Absolutely correct. An Alexander 103 that I purchased in 1966 had a few insecure notes. In a visit to the factory in 1971, the "old" leadpipe was replaced with the "new" 103 leadpipe, which I was told was based on a new design; insecure notes were therafter secure. The geometry of the central corpus has changed slightly over time. Removing the third valve slide on the F side was next to impossible on some older horns without scraping the bell; that problem has been fixed, I believe. More importantly, the playing characteristics seem to have changed to some extent, but exactly how I cannot say. My time with the newer models has not been very long, but they do have a different feel about them (related to newer methods of bell manufacture?); not necessarily better or worse, just different, but still instantly recognizable to both player and listener as an Alex 103.
-----Original Message----- From: horn-bounces+treicher=cooley....@music.memphis.edu [mailto:horn-bounces+treicher=cooley....@music.memphis.edu] On Behalf Of Steve Haflich Sent: Tuesday, March 10, 2009 1:03 PM To: The Horn List Subject: Re: [Hornlist] Yamaha & Alexander 103 Reicher, Tom <treic...@cooley.com> wrote: Perhaps because all of the horns you mention either were no longer being produced or were in very limited production. Alexander has been a popular horn in Japan, and Yamaha may have not wanted to go "head to head" with an active maker, though it would be interesting to compare an Alexander 103 with a Yamaha copy. There have been copies of the 103 from time to time from other makers (Boosey & Hawkes, Paxman, and some German makers). When is a copy an exact copy? Which version of the 103 would Yamaha copy? The 103 has been around a long time -- accouding to Osmun, it originated in 1909 and has remained basically unchanged. However, I believe (but on only scanty evidence) that from time to time the construction and design have been tweaked. I'm pretty sure that the horns produced in the late 1970's are rather different from those produced in the early 1960's. They may be basically the same horn -- same layout and measurements -- but there are subtle differences. Sorry not to have more details, but I'm sure someone else out there can comment. The point is that, if Yamaha were to "copy" the 103, it would not be an exact copy. They would use slightly different sources, fabrication, and quality standards. The copy would be subtly different, maybe better or worse in various ways. _______________________________________________ post: horn@music.memphis.edu unsubscribe or set options at http://music2.memphis.edu/mailman/options/horn/treicher%40cooley.com This email message is for the sole use of the intended recipient(s) and may contain confidential and privileged information. Any unauthorized review, use, disclosure or distribution is prohibited. If you are not the intended recipient, please contact the sender by reply email and destroy all copies of the original message. If you are the intended recipient, please be advised that the content of this message is subject to access, review and disclosure by the sender's Email System Administrator. IRS Circular 230 disclosure: To ensure compliance with requirements imposed by the IRS, we inform you that any U.S. federal tax advice contained in this communication (including any attachment) is not intended or written by us to be used, and cannot be used, (i) by any taxpayer for the purpose of avoiding tax penalties under the Internal Revenue Code or (ii) for promoting, marketing or recommending to another party any transaction or matter addressed herein. _______________________________________________ post: horn@music.memphis.edu unsubscribe or set options at http://music2.memphis.edu/mailman/options/horn/archive%40jab.org
