A relative latecomer to the scene, the Cannonball Saxophone Company was established in 1996 in Sandy, Utah as a maker of saxophones, later introducing their own trumpets.
They are often known for their Big Bell, Knight, and Vintage lines of saxophones, but offer other lines for intermediate players as well. According to the Cannonball website, the Big Bell Stone Series Pro saxophones, for example, includes two necks, nickel plating, semi-precious stone keys, brass resonators, and steel springs. They also have curved, straight, and arc sopranos available. (An arc soprano features a bell that gently curves forward, as opposed to the straight sopranos that have no curves at all, much like a clarinet). They also have nickel and silver plating options for these horns, in addition to the unlaquered “Mad Meg” finish. The student series that Cannonball currently offers is the Alcazar. Faux mother of pearl keys, adjustable screws, and a gold lacquer finish make this saxophone seem fairly generic, but Cannonball touts that the keys are shaped for smaller hands – definitely worth a try if the student in question is younger or elementary-school aged.
At this time, at least a handful of internationally-renowned players have endorsed the Cannonball brand, including:
Jamey Aebersold | Glen Berger | Heath Jones |
Ray Gaskins | Patrick Lamb | Paul Perez |
Piotr Cieslikowski | Edwin Sepulveda | Marc Russo |
Gerald Albright | Barry Bergstrom | Larry Panella |
Dr. Tracy Heavner | Angelo Luster | