[Trombone-l] Trombone-l Selman Alto Trombone (kind of long)

[John Cather]

I have owned several altos and played most. The Selman is of the  
smaller borevariety like a more traditional alto. I own and play one.  
It was less than $200 delivered! It's not like the Conn or the Yamaha  
(which I call short tenors). If you want something like a short tenor  
(.500 bore), this is not for you. Otherwise for the price, the Selman  
is a very good buy. Mine came with good finish and seems solid.  
Everything works properly. The slide is only OK. The tuning slide is  
good. Intonation is ballpark good. And with a reasonable mouthpiece  
(not that junky 12c thing that comes with it) it sounds good from  
bottom to top with a pretty even response. It blends well in an  
orchestra section who uses smaller equipment like a Bach 12 on 2nd  
and Bach 42 on bass. This instrumentation is becoming more common  
now. Getting back to a more historical sound than more recent decades  
of bigger is better.

I do not like the idea of Chinese horns, but it's becoming reality  
anyway and they are getting better every year. I don't know how long  
until they get into the arena of fine horns. Last NAMM show I played  
a Jin Bao Bass that I wouldn't mind owning! I really took me by  
surprise. Rarely do I find a Bass I like nearly as well as my Elkhart  
62h with Minnick re raps, but this one came close.

By the way, if you don't like the tenor mouthpiece with alto (Bach 12  
or 15 is tenor) I make limited quantities with rim diameters of 21-  
22mm as opposed to the 24mm tenors. (Trumpet is 18mm by the way) With  
practice, you get the same equivalent range on alto as tenor and a  
better, more focused sound as well as increased endurance because of  
easier range. Beethoven 9, Dvorak 7, Mozart, etc become much more  
manageable.

Cheers,
John Cather


On Oct 16, 2007, at 10:00 AM,
> t.stone at att.net wrote:
>
> Hi List,
>
> Does anyone have any first-hand experience with the Selman Alto  
> trombone? I keep seeing these advertised on E-Bay for the Buy-It- 
> Now price of $169.99. They look fantastic and are a bargain at that  
> price if they play well (that's a BIG if), and if they're made well  
> (that's another BIG if). I've searched and searched, but can't much  
> information about them or where they are made. What I have found is  
> just a lot of skepticism about how they play and their quality, but  
> no first-hand reports. They are offered by a company called Great  
> Tunes Direct located in Twin Falls, Idaho, and shipped from their  
> location. So, does anyone own one of these and can tell  me how it  
> plays, where it's made and what the quality of workmanship is?
>
> Tim
> Northridge, CA