A few weeks ago I was very annoyed with CC who I know from my workplace. I’ve been unable to tell you about it until now because I’ve been very busy. Forgive me. In fact, with the calming effect brought on by the passage of time, it’s lucky this entry is being completed at all. The feelings of several weeks ago don’t seem very important today.
My saxophone is a professional model, a tenor Selmer Paris Super Action 80 Serie II made in France in 1993. It is not the current model – that would be the Serie III, but it is a Selmer professional, and as such, it is one of the finest saxophones ever made. The two saxophone makers of stature in the world are; Selmer, preferred by jazz musicians and Yamaha, preferred by classical musicians. Both make excellent instruments, but Selmer enjoys the finer, more exclusive reputation among most sax aficionados. There are elements to a Selmer that still manually assembled, that receive individual attention from a master craftsman. Thus, no two completed instruments are exactly the same; each is slightly unique, a character of its own; unlike the homogeneity you will find with something that is entirely mass or assembly lined produced.
In the sixty years from inception to the earlier 1990’s, Selmer has manufactured only 490,000 tenor saxophones. That’s all. That works out to an average of 8,000 per year for the entire world market. Just to give you some context, one million new cars are sold each year in Canada alone. It’s likely Selmer has produced in slightly greater numbers in the last decade, but at the moment I can’t support that assertion with real data. In Toronto, I believe there are only three authorized Selmer dealers, and they have maybe two each in stock – so not too many of them around. As you can probably guess, a Selmer horn is very expensive. All saxophones are expensive, but these more so than any other. But, are they really so fine? Are they really the best? Likely, but perhaps not. Selmers are desirable for as much for their heritage and tradition as their quality.
The saxophone is a relatively young instrument, created by Aldolf Sax in the 1840’s. Because it was born later then many of the good classical compositions, there is relatively little classical repertoire exclusively for saxophone. It is jazz music and the personalities of those musicians that popularized the saxophone. They all used Selmers. There is a famous story about Ben Webster who used to play the tenor Selmer Balanced Action (the professional model from 1936-1948) which he named Betsy. Remembered as a son of bitch in real life, another side of him was revealed in his music. He possessed a distinct, gentle timbre. His tone was very soft and had an air-y whispering quality, a stark contrast to some of the other greats like John Coltrane or Charlie Parker who both had a squeaky high pitched brassy sort of sound played with frenetic energy. Of all the great saxophone players, Ben Webster was the “gentlest soul”, which he ascribed to the love of his life, Betsy. In the 1950’s he performed in France and the Selmer Company gave him a brand new Mark VI for free. The Mark VI was a significant evolution over the Balanced Action and is today considered the best saxophone ever made. He tried it for a little while but didn’t like it, so he gave it to Dexter Gordon and went back to old Betsy.
Because they are exclusive and expensive, Selmer players are usually very good and very serious. One exception to this would be me. I do not play well, but I own a Selmer because I love jazz. There’s a mystic to them that’s deeply felt, that’s worth something to me. I understand that this is factored in the price, and that for instrument quality, a less expensive Yamaha is likely better value for money. I don’t care. It’s worth it to me. If you are a guitar player who wants a Fender (Telecaster?) because Jimi Hendrix played one, then you understand how I feel.
CC and I are not really friends, but he is relevant because a couple of years ago, I sold him my old saxophone, a student model Boosey and Hawkes 400 tenor. As far as student models go, my old BH 400 is quite nice. The sound is a little hollow in the regular and lower register because as a lower priced instrument, it’s constructed out of cheaper materials than a professional model. But the key settings are comfortable and easy; and it’s capable of a beautiful sound in the upper register, a very sweet, round gentle tone. Even with my Selmer, I can’t quite duplicate what I used to do. For this reason, I miss my old saxophone. Sometimes even now when I play my Selmer, I hear my old sax instead.
I have two friends named DK and BS, who both also play musical instruments. DK is quite a good guitar player. He used to play in a rock band and he owns six guitars including a Gibson Les Paul and Fender Stratocaster. BS plays guitar, bass and keyboards. They each told me that if I ever sold my old sax I would later regret it. They’re right. It was a mistake to sell my first saxophone.
CC has been taking saxophone lessons for a couple of years now. I’ve never heard him play but he’s very happy with his progress and because he played clarinet for seven years, he says his adaptation wasn’t particularly difficult. As a student, he has different objectives than I do. He is not serious about the study of music – he does not view this as a life long project – he does not view this as a vessel for introspection or inner development. By his own admission, he neither likes nor understands classical or jazz music. All he wants is to play bubble-gum pop tunes to an audience of his friends and neighbours.
