I hope everyone had a great summer. In St Louis this week, I was reminded of the joys of midwest living, where you can have a high of 97 one day (yesterday and today), followed by highs of 71 and 64 (tomorrow and Friday). Just like that, put away the shorts and break out the jackets!

We have had a fun summer at Saxquest. We had a great time visiting with worldclass artists visiting the shop for repairs, or just stopping in to play some horns, as well as meeting many up-and-coming high school and college players in the area and from across the country. The repair shop is grinding away, and actually starting to get “caught up” after a couple years in a row of very long wait times. If you’ve been holding out on getting your sax or clarinet adjusted, trying to eek out every lost drop of pad life before getting a few replaced, now may be the time to finally get it in to the shop. Let us get it back into perfect playing shape for you!

Today I wanted to point out a page on our website that is often overlooked, our “What’s New” page. We get calls every day asking if we can be on the look-out for a “5 digit VI” or a “pearl side key Super 20” or a “used pro Yamaha at a good price.” Unfortunately there’s a whole lot of people looking for those kinds of horns, so while we do our best to fulfill requests when possible, it would be a herculean effort to find a 5 digit VI for every person who’s called over the last 20 years. The best thing you can do is to bookmark our “What’s New” page, and go there once or twice a week to see what has come in to the shop. Everything we post is listed there immediately, and it’ll save you time from having to click through the various links on our website to see if we have a particular item in stock.

As always, drop us a line if you’d like to visit or if you have any questions.

Another school year in the books, and, here in St Louis, the summer heat has arrived quick and heavy. If it’s the same where you are, hopefully you are taking it easy in those outdoor gigs! If, however, you have some time off and you can be without your horn, it may be the perfect time to get it in for some work. The repair shop is as busy as ever, so don’t wait until the last minute to bring it in.

If you’ve been thinking about upgrading or getting something different, we have a great selection of saxophones and clarinets in stock, including a huge batch of brand new Buffet R13’s, new Yamaha Customs and 62’s, a handful of new Selmers (more Supremes are on the way!) and a whole lot of vintage Selmers. Some really pretty Mark VI’s and SBA’s. Browse through the various sections of our website, and as always, feel free to contact us with any questions.

Even if you don’t need any repair, and don’t need a new horn, stop on in and say “hi.” We’d love to see you and continue your musical journey.

Our top clarinet tech, Audrey, recently made the trip to Buffet Crampon’s sole USA distributor and was able to hand select a BUNCH of new clarinets for stock. We are loaded on new R13’s in both silver and nickel keys, and to celebrate, we are holding an event the Friday and Saturday before Easter. We also have a handful of pro level Yamaha clarinets (CSVR, SEVR, and YCL-650), as well as a good number of used models on hand. Each clarinet will have Audrey’s pro set up on it, so you can rest assured that they’ll be in great playing shape. By appointment, you’ll be able to come in and try horns out and see if any are “the one” for you. We are currently taking appointments for both Friday and Saturday from 10am – 5pm. Call the shop at 314-664-1234 or email us at [email protected] to make your appointment!

Look what’s around the corner. We are well stocked on horns and looking forward to another fun Expo. If you are in the market for a new (or used) saxophone, clarinet, flute, oboe, or bassoon, be on the lookout here for more information in the next couple weeks. Like last year, this will be a spread out, safe, appointment-only event covering about a month. Stay tuned!

We’ve been busy. FIFTY (50!!) vintage saxophones have been added to the Saxquest website in the last 3 days. Lots of cool vintage horns, including Conn Chu’s and 10M’s, King Zephyrs and several great Super 20’s, and Selmers ranging from the old Modele 22 and Radio Improved up to Balanced Action and Mark VI’s. Our “What’s New” page doesn’t even show them all (it only displays 30 horns!) so you’ll need to browse around the Vintage Horns section to see everything. And we aren’t finished yet. We’ve gotten in a couple cool vintage bass saxes and some other gems that will be posted in the next couple days. If you are looking to find something cool, come shop around, or make an appointment to play-test in our store in St Louis.

https://www.saxquest.com/store/new-products

We are beyond excited about the brand new Selmer Paris Supreme alto sax. Just announced February 25, 2021, it is the newest, top-end professional alto available from Selmer Paris. We’ve got 3 on the way which will be here, ready to ship in just the next couple days, so place your order to be one of the first to own one of these gems!

https://www.saxquest.com/product/view/new-selmer-paris-supreme-alto-saxophone-in-dark-gold-lacquer-P14414

We’ve been busy the last couple days. Head over to the “What’s New” page and check out the 18 “gently used” and vintage instruments we’ve posted to our website in the last 2 days. We’ve got something for every budget and playing style.

https://www.saxquest.com/store/new-products

We’re very appreciative of our customers, who’ve been keeping us busy throughout this pandemic. Please hit us up with questions, phone 314-664-1234, or email 24 hours a day at [email protected]. We often answer emails outside of store hours, so send us a message anytime!

Our Expo this year, while different from years past, was a great success, and we’d like to thank everyone who came out to try some horns! It was fun meeting new faces and reconnecting to old friends. Though the Expo may be over, we are still continuing our 2020 tradition of sanitizing, cleaning, and keeping a safe environment for our customers. If you’d like to try a sax or clarinet (or flute, or oboe), call the shop or email us to make an appointment.

Like all of you, we’re hoping for a return to normal in the coming year. Everyone please continue to stay safe, and we hope to be gigging with you in 2021.

Just wanting to update everyone on how we’ve been doing. We’ve had a great positive response to our playtest-by-appointment scheduling. Our customers have been very patient and have been great working with us on getting you in where we have slots available. Thank you very much! Starting Saturday, July 11, we will begin taking Saturday appointments as well. So if you’d like to trial a sax or clarinet in our store, please call the shop or email us to set up a time. We are sanitizing all horns and the entire play-test room after every customer, so you’ll be safe in this environment.

Repairs are also open as well. Our repair techs have a staggered schedule, with a combination of working-at-home and working-in-store, but there’s always a couple people in our shop who can look at your instrument, and give you an estimate on the repair. We are no longer offering same-day repairs (short of a quick minor fix like a neck cork), but we’re happy to give you an estimate on time and cost when we see the instrument.

So, call and make an appointment to play some horns, or stop by for a repair estimate or to buy the reeds you need. Our hours are Monday – Friday, 10am – 6pm, and Saturdays 10am – 2pm. We are still requiring all customers to wear a mask in store.