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Double-Wall Clarinets Made By Conn About 1890
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NMM 5872. Clarinet in E-flat by C. G. Conn, Elkhart, Indiana, ca. 1887-1889. Four sections. Stamped on bell: 27 / [three sets of two short, horizontal, parallel lines] / MADE BY / C. G. CONN / [three sets of two short, horizontal, parallel lines] ELKHART / [→] IND [←] / [underlined by two short, horizontal, parallel lines]. Serial number 27. Wonder model. Double-wall, silver-plated body and ferrules; gold-plated keys and rings. Albert System. 13 keys including "patent c-sharp," 2 rings (1 brille), rod/pillar mounts. Total length (top of barrel to bottom of bell), 417 mm. Rosario Mazzeo Collection, 1998.
Lit.: Deborah Check Reeves, "Historically Speaking," The Clarinet 37, No. 3 (June 2010): 26-27.
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NMM 14507. Clarinet in A by C. G. Conn, Elkhart, ca. 1890. Four sections. Stamped on bell: A / MADE BY / C. G. CONN [each letter underlined by four small parallel lines] / ELKHART, / IND. [entire signature, except "A," at a diagonal rising from left to right and surrounded by flowers and foliage]. Serial number 354. Wonder model. Double-wall, silver-plated body and ferrules; gold-plated keys and rings. Albert System. 13 keys including "Patent c-sharp," 2 rings (1 brille), rod/pillar mounts. Total length (top of barrel to bottom of bell), 603.5 mm. Mouthpiece: black plastic or hard rubber, unmarked. Gift of Dorothy Lynde, Belmont, Massachusetts, 2010.
This clarinet, along with NMM 14508, originally belonged to the donor's grandfather, George C. Schmidt (b. Yarmouthport, Massachusetts, 6 September 1888-1946), one of three sons born to parents who immigrated to the U.S. from Switzerland. As a teenager, Schmidt played clarinet in the Yarmouth Brass Band. The family moved to Boston before Schmidt finished high school in order to give the three boys more career opportunities. Schmidt graduated from high school in Milton, Massachusetts, went to work for Stone and Webster—a Boston-based engineering firm—and married in 1909 or 1910. The donor's mother recalled that as far as she remembered, Schmidt never joined another band, but he played for the family every Saturday evening.
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NMM 14369. Clarinet in A by C. G. Conn, Elkhart and Worcester, Massachusetts, ca. 1890. Four sections. Engraved on bell: A / MADE [vine with leaves] / [vine with leaves] / BY [←] / C. G. CONN / ELKHART IND / [→] AND [←] / WORCESTER / MAS.S [sic]. Serial number 384. Wonder model. Double-wall, silver-plated body and ferrules; gold-plated keys and rings. Albert System. 13 keys including "patent c-sharp," 2 rings (1 brille), rod/pillar mounts. Total length (top of barrel to bottom of bell), 606 mm. Mouthpiece: black plastic or hard rubber, stamped: C. G. CONN / ELKHART / INDIANA [all within oval cartouche]. André P. & Kay Marcum Larson Acquisitions Fund, 2009.
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Lit.: Deborah Check Reeves, "Historically Speaking," The Clarinet 37, No. 3 (June 2010): 26-27.
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NMM 3061. Clarinet in B-flat by C. G. Conn, Elkhart, ca. 1890. Four sections. Engraved on bell: Bb / 465 / MADE BY / C. G. CONN / ELKHART / IND. Serial number 465. Wonder model. Double-wall, silver-plated body and ferrules; gold-plated keys and rings. Albert System. 13 keys including "patent c-sharp," 2 rings (1 brille), rod/pillar mounts. Total length (top of barrel to bottom of bell), 571 mm. Mouthpiece: wood (or possibly synthetic), unmarked. W. Wayne Sorensen Collection, 1982.
Lit.: Deborah Check Reeves, "Historically Speaking," The Clarinet 37, No. 3 (June 2010): 26-27.