Fine. Nothing wrong with that.
A couple of months ago, he came to me to talk about saxophones. His teacher was suggesting that he had outgrown the old BH 400 and that perhaps he should look at upgrading at some point soon. He wanted to ask me about a really good “brand name” that his teacher had mentioned, a “brand” that he’s never heard of, that he couldn’t quite remember, Somner or something? . . . . You mean Selmer? Yes, that’s it – Selmer. He’s “never heard of it”, yet this was not the first time he mispronounced it. I guess he had also forgotten that he has a Selmer mouthpiece. I know this because it was my spare that I sold to him. I don’t understand the relationship he has with his teacher, who is actually a trumpet player, not a sax player. I don’t understand how his teacher can tell him he’s ready to upgrade when in fact his range isn’t fully developed, when he can’t reach either the high notes on the upper register or the bottom notes of the lower register. I don’t understand how it’s possible for someone who has played an instrument for nine years to not know what chords are.
I associate with CC only because we work in the same company. Unfortunately, this means I see him everyday. We are not really friends because he is one of the cheapest people I’ve ever met. I find this unsavoury. He’s too cheap to buy his own reeds. I use high quality cane reeds that cost about $5 each, which is too much money for him (?!). I suggested another brand that cost about $2 each, but the caveat is that they come in boxes of 25. In the end, I helped him get started by giving him some of my old USED reeds (used reeds that I slobblered over!), that were virtually worn out. – That’s how cheap he is.
He also thinks he’s very clever. He has a music teacher, yet a few weeks ago it was me (?!) he wanted to advise him about Selmers; to advise him on how much they cost and where to get one. I don’t think he really believed or understood me when I told him how much they cost. After some thought he decided he would wait and find a way to acquire a used one. And he decided he would do it for less than half what I paid for mine. He thought this was possible because he thinks he is very clever; and more cunning than I am. He had to own the best, a Selmer and he wouldn’t consider anything else. Once he made this decision, he decided his BH 400 was a piece of junk and he voiced this in front of me.
What an a--hole.
I offered to buy it back from him once he upgraded.
A couple of days later he offered a trade; his clarinet, the BH 400 and a little bit of cash for my Selmer Serie II. What an idiot. He just didn’t get it. If he understood why I wanted the BH 400 back, he would’ve known I could never sell my Selmer. If he ever gets one, he’ll never understand what he has.
His offer amounted to slightly less than half of what my Selmer is worth. What an a--hole. He knows how much a Selmer costs because he told him. What an a--hole.
Three weeks ago there was a company event we attended downtown. Afterwards we went to Steve’s Music on Queen Street. CC wanted to go because he wanted to buy some sheet music and maybe look for a sax. Being the cheapest of all people I’ve ever met, he had previously asked me if I had any pop music sheet I could give him. I could not because I have only standards and jazz. Steve’s Music is mostly a guitar shop, but upstairs behind the drums there is a small brass section and we went there to look at the saxophones. There were a couple of brand new Selmer tenors.
I told him how much they cost. But he needed to see it for himself. And he came completely unsettled.
He asked if they ever get any used ones in and the guy in the store indicated that yes in fact they were expecting a Super Action 80 in soon, one that was approximately 25 years old. Depending on the condition, they expected they would sell it at a price approximately the same as a new current Series III. This, CC could not understand - how a “used” saxophone that was so old should cost as much as a new one.
The Series II is previous to the current model. If you try, you can find a “used” one for a good price. But the Super Action 80 is two models previous to the current. That makes it a sought after “vintage”.
CC does not understand this concept of “vintage”. To him, it’s “used”.
He reacted a little badly – later while we were looking at books and sheet music, something else happened. This time his frustration boiled over and he threw a tantrum in the store. While it was kind of funny, I almost felt sorry for him too. First, I suggested to him that maybe he get something less expensive, especially since he wasn’t very serious about it; that for him, it was no more than just a casual hobby; and then here we were at Steve’s Music and a store clerk was telling him something that was “fundamentally dishonest.” His face said it all - we were “conspiring” against him; blocking him because “WE” didn’t want him to own a Selmer.
In a twisted sort of way, that almost does make sense. The real reason he wants a Selmer is because I have one.
That’s what DK and BS think.
It’s a sad and disappointing story in the end. It looks like I won’t be able to buy back my old sax from him.
