Getzen Soprano Cornet

[Tarja Rabito]

Thecornet should be a shepherds crook model. The Besson Sovereign is

the most popular, but the Yamaha Maestro and Courtois Chambord are both

excellent instruments. Of the US offerings Schilke, Getzen Eterna and

Bach Strad 184 are also used over here but the Bach and Schilke are

considerably more expensive than the Besson and Yamaha in the UK and I

am sure this is the only reason that they are less prevalent.Good luckBrian Jones

In article , BIGSQUIREL

writes

>Of the US offerings Schilke, Getzen Eterna and Bach Strad 184 are

>also used over here but the Bach and Schilke are considerably

>more expensive than the Besson and Yamaha in the UK and I

>am sure this is the only reason that they are less prevalent.

YCR-6335H = LacquerYCR-6335HS = Silver PlateI purchased one of these a few months ago. I tried it side by side with

my initial choice the B&H Sovereign. No contest. The Yamaha had a far

better sound, greater flexibility and much better build quality. The new

Sovereign seemed a very poor substitute for the older ones I had tried

with very sluggish valves (even after several attempts to clean and oil

them with 3 different oils) and a mediocre tone. Maybe I tried a poor

example but... on the day the Yamaha made it seem like a student model!!There is (to my ears anyway) a distinct difference in sound between the

two finishes on the Maestro. I prefer the silver for a solo sound but

others would no doubt disagree. I suspect the slightly more mellow tone

of the lacquer would blend better in a brass band cornet section.The Yamaha 16E mouthpiece which comes as part of the package is

excellent and I prefer it to the Wick mouthpieces I have used

previously. With my trusty Wick 4B the Maestro was very good.... with

the 16E it was and is an outstanding instrument which gives me great

pleasure each and every time I play it.Bill Lewington's of London produce another mouthpiece worth considering.

It was produced in collaboration with Philip McCann who also spent 3

years working with Yamaha to develop the Maestro cornet!!!

It produces a slightly brighter sound and (for me at least) better

endurance as it seems to have a wider rim. However, for sheer beauty of

sound and outstanding flexibility the Yamaha 16E wins every time!All the best,Mike Garbett

Uhh, a bit more information perchance?I admit to considerable lust for Flip's cornet...All the best,

Tom--

"You keep either intentionally or

unintentionally trying to confuse the goals we had for

investing in the relationship (with Apple) with the

goals we had overall for investing in Apple." - Bill Gates

Interesting......The early models sold in the UK had Maestro engraved on the leadpipe and

a totally blank bell. My more recent one has Maestro on the bell itself!It's nice to know that someone else shares my enthusiasm for this

instrument!!!

> I purchased one of these a few months ago. I tried it side by side with

> my initial choice the B&H Sovereign. No contest. The Yamaha had a far

> better sound, greater flexibility and much better build quality. The new

> Sovereign seemed a very poor substitute for the older ones I had tried

> with very sluggish valves (even after several attempts to clean and oil

> them with 3 different oils) and a mediocre tone. Maybe I tried a poor

> example but... on the day the Yamaha made it seem like a student model!!

This is interesting--about 15 years ago, I tested the B+H Sovereign against my

initial choice, the Yamaha 6335 in silver. It was indeed no contest, and I've

been happy with my Sovereign ever since! Don't know whether this is a diff'rent

strokes/diff'rent folks kind of thing, or whether the Sovereign really has gone

downhill since Besson took over.I remember thinking that the Yamaha was a good, solid horn that met all the

objective criteria you'd want in a general-purpose cornet, but that the

Sovereign had *character*--a unique sound and feel unlike any other horn I

tried, fat and buttery and warm, but really punchy when I really filled the

horn with air. I know that the Sovereign doesn't blend well with American-style

cornets--and *really* doesn't blend with a section of trumpets--but since most

of my playing is small-group jazz, I'm more interesting in a unique-sounding

horn.My Sovereign has the best valves of any horn I've played, but I will agree with

the poster who pointed out fit and finish problems with the tuning slide.I was leery when I heard Besson had taken over, and if the Yamaha beats the

Sovereign hands down, then it looks like my fears are justified.HP

> It was indeed no contest, and I've been happy with my Sovereign ever

> since! Don't know whether this is a diff'rent strokes/diff'rent folks kind

> of thing, or whether the Sovereign really has gone downhill since Besson

> took over.

