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How about Martin sopranos?

8K views 18 replies 12 participants last post by  Little Sax 
#1 ·
Why so few posts about Martin sopranos? Which models were produced? Do they have the same Martin tone as their siblings? Are they good horns? What about ergos and especially their intonation?
 
#2 ·
I had the chance many years ago to play a Martin Handcraft soprano for a few days. Hands down the most beautiful soprano tone I've achieved on any horn, before or since - sweet, round, mellow tone with presence to spare. If honey had a sound, it would sound like that Martin. Ergos & action were primitive compared to modern horns, but workable enough. I seem to recall intonation being surprisingly good, better than the student horn I was playing at the time (Vito? Armstrong? Evette?...can't remember). It was also the most beautiful horn I've ever held - satin silver plate w/gold wash bell, gorgeous engraving.

Check out The Martin Story website - they have a fairly comprehensive history of all the models of soprano the company produced.
 
#4 ·
Thanks for the replies which to some extent confirm that Martin sopranos were more scarce than the other saxes. Even at The Martin story website, there are only a couple of pics.

Once I saw a statistics (I think for Selmer) that for every alto built, there were only 5 tenors, 1 bari and 1 soprano.
Add to that the distance an I guess I have little chance of finding a Martin soprano here in Chile. :cry:
 
#9 ·
Well as you can se I have the honor of owning one of these beauties :lick:

I rebuilt the left hand palm keys to a more ergonomic hight and rebuilt the pinky plate to fit a modern hand.

Man.... the sound is unlike any other soprano out there in my book. It can whisper like the morning breeze and play fine and mellow - and blow you away with a raw force of pure sound. Intonation is perfect, perfect in tune. The keywork action is light and uniform and the weight only 90 grams more that a Selmer Mrk. VI soprano....

If you ever get the chance to own one - buy it no matter the price!!!

My horn is a private label Hans J. Bach witch is a Martin Handcraft from 1925, number 33 of 35 ever made for Hans J. Bach. It has lager engravings than Martins own Handcraft models and no support bars for the left hand palm keys. It also has no large thumb hook ring like the original Martins - but the rest is the same.

Why Martin stopped making sopranos around 1930 is a bit of a mystery.
 

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#10 ·
Why Martin stopped making sopranos around 1930 is a bit of a mystery.
You mean, it's a mystery why Martin did when nearly all the mainstream sax makers also did at the same time? :whistle:

BTW, that's a beautiful horn, and I really love that the palm keys arched so high. I had to have risers put on my Buescher in order to not wiggle around like a fish on a hook. Looks like that Martin doesn't need them.
 
#11 ·
The soprano, C melody and Bass all disappeared during the early thirties due to the great depression. People didn't have money for food muchless horns so the makers just concentrated on the ones that sold, alto, tenor and bari. Buescher, Conn and Martin did build a few after that but they are the same as the 20s models with newer engraving.
 
#18 ·
Another vote for Martin Handcraft soprano saxophones here. They are great horns, with a warm lush sound that is hard to find anywhere else. Its a soprano you can play in a small room and not have people leave or dogs howl. Well-built, intonation is pretty good for a vintage soprano, and set up well the ergonomics are not all that bad. Palm keys are a little low, side keys are a little small, horn gets heavy on the thumb. I have played and repaired many of these, and owned a few. When I get a soprano again, one of these is what I plan on getting.
 
#19 ·
I purchased a gold plated one from Matt a few years ago.
It was a truly great soprano, and Matt did an outstanding job restoring it to its full glory.
 
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