February 4, 2019
Vintage professional Alexander 5 valve single horn with screw bell and case
Professional quality Alexander horn, Model 97, Single B flat, 5 valve nickel/silver horn – not lacquered -with screw bell and case. This is the horn Dennis Brain wished he had! When the great virtuoso switched to the renowned. If he’d bought this one, he could have had the best of both worlds. The Alexander 5 valve single B flat, especially one of this vintage, is a rare and sought after instrument, being popular in Europe over many years with a number of great players. The horn features an’F’ extension valve and a stopping valve. The stopping slide has removable sleeves to provide a second half step valve, extremely useful when playing complicated E transpositions. It’s not a feature I’ve seen on any other B flat horns. The thumb valves have been slightly modified for a more comfortable hand fit. Aside from the patina that occurs with non-lacquered metal, the horn has a number of small dents scattered around – nothing major or significant – just the usual kind of wear that accumulates over forty years of use. The horn was built sometime between the mid 1950’s and 60’s. It came to Canada via England from James Brown, at that time a professor of horn at the Royal Academy in London and member of the LSO. He personally selected the horn as a favor to a friend who’s daughter wished to play. It has been in my possession for over forty years and I’m retiring from playing, leaving the horn in excellent playing condition. All slides and valves are in perfect working order with the three main valves having been re-plated three years ago by Andrew Clark. The three main rotary valves are string driven while both thumb valves have mechanical linkage. The case is the original Alexander flat case for horn. I have been using a larger bore mouthpiece with the horn, which has produced a rich, clear sound typical of an Alexander. The response is quick, easy and flexible and the tone remains consistent in all ranges: high, middle and low. If you’re someone looking for a superb horn for chamber and solo and high work, this horn will appeal to you. There’s a reason I’ve played it for over forty years – it’s a terrific horn! On the musical side, I played horn for fifty years; I acquired a Master’s degree in Music horn performance and spent a few years playing professionally in orchestral positions before switching into education. I retired from teaching a few years ago and continued playing. During my early days I attended the Banff and Aspen Summer music schools on scholarships and have benefitted from lessons with: Tony Halstead, Horace Fitzpatrick, Hermann Baumann and Michael Hoeltzel. Please read/view description and pictures carefully. There is no substitute for seeing/trying the horn’in person’, but I strive for accuracy and completeness between pictures and written description. My feedback will attest to the fact I treat buyers fairly. I continue to offer my personal guarantee for all my listings for satisfaction – including buyers remorse. Costs for overseas packages are substantial and, if going surface, can take several months to arrive. These options can be extremely costly! The item “Vintage professional Alexander 5 valve single horn with screw bell and case” is in sale since Monday, February 4, 2019. This item is in the category “Musical Instruments & Gear\Brass\French Horns”. The seller is “purviswalker1″ and is located in Brentwood Bay, British Columbia. This item can be shipped to Canada, all countries in Europe, United States.
- Brand: Alexander
- Type: horn
- Model: M97
- Country/Region of Manufacture: Germany
- Skill Level: Professional
- Color: nickle silver