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Doc Severinsen's Trumpets circa October, 2001

Visitor # since October 11, 2001.

The following are photos of the instruments played by Doc on Tuesday, October 9, 2001, at the Night of 1000 Trumpets concert in Hattiesburg, Mississippi.  The date on my camera is incorrect. 

Today, Doc has designed and is marketing his own Destino trumpet.

If one looks very closely at the music, 'Ode to Doc' is being rehearsed.  The piece starts with Doc on his Piccolo, then the Flugelhorn, then his trumpet.

Doc's mouthpiece

The picture below shows Doc's mouthpiece used that night - looks very much like a GR.  He kept it to his mouth and frequently licked it to keep it warm.  I wish the photo was more flattering, without his tongue poking out like that.

Doc's Getzen (before designing and selling his own Destino)

Getzen 'Severinsen' model 3001.  It appeared to be an unmodified, stock trumpet.

Note how relaxed Doc looks when playing.

Doc's Cornet

Doc played a 'Boston' 3 Star NE Plus Ultra cornet with what looks like original optional factory engraving on the bell  I'm told that it was made after 1910.  This particular model is a 3 star and features a single-unit leadpipe.  The leadpipe also extends almost to the end of the 3rd slide.   This particular cornet is highly coveted by collectors.

Doc's legs can be seen in the background as he walks away, despite this crazed fan this close to his instruments.  You can only imagine how excited I was to be this close to get these photographs!

Tom Turner provides the following about the Boston 3 Star in the Forum secion of TrumpetHerals.com (http://www.trumpetherald.com/forum/viewtopic.php?topic=66&forum=10&8) .  "I know this cornet well . . . it is a Boston 3-Star cornet, bore .480 and a truly AWESOME cornet! I've got the IDENTICAL model 3-Star as Doc's, and mine was made in 1911. Mine is in truly great shape with the original case, original silver-plate in 98% perfect condition, both the old-fashioned high and modern low pitch tuning slides, the extra leadpipe bit, music lyre, etc.. These horns also had a clamp-on lyre holder ring on the third valve slide that you can see if you look very carefully at the photo.

Doc's horn is gold plated with the optional extra-ornate engraving that only a few had. My silver one is less ornate but with gorgeous and crisp engraving too. BTW, the Bostons had what is today marketed as "high speed" thin brass valve buttons--so much for "new" inventions!!!

I'd rank the Boston 3-Stars against any cornet ever made--great intonation, fantastic response and blow, plus the most incredibly "buttery" and rich true cornet sound.

Both of our Bostons are the later ones with the modern "fixed" leadpipe design. Most 3-Stars had the longer, insertable straight leadpipe so common with 19th and early twentieth century cornets. I prefer the later design much more, and they are certainly rarer.

The Bostons had very thin brass used in the bell section for incredibly fast response and they speak with uncanny clarity at ANY volume level from the softest one can play to very loud, yet the sound is SOOOOOO rich. When the great H. L. Clarke won his first professional playing job he immediately went out and purchased a Boston 3-Star with his earnings.

The Boston Musical Instrument Company was founded soon after the Civil War as a new partnership of several of the most distinguished high brass makers of the era, including E.G. Wright and, if I remember correctly, BOTH Samuel Graves and Isaac Fiske, all of Boston. Their combined talents produced some of the absolute finest instruments in the world in the last half of the nineteenth century and very early 20th century.

Sadly, old men have a tendency to die and their companies do too. Around 1919 or so, their Boston Musical Instrument Company was sold for its name brand recognition, and some of the final horns wearing the Boston name were cheap foriegn imports that were pure crap-ola. The company ceased to produce instruments just a few years later.

I hope this information will help you learn more about these remarkable instruments (by even today's standards)!

I truly cherish my horn and, with its valves rebuilt by Anderson last year, it is ready for another 90 years . . . and, from the looks of Doc's, his will too! Gee . . . I wish I could say the same about me!!!"

I replied to Tom with the following:  "Doc's cornet has a major difference from a Boston 3 Star depicted in http://www.oberloh.com/gallery/cornet.htm . There is a difference in the design of the lead pipe where it is parallel to the 3rd slide and enters the 3rd valve. On Doc's horn, the lead pipe is nearly as long as the 3rd slide, whereas in the Orberloh pictures, the 3rd slide is quite longer.

To see a Boston cornet with the same lead pipe (both at the 3rd slide and the integraged mouthpiece receiver), see the photo at http://www.dillonmusic.com/usedimages/116200195930AM.jpg depicting a Boston NE Plus Ultra. Could this also be known as a 3 Star?"

He replied "The oberloh.com 3-Star is the original, older design that was popular in the 19th century and was made into the very early 20th century with the insertable mouthpiece pipe and the split-fork spitvalve that operated at the same time on two separate tubes--a common and dumb idea, IMHO.

My horn, and Doc's identical type, Boston is the more modern 3-star of the 1910-17 or so era that did away with the funky insertable leadpipes (different length ones to play with different pitch groups) and substituted the more efficient fixed pipe of modern cornets. IMHO, this type does play better. This version of the 3-Star is depicted in the dillon music photos.

"NE Plus Ultra" was also engraved on the bells of all 3-Stars and some people do refer to them as such. Also in the engraving area were three stars, hence the other nickname that is more popularly known by.