Actually it's B+H that is the parent company. They own Besson and

F.Besson.I tend to think that's down to personal choice. My Sovereign 928GS

(current model) is less than 5 years old and it is absolutely

_wonderful_ . Valves, sound, quality all terrific. The kid who sits next

to me just bought a brand new one and his is also a great cornet.*However* I wouldn't buy one mail order unless it was from someone like

Donovan who thoroughly checks them out.This is what I've been told: In the last few years a large number of brass bands have received

lottery grants to buy new instruments. B+H have been stretched to meet

demand and manufacturing quality control may have suffered as a result.AFAIK, Sovereigns are still by far the most popular over here but,

Yamaha and the new Courtois are making in-roads.That's for the Bb. Schilke seems to have a strangle hold on the soprano

market...Flip Oaks, where are you? Come in please! ;)

> AFAIK, Sovereigns are still by far the most popular over here but,

> Yamaha and the new Courtois are making in-roads.

>

> That's for the Bb. Schilke seems to have a strangle hold on the soprano

> market...

So, you're in the UK? Honestly, one of the reasons I like my Sovereign so much

is that you see so few of them in the States. It really stands out, and gets a

lot of attention for its unique look and sound. I lucked into it, because when

I went up to Brasswind to try some Yamahas, they had this Boosey that someone

had special-ordered and never picked up. Between Brasswind's eagerness to

unload it, and the exchange rate at the time, I got a really nice deal.Years ago I played Yamaha's Eb, and really liked it. Do you see many of the

Yamaha Ebs over there?HP

I have just been trying out instruments and from what I can find out

from the trade, B+H knew they had a quality control problem and since a

new MD has been in place (start of year) much money has been spent on

machinery and procedures to improve quality control. In recent years

the Sovereigns have been hit or miss but the new cornets I tried were

all flawless, the fit and finish were 1st class, valves excellent and

they blew well. If all the instruments they produce now are as good

then B+H/Besson are back in the game. There shouldn't be to much old

stock out there as lottery funding for band sets of instruments meant

that new Sovereigns were almost all sold as soon as they were produced. Brian Jones

In article , Howard Peirce

writes

If you think the Bach cannot be used in Brass bands try to get a

recording of Kevin Dye or Martin Winter in the time they played

principal cornet for Desford Colliery Band (the whole Cornet section was

Strads) when they won the National Championship. Also Jim Davies has

played on a Getzen Eterna and many of his cornet section who won the

hat-trick of national championships were playing on strads.All the bestBrian JonesIn article , Rosenquist

writes

>Hi Brian !!!

>If you think the Bach cannot be used in Brass bands,.....I didn't think/say that ! Of course you can ! Why not ? I know a lot

of great brass bands/players who/wich are using Bachs (e.g. Brass Band

of Battle Creek, and other 'american style' brass bands). Bachs are

great instruments for this kind of banding.But in British Brass Bands the B&H (Sovereign) cornet is most

used/popular.>try to get a recording of,....Roger Webster (Principal CWS Glasgow/ex- princ. Black Dyke)

Michael Baker (Principal Black Dyke Band)

David Daws (Principal S.A. International Staff Band/Enfield Band)

Ian Porthouse (Principal Yorkshire Building S. Band)

Keith Hutchinson (former principal S.A. Enfield Band)

Harry Mortimer - The infamous 'Man of Brass

James Sheppard (founder/princ. J.B. Verstile Brass)or british bands like:The Black Dyke Band

Yorkshire Building Society Band

Brighouse & Rastrick Band

CWS (Glasgow) Band

Williams Fairey Band

Grimethorpe Coliery Band

S.A. International Staff Band

S.A. Enfield Band

>Desford Colliery Band (the whole Cornet section was Strads)

>when they won the National Championship. Also Jim Davies

>has played on a Getzen Eterna and many of his cornet section

>who won the hat-trick of national championships were playing

>on strads.

I commented that Bachs could be used in British style bands because at

least the Desford and Cory hat-tricks were won playing Bachs. That is

British style bands winning the UK championship 6 times, not American

style bands. I am not arguing that Bessons will have won more but I am

saying that Bachs have, can and are being used.

Agreed, but the original poster did not ask what sort of cornet was the

most popular, but what names were used. I took this to mean that the

poster would then go out and try a bunch. To live in the US and chance

upon a good Sovereign would be lucky indeed. (last year I tried 7 in a

shop and only one was nearly as good as my 928GS - this situation has

seemingly improved lately).

The reason I quoted the players to listen to was because you say that

Bach can only be played by US style bands and I was trying to show that

a UK type band sound (if such a single sound exists) could be obtained

from a Bach or almost any pro quality short model cornet. I do not

argue that many more Besson examples can be found but that is not the

point - and certainly not what the original poster asked. As I alluded

to earlier, there are a lot more cornets out there than just a Besson.

At the National finals in Harrogate last year I saw bands using Bessons,

Yamahas, Courtois, Bachs, Schilkes, and Smith-Watkins. YoursBrian Jones

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