Alto Saxhorn in E-flat

Unknown

ca. 1850–60 · Brass, nickel-silver · Musical Instruments

Alto saxhorn in E-flat with three Berlin valves. Saxhorns are a family of valved brass instruments developed by Adolphe Sax in the mid-nineteenth century. His design was copied by numerous rival makers.Saxhorns were widely used in military and civilian bands and are the forebears of the modern euphonium, tenor horn and baritone. Saxhorns were designed as a uniform family of instruments with members ranging from soprano to contrabass. All shared a simililar tubing layout, bore profile and valve system. As a result, all members of the family produced a similar timbre, or tone color, across their range and because the fingering was the same on each instrument, players could easily switch between various members of the saxhorn family.

Artist

Unknown

Date

ca. 1850–60

Medium

Brass, nickel-silver

Culture

possibly French

Department

Musical Instruments

Credit line

The Crosby Brown Collection of Musical Instruments, 1889