In the Dillon photo, it looks like the horn has an "extra" third valve slide. Actually, the main tuning slide is the big one facing backwards but it then directs the sound into the smaller, front facing tuning slide. There were actually TWO of the smaller, third valve slide-looking tuning slides provided with each 3-Star . . . the shorter, "high pitch" slide shown in the Dillon photo, and a longer "low pitch" (modern A=440) slide.

Back in 1910, A=440 had not been standardized and most horns of the day included high pitched slides also in case you were playing with people with "old" 30-year old, 1880 instruments that sounded each note about a 1/2 step higher than what we call each note today. I would not buy that horn if it didn't include the modern slide unless I just wanted to display the horn and this one doesn't look that pristine, although definately restorable.

Also, on the lower part of the large tuning slide was a threaded ring to "catch" the slide before it would pull out past a set point. This allowed the player to quickly yank the main tuning slide out to a precise point and be able to play the cornet in the key of "A" . . . also an archaic practice today but still "cool."

Additionally, I've seen a 3-Star from just before 1920 with even an additional way the horn was "wrapped" (wound around). The "vulgar" trumpet was rising in popularity and, from about 1920 to 1940 cornet players switched to the more brillant and projecting sound of the trumpet. During this time period cornets began to be re-designed to sound brighter and edgier like trumpets. A prime example is the Conn Victor model cornet like Bix played Dixieland on. My pristine, original condition '39 Victor has a brighter, edgier sound than my Wild Thing trumpet and not nearly as rich.

Additionally cornet mouthpieces changed from fluglehornish designs to small trumpet-clone mouthpieces with cups instead of funnels . . . also to compete in the fff "spittin' contest with trumpets. Most people, even when listening to a cornet, have never REALLY heard a cornet as originally designed with a super-rich, velvet tone that was humanlike in quality rather than brash and edgy, but in its heyday the cornet players had the singing, solo parts and trumpet players were stuck with percussive fanfares.

The original cornet voice, as originally perfected, is so different from either the trumpet or flugelhorn and definately has its place on stage alongside the other two in a serious soloist's bag of tools, and the Boston is as good as they come.

I'm glad your photos of Doc's concert initiated this dialogue. It is high time for trumpeters to rediscover the cornet, especially with modern made but authentic-shaped funnel mouthpieces of the turn-of-the-century. It appears that Doc is using a modern-type cornet mouthpiece on his (I do too if playing Dixieland on it). There are some wonderful new "old-type" cornet mouthpieces being made today. I'm looking forward to trying the new GR's soon with the very deep cup . . . yeah, it hurts high range a little but not too much and the benefits of the tone are worth it!

The original cornet sound may once again be discovered and utilized in modern music once again due to its unique voice. Thanks Doc!"

Doc's Bel Canto partner

Believe it or not, I stumbled into the person who restored this fine Boston Cornet and sold it to Doc.  He is none other than Dick Akright, Doc's former Bel Canto trumpet maker.  (A subsequent conversation with Doc dispels this.  Instead, Doc says that this particular cornet was the first horn owned by  Ren Schilke.  Yes, THAT Schilke.  Click here for a brief recap of that discussion.

Here is Ackright's story:

"I found the Boston Cornet for Doc several years ago. I did quite alot of work on it. It has been so long ago I can't remember what I did. Sorry. But, I do remember the first time he used it in Atlanta. He had only had the cornet for a day or so. He went on stage and started playing a solo and he was having a real problem with tuning. Every note was changing pitch as he played. He stopped his performance in front a full house. He realized the tuning slide had little push buttons on each side of the valve casing that operated the tuning slide and he was pushing the tuning knobs back and forth without realizing what was happening. He figured this out on stage and continued with his performance."

"I sold Doc the Selmer picc last year and as far as I know he hasn't made any changes. The Selmer Picc uses a standard trumpet mouthpiece and this why Doc liked it so much."

"I sold all his Schilkes for him. I didn't know he was playing a Bach Flugel. I thought he was using the old Besson I rebuilt for him about 8 or 9 years ago. He really loves that flugel. He also uses a Kanstul Model 1525 flugel with the 6 1/2 copper bell. As you know Doc changes equipment a lot. He uses instruments that are a complement to the piece he is playing. "

Doc's Flugelhorn

I was told that Doc was playing a Bach 'Severinsen' Flugelhorn.  A couple of reliable sources have said that it is a 'one off', custom horn just for Doc.

Doc's Piccolo Trumpet

The young lady (hi, Bernadette!) holding his Piccolo says it is a Selmer, and the Selmer web site confirms it.  Looks like a custom lead pipe on that sucker, however.  See above toward the end of the long discussion about the Boston Cornet for a brief paragraph on the person who sold this horn to Doc.

Doc's new best friend

Here is a shot of yours truly sitting in the stands amongst 999 other trumpets.  I brought all four of mine so they could hear for themselves how they're really supposed to sound!  Now that they've heard Doc, my sound should improve.

They are three Burbank Benge trumpets (Bb, C, and D/Eb) and a Stomvi Piccolo.  The Stomvi (model m15) was made about 1990.  The D/Eb Benge is serial #6xxx, thought to be made in 1965.  This was after Eldon died in 1960 but before Zig Kanstul joined in 1998.  The silver C (serial #74xx) and gold Bb (#81xx) are circa '67-68 and thought to be made just before Zig Kanstul joined Benge.  The Gold Bb is one of the last horns assembled at the Burbank plant.  Horns with #83xx-87xx were assembled in Los Angeles but stamped "Burbank"  without the street address.

Thanks, Mike, for the photo and the information about Eldon.