National Saxophone Museum

Shout out to Frank Catalano. If you're by Bloomington, IL he'll be with drummer Jimmy Chamberlain at The Castle Theatre on May 22. Don't miss this opportunity to catch a jazz legend in concert. If you're not in Bloomington, or just want to see more Frank Catalano (who wouldn't?), Frank will be playing, being interviewed, and conducting interviews on the June 6 #natsaxgoeslive livestream. We are so thrilled to have him. Check out the event:... https://fb.me/e/2cdlhfSIs See more

Applications are closed for the National Saxophone Museum Prize for Creative Saxophone Expression. Thank you for all of your submissions, we've received over 100 videos for our first year of this competition! Winning videos will be shown during the June 6 #natsaxgoeslive livestream.

Just two days left to enter - the new deadline is May 7. $5,000 in prizes as well as a chance to be featured on the June livestream alongside major artists. It's $35 to enter. We're looking forward to hearing you and your unique sound. https://nationalsaxophonemuseum.com/prize-for-creative-saxo

Due to some technical issues with the form and submissions, the deadline for the Prize for Creative Saxophone Expression has been extended to May 7. That's one extra week with (fingers crossed) no technical issues! https://nationalsaxophonemuseum.com/prize-for-creative-saxo If you do have any problems with your submission, please contact [email protected].

Great video by Henri Selmer Paris Saxophones!!

I found this old photo many years ago (clipped from a larger photo). Its identified as Doc and Julius Stenberg - master engravers in the Conn factory (circa 1880s). It will be one of many great old photos that we incorporate into our early Conn exhibit at the National Saxophone Museum slated for next spring/summer. The larger photo also shows a far away glimpse of the original master engraver himself at work, Jake Gardner.

YES, we geek out on music history over here at the National Saxophone museum. Here's an example: Shown here are photos of a very rare CG Conn turn of the century publication entitled "A Glimpse of Wonders and the Scenes of Their Creation". I first learned about this almost 20 years ago while reading through a Musical Trade Review journal from 1902. I saved the attached article. After searching every library, 1000's of antique stores, 100's of old books stores and scores of c...ollectors, over the course of many years, I had almost giving up hope of acquiring one for our archives. ......But in this field, you learn to be patient and realize that things happen when you least expect them to. A few years back, an old Conn c-melody saxophone walked into the shop. I had talked to the owner on the phone earlier and told him I wasn't interested in buying his sax. But when he brought it in the shop anyway, I politely opened the case and wham!!! When opening the accessories compartment, there it was lying under a bunch of broken old reeds and old repair receipts......an original copy of the Glimpses book. It had a bit of water damage and was smeared with cork grease and had a blob of shellac stuck to it. But there it was in all of its glory, just laying there, 20 years of searching over in a heartbeat!! Needless to say, I bought the c-melody. This publication is remarkable because it features 22 turn of the century interior photos of the second Conn factory (1883-1910) before it burned down in 1910. Despite this find, we're still on the hunt. Does anyone else out there have the other red and black publication mentioned in the MTR article? I've been on an over 25 year quest now for that one too. Titled: "The Army and Navy Forever - the glorious military record of C.G. Conn's famous musical instruments, and the important part they played in the Freedom of Cuba and Purto (sp) Rico and the struggle for supremacy in the Philippines". Perhaps, I need to give up hope on it too before it will also magically show up.........

Here's a wonderful clip that we digitally restored from a rare surviving copy of the 1938 film 'First Chair' produced by Wilding Picture Productions in partnership with C.G. Conn Ltd. The original 16mm reel was found by Mark Overton of Saxquest and is being archived at the National Saxophone Museum. Reproduced here with permission from Conn-Selmer Inc. In the 1920's, C.G. Conn almost singlehandedly started the school band movement as a means of expanding business and securing... their future through music education. This clip shows the only known footage of the Conn Symphony Orchestra with special guests showcasing their wears on Conn instruments. Also shown is rare footage of the interior of the Conn Chicago store in the late 1930's. Orchestra soloists in order of appearance: Harry Glanzt - solo trumpet with the New York Philharmonic Orchestra Fred Pfaff - tuba soloist, radio and recording artist Andy Sanella - saxophone soloist and radio orchestra leader Simone Mantia - baritone horn/euphonium virtuoso and trombone artist Ross Gorman - oboe soloist and multireed instrumentalist most noted today for inventing the clarinet glissando at the beginning of Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue Del Staigers - 1st trumpet for the Radio City Music Hall

A couple photos of the elusive Conn Eb contrabass saxophone. We just obtained a photo and this newspaper clipping from the family of Raymond Henry Hall. Mr. Hall was born in 1900. He started working at the C.G. Conn factory in Elkhart as a teenager in 1916. He relocated to Chicago in 1921 to work at the Conn Chicago store. There, he and his sales partner started the first musical instrument rental programs in the parochial schools in 1925. The first photo shows him and fell...ow employee, Henry Gustein, in the Conn Chicago store in 1933 as they were beginning to shoot the CG Conn produced film "First Chair" which was released in 1937 to promote music education in the schools. The second photo shows the same Conn Eb contrabass saxophone again in Chicago being used by an unknown saxophone ensemble, circa late '20s-early '30s. Check out the close up shot of the bell from the photo. Its definitely stamped CG Conn. Perhaps it was a Buffet Evette Schaffer contra that Conn buffed and stamped, but that would seem out of character for Conn.

Clifford Ferree was perhaps one of the most influential people to grace the world of musical instrument repair. He was a graduate of the Conn Vocational Repair School back in 1946 and would go on to found Ferree’s Tools, a very popular music instrument repair tool business. There isn’t a repair shop today that doesn’t have something made by Ferree’s in their shop. Here’s the photo of his graduating class from the CG Conn Vocational Repair School - December of 1946. He’s the ...tall guy in the middle of the second row (4th from the left). Also, posted here is page 1 of section 1 and the latest CG Conn published research article from a 1949 repair course manual. They really hit the ground running. Right after a short section on music history, you would get a series of lectures from none other than Earl Kent himself on sound theory and you’d study the latest published research. You were drilled in academics first before you ever touched the repair bench. It’s no wonder there were so many that couldn’t hack it. They weeded out the lazy minds pretty quickly. Interestingly, Cliff’s class also graduated the second woman from the vocational school after WWII, Grace Waters.