Selmer SBA Super Balanced Action Alto 41532 Relacquered Plays Great

This was the main alto of a top level gigging musician who just retired from playing after 50 years or so. He went through a lot of horns over the years, and all of the ones he ended up with are excellent! This was the alto that won the decades-long shootout for best alto. It’s a Selmer Paris ‘Super (Balanced) Action’ (SBA) Alto saxophone made in 1950, which many consider to be the most desirable year for SBA’s (though they are all desirable)! Coltrane played a tenor of this, which probably helps them have a bit of a value bump.

This alto has a sweet, lyrical, moderately focused tone that is warm and medium between bright and dark. The ‘French lyrical core’ to the tone is what I love most about it. It’s challenging to describe tone, but there’s a central, complex thread to the sound that you can easily latch onto that makes these really pleasant to listen to, whether that’s blending with a section, or playing solo. The build quality is of course excellent, and the feel under the fingers is nice and snappy. This sax got a ‘new coat of paint’ along the way at some point – probably in the late 50’s by the lacquer color, and probably by the Selmer factory in Elkhart (same reason), who would frequently overhaul and strip and respray the lacquer at the same time for their customers. It doesn’t really affect anything tonally. But it makes the horn a lot less expensive for you! So if you’re looking for a really nice, clean, beautiful vintage Selmer Paris alto that is better built than anything you can buy today, AND that plays beautifully, has good pads, and will go up in value — and all that for around the price of a new Yamaha, that’s what you’re getting! And this is a particularly good one, as mentioned above.

Only one available.