Conn Chu Berry Reflections
Posted by Charles Fail on
Today, I reached to retrieve my neck strap to test a Conn Chu Berry Alto and something suddenly occurred to me. I was getting ready to play a soon-to be 100-year-old Saxophone – not as an antique but as a competitive musical instrument! How many other things are there with no built-in obsolescence? Engineers can tell me with some accuracy when things like my car or appliances will die. These all have a finite life span but not musical instruments! In the case of woodwind instruments, if you keep them in reasonable repair, keep putting in necessary pads, corks and felts and the occasional spring, these things will delight generation after generation. In the case of brass instruments, even less is required. Band instruments, especially older ones, were built without a life expectancy and in today’s throw-away society, they are truly remarkable things. Out of curiosity, I wondered how much my Chu Berry cost in 1922 so I looked up a 1922 Conn Price List and the old Chu in Finish 1 sold for $145. Then I wondered how much that would be worth today so I looked this up as well - $2108.00. If research could only capture the enjoyment this old Chu Berry has provided its owner’s over this past century. I bet it would be priceless! We have been so busy with our mountain of clarinets that our Sax work has suffered but I promise we will restore more in the future. ~ Charles