Episodios
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Do you know the difference between a serial number and a body number? From 1927 to the Balanced Action era, SELMER saxophones had two distinct numbers: one on the bell, the other on the body...
Music: “ReWIND” written and performed by Hugo Afettouche alongside Maxime Mary and Matthieu Delage @Studio 15 - Produced by Henri SELMER Paris / Adrien Besse
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Short bow, long bow, medium bow... You have probably already heard these terms to distinguish Mark VIs according to the length of their bow and bell. Today, Douglas Pipher reveals the secrets of the 5 main variations.
Music: “ReWIND” written and performed by Hugo Afettouche alongside Maxime Mary and Matthieu Delage @Studio 15 - Produced by Henri SELMER Paris / Adrien Besse
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Discover the history of the SELMER low A alto saxophone, a rare instrument that has captured the curiosity and fascination of many enthusiasts...
Music: “ReWIND” written and performed by Hugo Afettouche alongside Maxime Mary and Matthieu Delage @Studio 15 - Produced by Henri SELMER Paris / Adrien Besse
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In today's episode, Douglas Pipher looks at the rarest SELMER saxophone in history: the Ladario model. It was made in very few numbers - probably 3 - in the 1920s...
Full video on https://youtu.be/LVNFXIvpVeM
Music: “ReWIND” written and performed by Hugo Afettouche alongside Maxime Mary and Matthieu Delage @Studio 15 - Produced by Henri SELMER Paris / Adrien Besse
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Today, Douglas Pipher takes us behind the scenes of the production of the C tenor saxophone, better known as "C Melody".
Full video on https://www.selmer.fr/en/blogs/infos/history-notes-ii-04-saxophone-c-melody
Music: “ReWIND” written and performed by Hugo Afettouche alongside Maxime Mary and Matthieu Delage @Studio 15 - Produced by Henri SELMER Paris / Adrien Besse
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After looking at the case of the C soprano, specialist Douglas Pipher sheds light on another rare instrument produced by Maison SELMER: the curved soprano saxophone.
Full video on https://youtu.be/v53UQhgGxC8
Music: “ReWIND” written and performed by Hugo Afettouche alongside Maxime Mary and Matthieu Delage @Studio 15 - Produced by Henri SELMER Paris / Adrien Besse
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The C soprano saxophone is a very rare and little-known instrument. It has its own identity, between the Bb soprano (to which it is closer in terms of range) and the Eb sopranino. Discover the history of its production with Douglas Pipher!
Full video on https://bit.ly/c-soprano
Music: “ReWIND” written and performed by Hugo Afettouche alongside Maxime Mary and Matthieu Delage @Studio 15 - Produced by Henri SELMER Paris / Adrien Besse
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The sopranino saxophone is a very delicate instrument both in its approach to playing and in its manufacture. Douglas Pipher inaugurates the second season of History Notes by telling us about the production of these atypical instruments over the years...
Full video on https://www.selmer.fr/en/blogs/infos/history-notes-ii-1-sopraninos
Music: “ReWIND” written and performed by Hugo Afettouche alongside Maxime Mary and Matthieu Delage @Studio 15 - Produced by Henri SELMER Paris / Adrien Besse
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For the last episode of the season, Douglas Pipher talks about the last historic saxophone made by Henri SELMER Paris: the Super Action 80, which would be followed a few years later by the Super Action Series II and Series III saxophones.
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Transition between the Mark VI and the Super Action 80, the Mark VII was marketed for 4 years. It offers a powerful sound, particularly rich in high harmonics, corresponding to the needs of the time and the advent of rock and pop music. Douglas Pipher tells us more about the production of this instrument.
"For the past 30 or 40 years, serial number charts that have been published tend to list the Mark VII as starting at 231,000 serial number. This is incorrect but there's a rational explanation as to why it happened..."
Full video on https://www.selmer.fr/en/beyond-the-sound/category/brand/history-notes-mark-vii -
In 1954, the saxophone world was shattered by the arrival of an instrument that soon became legendary: the Mark VI. Today, Douglas Pipher dives into the archives of the most emblematic saxophone ever.
"In the spring of 1954, March 19, to be exact, a single saxophone was packed up and shipped to Selmer US. This instrument number 53,727, was the first Mark VI to be sent..."
FULL VIDEO on https://www.selmer.fr/en/beyond-the-sound/category/brand/history-notes-mark-vi
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Sometimes called Super Balanced, the Super Action is to some extent a transitional instrument falling between the Balanced Action and Mark VI. Douglas Pipher tells you more about its specificities.
"When a number of modifications were made to the Selmer saxophones in early 1947, the American distributor decided that a new name was needed. They came up with the name Super Action..."
FULL VIDEO on https://www.selmer.fr/en/beyond-the-sound/category/brand/history-notes-super-action
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On the eve of the Second World War, Henri SELMER Paris enjoyed an international popularity, thanks in particular to the success of the mythical Balanced Action, whose sales continued to increase. Douglas Pipher explains how the company was able to continue its activity, in a very limited way, from 1939 to 1945.
