, and I have played them in blind play-tests for my significant other, family members, as well as a select few friends. Each person (all non-musician types) I have played them for all were astonished how different these saxophones all sounded, despite them all being tenor saxes.

So you see, if you lined up your baris, the same would be said for them. Hence, no intervention necessary. (Says the woman with 20+ horns, who really does need an intervention.) I can justify anything. :emoji_smile:

My baris number only 2: a low Bb Mark VI and a B&S Medusa (low A)... I bet you can figure out the justification I used on that one. I needed a low A horn just in case... ;-) (The low A was actually my back up horn when I was working in an R&B band.)

Where do you play your bari(s) David? What kind of music do you play the most? What kind do you enjoy playing the most?

Great to have you here. Hope to see you around....helen
 
I was looking for the Yani 99x bari in your list; I have two of them. :cool:

I error on the side of two many *kinds* of instruments owning one or two of everything from soprillo through bass sax and eefer through contrabass clarinet. The best part is playin' them if'n you ask me.
 
I dont have an obsene about of any particular horns, but I have sop through now bass sax, and eefer through BBb contra clarinet *spare a C and alto clarinet* and piccolo thru bass flutes. Thank God my gigging requirements call for most of these and somehow the tenor saxes seem to come out the least of everything, except maybe the EEb contralto clarinet... Either way, it's nice to have the versatility when I need it. I'm not against lending out my backup horns to good buddies either. Main gig horns not so much, but the backups go out from time to time.

There was a 991 listed for $2500 on Sotw the other day, was surprised he didn't snag that one
 
I don't consider myself to be a professional, just an amateur that gets called to fill in occasionally. I started playing again about 4 years ago, after taking many years off. I started collecting older saxes shortly after college, before wife and kids (when the disposable income was still available).

Bari was always my favorite and I ended up playing bari and tenor throughout high school and college bands (concert, symphonic, jazz, pep). Now I am playing in a church orchestra and fairly regularly with 2 local big bands (tenor/bari/soprano/bass clarinet in the orchestra, whatever they need). I really need to work on bass clarinet though, especially the mid range!

Aside from the 2 Conns (even those have slight differences, although only a year apart), each has a different sound. For sheer volume, the 100+ year old Buffet probably wins. I got dizzy the 1st time I played that one :)

My most interesting sax is probably a silver plated Selmer Modele 22 C melody. I have only seen pictures of a few of those, never another in person.

If I wasn't currently unemployed, that $2500 Yanagisawa would probably have been #11 :)
 
DavidW said:
My most interesting sax is probably a silver plated Selmer Modele 22 C melody. I have only seen pictures of a few of those, never another in person.
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Hey, David: if you'd like, take some big pics. I'll include this in my next calendar. Details in my sig line.

(The invite for pics is open to anyone, not just folks with relatively rare Selmer horns :))
 
steen said:
Would really like to hear your thoughts about it if you don't mind.

It was spoken for the same day as posted.
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Was a monster of a horn. Ended up not buying due to the seller not negotiating.
I think he wanted $5k for it, which is about twice what they go for on the used market. I thought I could weasel him down more, but I didn't have the 5k to spend. Honest to God the best bari I have ever played though. It had a couple of leaks, but the sound was incredible. Had a couple of minor intonation quirks but it wasn't more than 10 cents out and I think that was due more to a bad setup than anything
 
I've loved all the pro baritones I've owned:

1. 1976 Mk6 low A
2. Selmer Super Action II/A
3. The Martin Baritone (1962)
4. Conn Wonder (1915)

And I have some exceptional horns in the shop right now that I like to play:

1. Conn Wonder II
2. Conn 12m
3. Pan Am (12m)


I prefer an Otto Link HR 8.
 
Recently got up and running a Couesnon Monopole from early 1950s (ish).

Now it is set up I am loving getting to know it.

The set up the 3 vent octave mechanism was a brain tease. In my favour it was wrongly set up when I got it (in my favour, because the way it sounded when not set is probably the reason it was sold!)

Still playing around with a mouthpiece match. I have a pre 1937 Monopole bari that needed my Eric Greiffenhagen modified Vandoren B75, but that is a bit too boystrous for me on the later one. I have a contempory (to the instrument) Monopole mouthpiece that has been cleaned up by Ed Pillinger that works well, but I have a cheap D Hite on it currently which works really well!

Chris
 
My primary Baritone is a 1956 The Martin Committee, Lawton opened to .115 (also sometimes use a Rico Graftonite B5, and Runyon Quantum 10).
 
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