~1952: The F.A. Reynolds Co. began conducting business under the “Roth-Reynolds” name, most likely signifying Heinrich Roth’s deepening involvement with the band instrument business as partner Max Scherl neared retirement. All Reynolds instruments are now engraved “Made by Roth-Reynolds” instead of “Made by F.A. Reynolds”.
1955: Max Scherl retired, leaving Heinrich Roth as the President and owner of Scherl & Roth, the F.A. Reynolds Company (doing business as “Roth-Reynolds”) and the Ernst Heinrich Roth Company.
1955/56: Reynolds introduces the Contempora “Leonard Smith” signature model trumpet and cornet. Leonard B. Smith was one of the great band directors of the 20th century (notably the “Belle Isle” band in Detroit and Blossom Festival Concert Band during summer music festivals in Cleveland), direct inheritor of the John Philip Sousa tradition and a legendary cornet player. It is likely that the Leonard Smith models were a response to the Olds Mendez models that F.E. Olds (led by Foster Reynolds) and virtuoso artist Rafael Mendez had collaborated on for release in 1952.
Reynolds also introduced the inexpensive “Hi-Fi” model line as an intermediate set of large-bore, brass-bell trumpets, cornets and trombones — a bit of a cross between the large-bore (but bronze-bell) Contempora line and the brass-bell (but medium-bore) Professional instruments, but sold at the same price as the Emperor line of instruments, which they were generally styled after. The cornet model was introduced first c.1955, followed by the trumpet and trombone in 1959. The “Hi-Fi” name itself is an abbreviation of “high fidelity”, meaning the reproduction of sound with little or no distortion. Known serial numbers range from ~39000-62000 and, like many original Reynolds models, the “Hi-Fi” models did not survive the manufacturing move from Cleveland to Abilene/Fullerton after CMI purchased F.A. Reynolds Co. in 1963/64.
1956: In the mid-1950s, Roth-Reynolds approached James Chambers (New York Philharmonic, 1946-1969) with a similiar idea for collaboration as what Max Pottag had provided Reynolds a decade earlier (see Reynolds Double Horn, Pottag Model). As a Conn 8D player, Chambers was familiar with the Kruspe-Horner layout of the Reynolds Pottag horn, but wanted to incorporate some of the playing characteristics and physical constructions that he was used to from his Conn horn.
After two years of design and development, Chambers endorsed the Reynolds Double Horn, Chambers Model in 1958. However, he only played the Reynolds horn for three seasons before a contract dispute in 1961 prompted Chambers to return to his original Conn 8D horn, ending the short-lived collaboration.
1958: In addition to the Chambers Double Horn, the Contempora “Stereophonic” double-valve bass trombone was added to the catalog. Designed in collaboration with Kauko Kahila (BSO) and Allen Ostrander (NYPO), the Contempora was the first commercially produced bass trombone with two rotor valves permanently attached to the horn, providing players with a fast and simple way of lowering the pitch of the trombone to E and enable playing passages such as the low B glissando in Bartok’s “Concerto for Orchestra”.
1959: Perhaps as a result of their metallurgical work on the Chambers French horn, Reynolds introduced a solid nickel-silver trumpet, cornet and tenor trombone as a new Argenta model line. Seemingly based on the large-bore Contempora designs, the Argenta horns were, and still are, some of very few band instruments, other than French horns, made completely of solid nickel silver.
1950s: Roth-Reynolds
~1952: The F.A. Reynolds Co. began conducting business under the “Roth-Reynolds” name, most likely signifying Heinrich Roth’s deepening involvement with the band instrument business as partner Max Scherl neared retirement. All Reynolds instruments are now engraved “Made by Roth-Reynolds” instead of “Made by F.A. Reynolds”.
1955: Max Scherl retired, leaving Heinrich Roth as the President and owner of Scherl & Roth, the F.A. Reynolds Company (doing business as “Roth-Reynolds”) and the Ernst Heinrich Roth Company.
1955/56: Reynolds introduces the Contempora “Leonard Smith” signature model trumpet and cornet. Leonard B. Smith was one of the great band directors of the 20th century (notably the “Belle Isle” band in Detroit and Blossom Festival Concert Band during summer music festivals in Cleveland), direct inheritor of the John Philip Sousa tradition and a legendary cornet player. It is likely that the Leonard Smith models were a response to the Olds Mendez models that F.E. Olds (led by Foster Reynolds) and virtuoso artist Rafael Mendez had collaborated on for release in 1952.
Reynolds also introduced the inexpensive “Hi-Fi” model line as an intermediate set of large-bore, brass-bell trumpets, cornets and trombones — a bit of a cross between the large-bore (but bronze-bell) Contempora line and the brass-bell (but medium-bore) Professional instruments, but sold at the same price as the Emperor line of instruments, which they were generally styled after. The cornet model was introduced first c.1955, followed by the trumpet and trombone in 1959. The “Hi-Fi” name itself is an abbreviation of “high fidelity”, meaning the reproduction of sound with little or no distortion. Known serial numbers range from ~39000-62000 and, like many original Reynolds models, the “Hi-Fi” models did not survive the manufacturing move from Cleveland to Abilene/Fullerton after CMI purchased F.A. Reynolds Co. in 1963/64.
1956: In the mid-1950s, Roth-Reynolds approached James Chambers (New York Philharmonic, 1946-1969) with a similiar idea for collaboration as what Max Pottag had provided Reynolds a decade earlier (see Reynolds Double Horn, Pottag Model). As a Conn 8D player, Chambers was familiar with the Kruspe-Horner layout of the Reynolds Pottag horn, but wanted to incorporate some of the playing characteristics and physical constructions that he was used to from his Conn horn.
After two years of design and development, Chambers endorsed the Reynolds Double Horn, Chambers Model in 1958. However, he only played the Reynolds horn for three seasons before a contract dispute in 1961 prompted Chambers to return to his original Conn 8D horn, ending the short-lived collaboration.
1958: In addition to the Chambers Double Horn, the Contempora “Stereophonic” double-valve bass trombone was added to the catalog. Designed in collaboration with Kauko Kahila (BSO) and Allen Ostrander (NYPO), the Contempora was the first commercially produced bass trombone with two rotor valves permanently attached to the horn, providing players with a fast and simple way of lowering the pitch of the trombone to E and enable playing passages such as the low B glissando in Bartok’s “Concerto for Orchestra”.
1959: Perhaps as a result of their metallurgical work on the Chambers French horn, Reynolds introduced a solid nickel-silver trumpet, cornet and tenor trombone as a new Argenta model line. Seemingly based on the large-bore Contempora designs, the Argenta horns were, and still are, some of very few band instruments, other than French horns, made completely of solid nickel silver.