Grafton saxophone

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The Design

Designed by Hector Sommaruga, an Italian living in London, the saxophone was named after "Grafton Way", his address during the late 1940s. The basic saxophone design was patented in late 1945. Creation of the first non-working prototype took place in 1946, and commercial production commenced in 1950. The selling price of the Grafton was 55 i.e. approximately half the cost of a conventional brass saxophone. Contemporary marketing literature described the Grafton as a "Tone poem in ivory and gold". The decision to make it mainly from acrylic glass like perspex was motivated not by a belief in any special acoustic qualities, but simply because of its much lower cost and ease of production. The serial number on a Grafton appears in an unusual location: it is stamped onto the main body of the saxophone (and highlighted in black) at the front, approximately 2 cms above the front F key which is operated by the player's left hand. Serial numbers run to a maximum of five digits. Serial numbers running up to at least 13,571 are known to exist.

Grafton saxophones have a very distinctive appearance due to their 1950s Italian style. The mechanical action of Graftons has an unusual "spongy" feel to it, without the quick, "snappy", positive feel of other more conventional saxophone actions. The plastic technology used in the Grafton dates from the late 1940s and is therefore nowhere near as robust as the injection moulded plastics used in the 21st century. belly punching

Fragility portable soccer goal

The basic problem with Grafton saxophones is that they are brittle. As a result, component parts can easily crack, fracture or snap off during normal use. Not only do Graftons use a non-standard spring mechanism to operate the action, but spare parts are unavailable. Not surprisingly, Graftons are challenging to overhaul and repair when compared to saxophones made entirely of metal e.g. Selmer or Conn. For these reasons, and their comparative rarity, it is unusual to see a Grafton being played by performers in the 21st century. As a general rule, Graftons are now regarded purely as collectors' items i.e. for display purposes only. This is because they are fragile and very easy to damage, which detracts from their monetary value. kid punching bag

Notable players

Charlie Parker

The most notable player of a Grafton saxophone was Charlie Parker. While in Toronto, Charlie Parker and he quintet were scheduled to perform at Massey Hall, but Parker had pawned his saxophone - some sources say to buy heroin. A sales representative for Grafton (or the owner of the company, depending upon from whom one receives the story) asked Parker to use a Grafton for a Massey Hall gig in May 1953. Although Parker was under exclusive contract to use only one type of saxophone whilst gigging in the United States, outside the U.S.A. he was free to use any sax he wished, including this Grafton. The recording of Parker (credited as Charlie Chan due to contract issues) can be heard on the CD "Jazz at Massey Hall" with Bud Powell, Dizzy Gillespie, Charles Mingus and Max Roach. The Grafton saxophone that Parker used (serial number 10265) was sold at the Christie's auction house in London in September 1994 for 93,500 sterling, though this was because of its association with a famous jazz musician rather than the instrument itself having any special merit. The buyer was the American Jazz Museum, located in Parker's home town of Kansas City, Missouri.

John Dankworth

English jazz composer, saxophonist and clarinetist John Dankworth was an early endorser. The Grafton company provided him with two altos, specially customised to his requirements. During the Festival of Britain in 1951, the "John Dankworth Seven" (with Dankworth playing a Grafton) performed at the newly-opened Royal Festival Hall in London.

Ornette Coleman

Ornette Coleman used to play a Grafton (that he purchased in 1954) originally because it was the cheapest saxophone he could replace his first tenor with after it was broken. In the late fifties and early sixties, Coleman was sometimes known as "the man with the plastic horn". However, Coleman subsequently replaced his Grafton with a white-lacquered Selmer alto instead.

Legacy

As of 2010 there are no manufacturers of plastic saxophones, with the exception of Vibratosax. It would be very difficult to predict the tonal qualities of a modern plastic saxophone without first making a prototype and testing it. However, it is certain that a plastic saxophone made in the 21st Century would be much more robust than the Grafton. This is because plastics technology has advanced significantly since the 1950s. Superior polymers now exist which are much more durable, not to mention the possibility of using carbon fibre composites (or even Kevlar/Twaron) for component parts requiring extra strength.

External links

Review of the Grafton alto saxophone

Additional information regarding the Grafton

Video of Charlie Parker's Grafton saxophone at Christie's auction house - (played by Peter King)

Video of Loren Pickford playing a Grafton saxophone

Video of Gerald Dunn playing a Grafton saxophone

Video #1 of Grafton saxophone repair process

Video #2 of Grafton saxophone repair process

References

^ http://www.saxpics.com/?v=gal&a=1075

^ http://www.cbc.ca/arts/music/story/2007/06/18/coleman-ornette-collapse.html?ref=rss

^ http://www.jazzhouse.org/vote/pho7/Abbott.jpg

Categories: Saxophones