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Late model East German (Weltklang) tenor saxophone

Gandalfe

Striving to play the changes in a melodic way.
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[Oh my ...] I should also say that if you've come across this review while researching a possible purchase of one of these horns I can save you a great deal of time by advising you to skip the rest of the review...and go buy something else instead. If, however, you're a glutton for punishment - read on, and find out what makes these horns such a risky prospect.

Read more: http://www.shwoodwind.co.uk/Reviews/Saxes/Tenor/weltklang.htm
 
This is pretty much in line--pardon the pun ;) -- with what TTT found when he restored a Weltklang Soloist tenor that had never been played.

My favourite quote of Steve's from this review was:
I've heard it said that Weltklangs have quite a vintage tone. I guess that's because they're not what you'd call a bright horn. But here's the thing - the absence of a bright, clear, freeblowing tone is not the same as a vintage one.

A vintage tone is a complex thing, made up from a finely-balanced harmonic structure. Its depth is tempered by the sheen of subtle brilliance, its midrange imbued with both power and expression. That, my friends, is a vintage tone - and that, my friends, is precisely what the Weltklang doesn't have.

Sure, it can honk out a line - it's brash, it's graunchy, but it's almost entirely two-dimensional. I have a feeling that most of what people mistake for a vintage tone is down to the fact that the vast, vast majority of these horns are leaking like a sieve that's seen better days. I've played them at their worst, and I've played them at their best - and they're comprehensively outclassed in every department by just about any other horn out there.
 
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