On the 100th anniversary of her death, The Legacy of Elise Hall–now available from Leuven University Press– provides a new outlook on Hall’s life and legacy as one of the major performers and concertizers of the saxophone. In various dissertations, articles and books, most writing on Hall has been colored with misogyny, talks of herContinue reading “Rethinking Elise Hall”
Tag Archives: saxophone
Nazis, Napoleon and the Saxophone, pt. 2, how Nazis weaponized gender to change the image of the saxophone
In a previous post on the opera Napoleon by Edmund von Borck, I made the argument that this opera works as a piece of wartime propaganda. The only piece of the opera that doesn’t fulfill the propaganda use is the style of the music and the use the saxophone in the orchestration. Wasn’t the saxophoneContinue reading “Nazis, Napoleon and the Saxophone, pt. 2, how Nazis weaponized gender to change the image of the saxophone”
Selmer high pitched alto saxophone, the mystery continues….
Last year, a reader emailed me to inform me on his unique Selmer Cigar Cutter saxophone pitched in E. It turns out it was a high pitched alto saxophone. Selmer was not in the business of manufacturing high pitched saxophones, based on the information from Selmer there were only 10 made in the year ofContinue reading “Selmer high pitched alto saxophone, the mystery continues….”
Kommisar Rondart, the opera that led Sigurd Rascher to Edmund von Borck
All of the entries in my database have one thing in common, they all received a premiere, if not on an opera stage, then as an orchestral work. This opera defies that simple distinction, it never premiered on the stage. Despite that absence, Kommisar Rondart by Edmund von Borck is essential to saxophone history, asContinue reading “Kommisar Rondart, the opera that led Sigurd Rascher to Edmund von Borck”
1855 Italian opera, L’ebreo, how did the saxophone get in the score?
I searched through the website ilsaxofonoitaliano.it and found one of the oldest works for saxophone in Italian repertoire: the 1855 Giuseppe Apolloni opera, L’ebreo. There is little information about the saxophone, so I went to find out more about this work and how the saxophone became a part of the opera. Looking at my database,Continue reading “1855 Italian opera, L’ebreo, how did the saxophone get in the score?”
Il Saxofono italiano is now in the database, listen to the Italian Saxophone
One area of opera I was missing in my database was early Italian opera. The earliest opera I found that used the saxophone was Giaccomo Puccini’s Turandot. Is this really the first Italian opera that used the saxophone? I knew I was missing some works. I was getting ready to dig into Italian opera featuringContinue reading “Il Saxofono italiano is now in the database, listen to the Italian Saxophone”
Selmer high pitched alto saxophone? Possible answers to why this exists…
I’ve been researching possible explanations to why Selmer made a handful of high pitched saxophones in 1932. For background on the saxophone, check out the initial post here, and the response. Just to reiterate, Selmer has no history of manufacturing high pitched woodwinds, based on the information about this saxophone Selmer only manufactured 10 highContinue reading “Selmer high pitched alto saxophone? Possible answers to why this exists…”
A Selmer Cigar Cutter in E? Some Answers and more Questions…
A reader emailed me to tell me about his 1932 Selmer Cigar Cutter Saxophone in E, so I wrote about the saxophone here to see if I could find more information. Many readers responded that this saxophone is not tuned to E, but is a high pitched E flat. I needed more information on theContinue reading “A Selmer Cigar Cutter in E? Some Answers and more Questions…”
The Mystery of the Selmer Cigar Cutter Alto Saxophone in E
I always enjoy hearing feedback from saxophonists who like this historical project, but sometimes the feedback leads to more research. Yesterday, I received an email from Frank R. in the Netherlands. Frank informed me he is the owner of a Selmer Cigar Cutter saxophone tuned in E. The saxophone also has an additional stamp, AD,Continue reading “The Mystery of the Selmer Cigar Cutter Alto Saxophone in E”
The Jazz Operas of W. Franke Harling
In 1925, composer W. Franke Harling (1887-1958) set out to make an opera that experimented with jazz. This concept made headlines across the musical world, “New American Music Drama of Redemption Utilizes’ Jazz” is just one example from Musical America.[1] What makes this opera unique is it premiered 10 years before the opera that isContinue reading “The Jazz Operas of W. Franke Harling”
the Operatic Saxophone 