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40-574: Through acquisitions and mergers, the company has acquired a large number of musical instrument brand names and manufacturing facilities. Steinway Musical Instruments acquired the flute manufacturer Emerson in 1997, the piano keyboard maker Kluge in 1998, and the Steinway Hall in Manhattan in 1999. In 2000 it acquired the wind instrument manufacturer United Musical Instruments and in 2003 merged it with their subsidiary The Selmer Company to form

80-470: A child he received training on violin, trumpet and bugle. By age 12 he had concentrated on the trumpet. After he graduated from Maschinenbauschule (Mechanical Engineering School, Ansbach) with an engineering degree, he entered into compulsory military service in the Imperial Navy , worked as an elevator operator , and then was re- conscripted during which time he served as a military musician in

120-694: A decade after starting-up the Main Street plant, production moved again to a Conn factory belonging to the Selmer Company on Industrial Drive in Elkhart, alongside of which the Conn-Selmer corporate offices are located presently. The Bach line of brass instruments continues to be made in Elkhart, Indiana , using the same blueprints and the same techniques as the originals. They are sold as

160-594: A former Buescher plant on Main Street in Elkhart Indiana where production started in January 1965. Horns of this period featured an increase in the thickness of bell-making stock to 0.025" from the 0.020" New York standard that was reclassified in Elkhart as lightweight, and denoted by a star on the bell. The wire inside the rim bead changed to being steel and can be detected using a magnet. Elkhart Less than

200-489: A premium brand under the name “Bach Stradivarius” as well as the student line “Bach” horns, manufactured in Eastlake Ohio. Design changes that followed included transitioning from the 2-piece valve casings Bach had always used to a more cost-effective, but lighter, single tube casing. At some point the rim wire was also changed back to brass. Sales of Bach instruments remained strong, as did market reputation through

240-879: A store and repair shop in Paris and began producing clarinets , and Alexandre joined the Boston Symphony Orchestra that same year. In 1904, Selmer clarinets were presented at the Saint Louis (USA) World's Fair, winning a gold medal, and Alexandre Selmer was First Clarinetist with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra. Alexandre established himself in New York in 1909, opening a shop that sold Selmer clarinets and mouthpieces. The H. & A. Selmer (USA) Company grew out of that retail operation. In 1910, Alexandre returned to France and

280-581: A worldwide network of dealers to professional, amateur and student musicians, as well as orchestras and educational institutions, under dozens of different brand names. It holds exclusive distribution rights for Selmer (Paris) wind instruments and Yanagisawa saxophones in the United States. It employs a workforce of around 1,700 and operates 11 manufacturing facilities in the United States and Europe, in addition to Asian contract manufacturers. The company and its subsidiaries produces instruments under

320-460: Is a US manufacturer of brass instruments that began early in the early Twentieth Century and still exists as a subsidiary of Conn-Selmer , a division of Steinway Musical Instruments . The company was founded in 1918 by Austrian-born trumpeter Vinzenz Schrottenbach ( Vincent Bach ). Vinzenz Schrottenbach (sometimes misspelled "Vincenz Schrotenbach") was born in Baden near Vienna in 1890. As

360-471: Is the largest manufacturer and importer of band and orchestral instruments in the United States. It has manufactured instruments in six domestic facilities since 2002: It has been heavily involved in outsourcing manufacturing of brands formerly associated with American manufacturers, including Ludwig drums, Glaesel, Scherl & Roth, and Wm. Lewis and Sons stringed instruments to China and Selmer (USA) wind instruments to various Asian sources. The employees at

400-775: The Brilhart line of woodwind mouthpieces, with production contracted to the Runyon Company , and the Lesher Woodwind Company, a manufacturer of oboes and bassoons. In 1970, Selmer acquired additional production facilities from C.G. Conn, who were divesting their Elkhart, Indiana operations. In 1977, Selmer acquired the stringed instrument maker Glaesel. In 1981 Selmer acquired the Ludwig Drum Company . The era of H. & A. Selmer as an independent company ended in 1970, with its acquisition by

