Kaempf CC Tuba

[bisontuba]

Today, I acquired a very interesting horn. It is a 4 string rotary valve tuba in CC. The valves are almost at a 45 degree angle. The four slides for the valves are all in the rear of the horn. On the bottom of the bell just above the feral in script it reads R A KAEMPF Maker 297 Bowery New York. Kaempf was a brass instrument maker in NYC. An early American made CC tuba from the 19th Century.

[bort2.0]

That's cool as hell! How does it play?

[LeMark]

Pretty sure Vince has one of those

[bisontuba]

That's cool as hell! How does it play?

Small bore...plays so-so...

[Stryk]

LOVE IT! Very unique, very beautiful.

[bloke]

Pretty sure Vince has one of those

LOL...so was that remark meant as a “so what?“

That’s got to be rare as haail...and seems to be in remarkably fine condition...not to mention extremely elegant !!!

[LeMark]

not al all, it was meant more like "wow, I know two people that own horns like that"

At least I "think" Vince has one like that. Honestly, when I was there, I saw so many tubas that I had no idea existed, it was pretty staggering

[LeMark]

Here's the one Vince has. He just got it the day I was there. I was the first person to see it other than him, and it doesn't look like it's on the website yet

[bloke]

That's really cool, Mark.

I particularly like seeing contrabass tubas which offer enough room to easily enhance to 6-valve instruments...

' also clever to tilt the rotors to avoid any need for (noisy) linkage pivots.

The one shown at the beginning of this thread is about 1000% more artful - in its design - than the NC one.

[matt g]

@bisontuba and @LeMark these photos would be cool to post on IG if you’re both onboard, seeing as how rare this seems.

[Kirley]

The angled valve set is really cool. Not only does it negate the additional pivot point as Bloke mentioned but it also allows for all of the valve tubing to route directly to the back for easier access to the player.
I'm wondering if this design died out before it was properly explored.
Thanks for sharing!

[LeMark]

Mark @bisontuba

Do you mind if I put your pics on IG?

[bisontuba]

Sure..no problem...

[LeMark]

ok, I'll put it on there later in the week, so it doesn't get jumbled with the regular Tuesday update

[bisontuba]

Hi-
Thanks to Rick Benjamin ( Rick is the founder and conductor of the world-renowned Paragon Ragtime Orchestra. He has an active career as a pianist and tubist as well as an arranger), new light has been shown on Kaempf tubas, or actually who played one! Rick is writing a book on musical pioneers of this era....can’t wait to buy a copy.

Courtesy of Rick:

An American Tuba Pioneer -

ANTON REITER was one of America’s first professional tubists. He was born in Bavaria on 1 February, 1840. Nothing is known of his early life, but he was presumably educated in that region and introduced to the tuba there as well. Reiter immigrated to the United States in 1869, and took up permanent residence in New York City. He became a pioneer in the development of professional music-making in that growing metropolis. By the mid-1870s, Reiter was perhaps New York’s best known tubist, playing in many of the city’s leading ensembles, eventually including Patrick Gilmore’s Band, the Metropolitan Opera, and the New York Philharmonic. Anton Reiter and his contrabass tuba appear in an 1891 photographic portrait in the famous “Harper’s Weekly” January 23, 1892 (*pg. 84-85) magazine. His tuba is apparently a contrabass CC instrument by New York maker R.A. Kaempf. Reiter was the tubist for the American premieres of several famous late 19th century orchestral works, and his performance career continued into the early 1900s. He died at his home on the Upper East Side on 8 April, 1915 and was buried in Brooklyn’s Holy Trinity Cemetery.


Above: CC 4v Kaempf tuba at the Simonetti Museum


Above: plate from book ‘How to listen to music; Hints and suggestions to untaught lovers of the art N.Y.’ by Henry Edward Krehbiel. Reiter and his easily identifiable Kaempf CC tuba. Book in M Jones collection.


Above: Anton Reiter and his contrabass tuba appear in an 1891 photographic portrait in the famous “Harper’s Weekly” January 23, 1892 (*pg. 84-85) magazine. It shows the various players in the Philharmonic Society of NY. Again, Reiter and his Kaempf. Original Harper’s in M Jones collection.
......


Above: Mr. Reiter being mentioned in the Gilmore Band, courtesy Dave Detwiler.


Rick and I believe that my Kaempf CC is a later Kaempf CC version..see below...


Even after a close examination of the Simonetti Museum Kaempf and Reiter’s Kaempf, the slant rotors and pigtail tuning slide are similar, but you can see slight differences, so Kaempf must have worked to refine/ improve his CC tubas.

From my research & Power Point presentation THE EARLY AMERICAN TUBA, I believe Kaempf’s CC tubas are second oldest American made CC tubas....

Enjoy...
Mark

[bisontuba]

And watch for tomorrow’s Tuba Tuesday feature...