07/08/2023
This Tuba Tuesday (now on both Facebook and Instagram) - which also happens to be Independence Day here in the U.S. - we feature our two King model 1291, “Monster,” four rotary valve, BBb tubas, circa 1935 and 1938, shown below.
The king Band Instrument Company was founded by Henderson N. White (b. 1873 - d. 1940) in 1894 and was based in Cleveland, Ohio. Its first instrument was a trombone designed with the the help of a local trombonist, Thomas King; and incorporated the latest design features. It was very successful, and became known as the “King” trombone. White continued to use the name “King” on all of the company’s instruments.
By 1908, the N. H. White/ King Band Instrument Company was producing a full line of band instruments. In the 1920s, King produced the first American made European style rotary valve single and double “French Horns.”
In 1934, the company took the rotary valve design used on their French horns and applied it to new models of their BBb and CC tubas. The earliest version of this was the “Symphony” model 1280, which was designed for players who played both the tuba and string bass. This model was over five feet tall! We have two 1280s in the Collection.
In the late 1930s, King made a CC model 1293, but apparently only thirteen were produced.
I believe that the King company was asked by William Bell, their most famous King tuba endorser from the 1930s until Bell’s death in 1971, to produce rotary valve tubas. Up to that time, no other American maker had seen fit to replicate a rotary valve tuba in any number.
King only offered rotary valve contrabass tubas from 1934 to 1941. We feel very fortunate to have six King rotary valve tubas in the collection.
Our two King model 1291 “Monster,” front bell, BBb tubas each has a bell diameter of 24 inches and a valve bore of .750 inch. The weight of these two instruments is 32 pounds.
We hope that you will have the opportunity to visit us and see these interesting instruments.