440-535: The Conn-Selmer subsidiary. In 2004 it acquired the wind instrument manufacturer Leblanc and placed it under Conn-Selmer. It now owns manufacturers of pianos , brasswinds , woodwinds , strings , and percussion . Brands produced under it include Steinway & Sons pianos, Bach Stradivarius trumpets, C.G. Conn French horns, Leblanc clarinets, King trombones, Ludwig drums, and Selmer saxophones and woodwinds. The company sells its products through

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480-699: The Leblanc Company , gaining their exclusive distribution rights for Yanagisawa saxophones in the US and Canada. Conn-Selmer kept Leblanc in production of clarinets but ended their brasswind production in 2007, discontinuing their Martin brand and moving production of their Holton brand to Elkhart, Indiana. Conn-Selmer retains the North American importation and distribution rights for Selmer (Paris) and Yanagisawa Wind Instruments formerly held by H. & A. Selmer and Leblanc, respectively. Conn-Selmer

520-496: The Second World War , Bach coped with a shortage of workers and materials and, while not converted to produce war materials as many competitors were, the company cut back on production. Throughout the early years, Bach resorted to mixing parts and modifying earlier horns returned to their ownership during this period to provide requested instruments to customers. Some horns built from extra parts or reconfigured bear an X on

560-534: The Vincent Bach facility in Elkhart, Indiana represented by United Auto Workers Local 364, struck on April 1, 2006, and as of July 30, 2009, the union was decertified. Out of 230 workers that went out on strike approximately 70 returned with the remaining workers having been subject to recall until July 30, 2010. In 2006, calls were made for the American Federation of Musicians to boycott

600-455: The "type-E" valve, actually according to Roy Hempley the "New type-E" appears on the first such shop cards, occasionally combining type-E with type-C or others for reasons Bach may only have known. To accommodate this, the tight "2-over, 2-under" wrap gained in height, departing further from Besson designs than the previous horns had. The company experienced stresses, but survived the depression and expanded again afterward. Post-war During

640-421: The 1970s and 1980s, but in the 1990s both the size of the workforce and the warranty costs began to increase dramatically. Sales decreased at the same time. A strike in 2006 (see below) then led to significant changes in staffing and work rules, many of which had been transplants from automotive repetitive manufacturing that were applied to the job-shop format of an instrument maker. Modern Changes continued at

680-626: The Austrian Marine Band. When he left the military the second time, Vincent decided to defy his family's wishes and pursued a career as a solo cornetist touring Europe . At the outbreak of World War I , he was in England and was forced to flee to the United States in order to escape detention as an enemy alien . He resumed his career as a performer, interrupted by another term of compulsory military service, this time in

720-653: The Bach facility after reorganization. Long time employee Tedd Waggoner took the lead role in the company until his retirement in 2018. Minor changes to design such as a longer receiver and reintroducing the oldest Bach bell taper happened during this period, as did the ramping-up of a new 190 series of "Artisan" trumpets that replicated the 2-piece casings and steel rim wire of Early Elkhart production. New private owners began an aggressive program of upgrading to automated CNC lathes and milling equipment as well as robotic buffers in 2017. The Chicago C trumpet, reintroduced earlier through

760-872: The Conn-Selmer company begin with the H. & A. Selmer company. In the late nineteenth century, brothers Alexandre and Henri Selmer graduated from the Paris Conservatory as clarinetists. They were the great-grandchildren of French military drum major Johannes Jacobus Zelmer, grandchildren of Jean-Jacques Selmer, the Army Chief of Music, and two of 16 children in this musical family. At the time, musical instruments and accessories were primarily hand made, and professional musicians found it necessary to acquire skills allowing them to make their own accessories and repair and modify their own instruments. Establishing Henri Selmer & Cie. in 1885, Henri began making clarinet reeds and mouthpieces . In 1898, Henri opened

800-474: The H. & A. Selmer store was managed by George Bundy. The store expanded its product line, selling "Selmer" branded wind instruments and mouthpieces from manufacturers in the US in addition to Selmer (Paris) products. In 1923, the H. & A. Selmer Company was incorporated to expand its retail operations. A 49% share was sold to C. G. Conn Ltd while Selmer (Paris) retained a minority interest. In 1927, Bundy gained full ownership, establishing independence of