"In 1939, Germany, France, and England all declared war on each other. On may 10th 1940 the Germans attacked through Belgium into France. On June 14th 1940, Paris fell to the Germans. We could think that production would likely stop cold, but amazingly, in a much smaller capacity, Henri SELMER Paris was able to produce musical instruments throughout the war... "
FULL VIDEO on https://www.selmer.fr/en/beyond-the-sound/category/brand/history-notes-production-during-war
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Today, Douglas Pipher examines the history of rare and little-known instruments...
"We're going to talk today about the very last two iterations of the Selmer super sax series. The first one was a number of Radio Improved instruments that were built well into Balanced Action production. I call these the late Radio Improved. The second is probably the most iconic niche product SELMER made, known as the Dorsey."
FULL VIDEO on https://www.selmer.fr/en/beyond-the-sound/category/brand/history-notes-last-super-sax
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It laid the foundation for the modern saxophone, established itself in the American market and was adopted by jazz giants such as Coleman Hawkins and Paul Desmond... Discover the history of the Balanced Action.
"In April of nineteen thirty five, Henri SELMER Paris introduced a new line of instruments. A line that essentially is realized as the birth of the modern saxophone. The instrument that changed everything. I could go on and on and on... Everybody watching this video probably understands and agrees."
FULL VIDEO on https://www.selmer.fr/en/beyond-the-sound/category/brand/history-notes-balanced-action
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In 1934, the Henri Selmer Paris workshops began the smallest production cycle in the history of the company: the Radio Improved. Discover the history of this Selmer Super Sax (SSS).
" The third generation of the SELMER Super Sax has become known as the Radio Improved for an obvious reason : they all had the words Radio Improved, stamped on the bell, in English. The production ran from mid nineteen thirty four to late summer nineteen thirty five. This is one of the smallest identifiable production runs that SELMER produced... "
FULL VIDEO on https://www.selmer.fr/en/beyond-the-sound/category/brand/history-notes-05-radio-improved-1
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Our guide Douglas Pipher tells us in this new episode about the mythical Cigar Cutter, the first of the SELMER Super Sax.
"Anyone who's interested in old saxophones is aware of the SELMER Super Sax, the SSS logo on the instrument. It has become synonymous with the octave mechanism that was introduced at the same time which resembled a cigar cutter that clips the end of your cigar. So the saxophone became known as the Cigar Cutter. "
FULL VIDEO on https://www.selmer.fr/en/beyond-the-sound/category/brand/history-notes-4-cigar-cutter
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For the third episode of this series dedicated to the history of Henri SELMER Paris, Douglas Pipher tells us about the range of instruments produced from 1928 to 1931, known as the "Large Bore".
" In 1928, Henri SELMER Paris decided to stop putting a model stamp on their instruments. So the next range of instruments, from 1928 to 1931, have become known as the Large Bore. This is because the bore at the top of the body, where the neck is attached, changed for the Altos, and the Altos only..."
FULL VIDEO ON https://www.selmer.fr/en/beyond-the-sound/category/brand/history-notes-large-bore-sax
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Through a fascinating and highly-documented web-series, collector Douglas Pipher recalls the history of Henri SELMER Paris and his legendary saxophones... This second episode focuses on the models 26 and 28.
"In the spring of nineteen twenty six, SELMER had made enough small adjustments and improvements to the instrument to validate a new model. So accordingly they replaced the Model 22 with the Model 26..."
FULL VIDEO on https://www.selmer.fr/en/beyond-the-sound/category/brand/history-notes-02-models-26-and-28
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Henri SELMER Paris offers you a new web series on the history of the House, in collaboration with saxophonist and collector collector Douglas Pipher. A true living encyclopedia, he will provide you with a wealth of precious and often little-known information on the historic SELMER saxophones.
In this first episode, let's discover the history of the first SELMER saxophone !
History Notes : the concept
Douglas Pipher is a Canadian saxophonist, arranger, composer and collector. Passionate about music and jazz, in particular, his interest in the history of Henri SELMER Paris began in the early 2000s, following the purchase of a mythical saxophone: the Radio Improved. He then began a tremendous amount of research work in order to list all the instruments produced by Maison SELMER, spending years photographing and archiving thousands of instruments. On several occasions, we have exceptionally opened the doors of our private archives to give him access to historical documents and allow him to carry out his research.
For Henri SELMER Paris and all the enthusiasts, Douglas Pipher has accepted to share the fruit of his investigations in a new web-series: History Notes. He retraces the history of the House through its legendary saxophones, from the Model 22 to the Super Action through the Super Sax and the Mark VI... You will also know the difference between serial number and body number, and learn more about production & marketing throughout the world.
FULL video on https://www.selmer.fr/en/beyond-the-sound/category/selmer/history-notes-01-model-22
