Rick Denney wrote: The big Martins, such as the top-action instruments used by the Navy Band in the deeps of time, seem to me substantially larger.
I have one of those Martins. I think. It bears the "USN" engraving, along with "Aug 1960."
It is a large horn.
Sometimes I forget exactly how large, until it gets next to someone else's "large" horn, which it then dwarfs. It has a 20" bell and it looks completely proportionate (as opposed to some of the "Monster" horns which have a large bell diameter that seems mostly flare in the last few vertical inches).
It was a three-valve upright that Sam Gnagey had converted to front action but hadn't yet cut to CC. I'd gone to see Sam about a 4/4 CC project he'd posted, but that one wasn't quite what I wanted. I saw the Martin in the corner and said, "What the heck is that?" I played one, maybe two notes, and said, "Whaddya want fer it?" I've played one horn since that I've wanted more (the MW Baer handmade), but I don't know if I'd say I wanted it $25,000 more. There's something about the Martin. I don't know how much of it is in the proportions, taper, etc., but it's definitely a horn that I wouldn't want to cut unless I had a guarantee that it would be the same. As I've considered it, I've realized the only way I'd have it "cut" would be to have new branches made to
replace what's there so I could go back if I wasn't happy. I do know that the only way I'd go to CC with it is if I found a 4-piston cluster with a bore size of .710" (the original bore size). There are a couple/few things about the horn about which I'm not completely thrilled, and I wonder what part of that is due to the bore size of the King valveset (.689", I think) versus what was originally in place.
The more horns I've tried, the more I like the Martin. As the former owner of an extremely unique HB-2P, and formerly an admitted Hirsbrunner snob, I am now on the lookout for another Martin like this one. I haven't yet seen one (including the 'bay) that has quite the same wrap or apparent proportions. I now believe certain Martins are the unsung heroes of the "Golden Age" of tuba making (though we could just as easily argue that we are
now in the Golden Age of tuba manufacture, vis-a-vis variety of available choices, $$ aside).
One thing that amazes me about the horn is its responsiveness to mouthpieces. With the HB-2P, any mouthpiece tinkering seemed to have much more psychological than audible impact. On the Martin, however, it seems like a different horn by virtue of the mouthpiece in place. I have heard this also from someone I know who has a friend who's made the same observation about some Martins.
It's not the prettiest horn, and someday I'll have her overhauled. I've never named my instruments before, but for this one, "Ugly Betty" seems to fit. At least until the sound comes out, that is. The other thing about the horn is it's ability to fill a room. The bigger the hall, the easier it feels to play.
If I win the lottery, I'll get the Baer. At least so I'll have a great horn to play while Dan Oberloh overhauls the Martin.
