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Dolnet Scepticism Thread

13K views 27 replies 14 participants last post by  RootyTootoot 
#1 · (Edited)
I got into collecting vintage saxophones a few years ago, and I've had some fun, found some keepers, and gained some technical and musical insight (though still a lot less than many people around SOTW!).

I've tried lots of models - tenor and alto - and had several overhauled by good repairers. (Conn, Martin, Buescher, SML, Couesnon, Beaugnier, Pierret, Huller, Keilwerth, Dolnet.) Some have been wonderful, some not my thing, but all have had something that made me see why someone would like them - all except the Dolnets.

This isn't meant to rain on anyone's parade. (Uwe Steinmetz sold me my Couesnon alto on Ebay and included some of his excellent CDs in the sale - I particularly recommend his work with the Fitzwilliam String Quartet.) But I just don't get it. I have since sold my Bel Air tenor and traded my Bel Air alto - and in neither transaction did I make any claims for the tone, voice or whatever of the instrument, because I couldn't think what to say.

Intonation wasn't bad for a vintage instrument and the tenor undoubtedly had a "big" sound, but my regular repairer - who has done great things with a range of saxes for me - just had to admit defeat - nothing he could do would make it sing. (And the left-hand pinky table was a nightmare for someone with shortish fingers!) The alto was more comfortable to play and had a better sound, but it was nothing like as good as my SML, Beaugnier or Pierret (or Uwe's Couesnon, in my view). Both tenor and alto had exceptionally large bores and bells, but this didn't seem to give them a distinctive character like the Keilwerths, it just demanded a lot of air.

Another UK repairer and dealer, who did excellent work on a very early Keilwerth tenor for me, had a Dolnet tenor in his shop, with a very cheap price tag. When I expressed an interest, he seemed surprized and said "I don't rate them, myself".

So this is a thread for other people who have had genuine experience of Dolnets and don't rate them either. Personally, I relied too heavily on the positive comments on the Saxpics site, and there is a tendency for SOTW to make every vintage horn sound wonderful, as we all try to persuade ourselves we that we made great purchases and that values can only go up. But I think a bit of balance is needed for the sake of those looking to buy: some vintage horns really aren't that great and I think the Dolnet is one of these.
 
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#27 ·
Hi to everyone,

thanks for this thread. Since I have tried during the last year different Dolnet altos I can absolutely underline that their building quality is inconsistent - maybe more inconsistent than other handcrafted saxophones; the best one I played was my gold plated alto and the soprano that I still own. Because of the way they are built (with large bore etc) they might be not everyone´s taste and certainly differ from Selmer / Yamaha / Yanagisawa produced horns.

Uwe.
 
#28 ·
I have a Dolnet "Bel Air" alto. It's a good horn, a pretty horn but I don't think the intonation matches a good Conn or Buescher. The sound, I find, is roughly comparable to the older American saxes. The keywork is quite easy to get used to and certainly quicker than eg a Buescher TT or Chu Berry. I have found that the intonation is quite "flexible", however. You have to be on your toes in that department. I get the best results with a v "vintage" type large chamber m/p with which I can play in jazz styles and at least demonstrate classical styles with some degree of conviction. I can't see Dolnets ever becoming collectible in the sense that, say, a "the Martin" or a Buescher "Top Hat" is, unless mine is totally unrepresentative. It's an interesting horn though. One for the eccentrics, maybe.
 
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