840-451: The Mt. Vernon mystique is in part due to the early advocacy of these in particular. The design of the trumpet changed at this point in time to include the full wrap height still built today, to feature a flat-faced tuning slide, and to one which required the tuning slide be pulled an inch rather than the customary 1/2 inch to be in tune. This last, by some workings of the physics, is said to "loosen

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880-521: The US military as a musician. While Bach was on tour in Pittsburgh in 1918, a repairman destroyed his mouthpiece , and Bach began experimenting with mouthpiece repair and fabrication. Beginnings The Vincent Bach Corporation began when Vincent purchased a $ 300 foot-operated lathe and began producing mouthpieces in the back of the Selmer music store in New York. He established his shop across

920-404: The United States. The company produces a large variety of musical instruments itself and through contractors under the brand names Vincent Bach , C.G. Conn , King , Holton , Selmer, Armstrong, Leblanc , Ludwig , Musser, and Scherl & Roth. Conn-Selmer is also the North American distributor of Henri Selmer Paris woodwinds and the U.S. distributor of Yanagisawa saxophones. The origins of

960-806: The backing of Kirkland Messina, Selmer Industries acquired the Steinway Musical Properties company, the parent company of piano manufacturer Steinway & Sons , in 1995 and changed their own name to Steinway Musical Instruments . The domestically produced Bundy brand was discontinued shortly afterward, replaced with student wind instruments sourced from Asia and sold as Selmer (USA) woodwinds and Bach brasswinds. In 2000, Steinway Musical Instruments acquired United Musical Instruments (owners of Artley, Armstrong, Benge , C.G. Conn , King , Scherl & Roth), then merged it with The Selmer Company's instrument manufacturing operations to form Conn-Selmer in 2003. In 2004, Conn-Selmer acquired

1000-443: The centering" and "open the blow" (make it take less energy to match pitch with others and make the horn respond). Selmer at Mt. Vernon In 1961 Vincent Bach was 71 and the company was acquired that year by The Selmer Company , with Bach staying on as a consultant and continuing to work until at least 1974. Bach accepted the bid from Selmer even though some others of the 13 which he received were higher. Selmer asked Bach, as

1040-621: The company incorporated, had 10 employees and moved into a small factory at 237 E. 41st Street in New York. In 1924 Bach began producing cornets and trumpets under the Stradivarius by Vincent Bach Corporation name. In 1928, tenor and bass trombones were added to the product line as the company expanded and relocated. Bronx In October 1928 the company opened a factory in The Bronx to produce cornets, trumpets and trombones (both tenor and bass). Shortly after this move, Bach removed

1080-511: The company. H. & A. Selmer (USA) remained the sole importer of Selmer (Paris) products, including saxophones and brasswinds once exports of such instruments to the USA commenced. In 1936, Selmer changed its distribution strategy, abandoning most retail and becoming a wholesaler of instruments and supplies. Selmer went on to establish itself as a leading distributor of student-grade instruments under its Artley and Bundy brands. In response to

1120-414: The electronics firm Magnavox . Magnavox was sold to Philips Electronics in 1974 and the Selmer properties were sold to the investment firm Integrated Resources in 1989. With the 1993 bankruptcy of Integrated Resources, Selmer was sold to the investment firm Kirkland Messina and reorganized as Selmer Industries, Inc. , with The Selmer Company name used for its instrument manufacturing operations. With

1160-654: The entire Steinway-Conn-Selmer instrument company due to its permanently replacing union workers at its manufacturing facilities. The employees represented by United Auto Workers Local 2359 at the Eastlake, Ohio Conn-Selmer manufacturing plant called a strike on July 26, 2011, after working without a contract since February 2011, and settled with the company on October 21, 2011. In 2013, the Paulson & Co. investment firm acquired Steinway Musical Instruments. Vincent Bach Corporation The Vincent Bach Corporation

1200-476: The first task in his new (lifetime) position as technical consultant, to redesign his trumpet so as to eliminate the unique one inch pull required to be in tune, in favor of a standard 1/2 inch pull. This design was dubbed the model 180. Early Elkhart It is believed that Vincent Bach continued customizing a small number of horns at the old Mt. Vernon facility for special customers. The bulk of tooling, along with many parts and assembled horns, were relocated to

1240-511: The following brand names: Emerson Flutes Conn-Selmer, Inc. is an American manufacturer of musical instruments for concert bands , marching bands and orchestras . It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Steinway Musical Instruments and was formed in 2003 by combining the Steinway properties, The Selmer Company and United Musical Instruments. Conn-Selmer is the largest manufacturer and importer of band and orchestral instruments in

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1280-403: The joint efforts of Waggoner and retired engineer / Bach historian Roy Hempley (1940-2020) expanded in sales and was augmented by a "Philadelphia" C. On 1 April 2006, workers at the Bach plant in Elkhart began a strike that lasted three years. The main issues were the union's desire to preserve employee compensation and company's goals to increase product quality. Production was interrupted until

1320-550: The premium line Bach Stradivarius. The services of Mr. Vincent Bach were retained for design of student-line brasswinds. In 1963, Selmer acquired ownership of its main supplier of student saxophones, the Buescher Band Instrument Company . Selmer continued distributing identical Bundy and Buescher instruments until it discontinued the Buescher name in 1983. In 1966, Selmer acquired the rights to

1360-461: The reputation of Selmer (Paris) instruments among aspiring professionals. In 1958 Selmer acquired the Harry Pedler and Sons brasswind plant in Elkhart, starting in-house production of Bundy student-line brasswinds. In 1961, Selmer acquired the brasswind manufacturer Vincent Bach Corporation . Selmer moved production from Bach's Mount Vernon, New York facility to Elkhart in 1965 while retaining

1400-535: The second valve casing along with the bore letter code and serial number. At first, the instruments built at the new factory were identical to the bulk of what had been produced the few years before These were typified by the same wrap height and .020" bell stock Bach had been using primarily after the war. Mt. Vernon It is instruments and mouthpieces from this Bach era that are still aggressively sought-after by many who believe that none-other are of this quality. However, several Bach periods each have their fans and

1440-424: The serial number on the second valve casing, others had a digit added to the original serial number. In some cases, the same serial number exists on another horn. After WWII, Bach was similarly creative in the first years with manpower and material shortages. The wrap height increased slightly during these years, and the tuning slide while still a "D" shape, became correspondingly flatter. Early Mt. Vernon Over

1480-493: The street from the musicians' union. He ran an advertisement that read "How to become a wizard on cornet without practicing" and accumulated $ 500 in orders in a short time and began his career as a manufacturer. This period came to an end when Bach was drafted into the US military where he served as bandmaster and bugle instructor during WWI. Start-up Start-up continued Bach resumed his mouthpiece business and started selling how-to guides and music. Incorporated By 1922

1520-660: The unavailability of Selmer (Paris) instruments after the German defeat of France in 1940, Selmer sought alternate sources for wind instruments and distributed them under their new student-line Bundy and intermediate Signet brands. In 1950, George Bundy retired and sold his shares to partners Joseph M. Grolimund, Jack Feddersen, Milt Broadhead, and Charles Bickel. Starting in 1952, the Selmer Artist program offered special deals for musicians who agreed to perform and record exclusively with Selmer (Paris) instruments, boosting

1560-446: The years, the company produced several ranges of trumpets , cornets , flugelhorns and trombones , using the brand names Apollo , Minerva , Mercury , Mercedes and Stradivarius . The Vincent Bach Corporation moved in 1953 from New York City to Mount Vernon, New York . Mt. Vernon Bach horns are prized for being hand-assembled instruments. Mt. Vernon horns can be identified by the Bach manufacturing stamp listing Mount Vernon NY on

1600-639: The “Faciebat Anno” marking from his bell engraving that had been in use since before the 100th horn, and began stamping the bells with “Model” followed by numbers for the bell mandrel and bore size. Some horns have "New York 67" as the location on the bell and are sometimes mistaken for a "67" bell model, however 67 was the pre-zipcode postal code for the Bronx. This practice continued through most of this period. The bell mandrel number had previously appeared in Bach's script “Vincent Bach Corporation” that has been an enduring marking on Bach horns. In 1933, Bach settled on

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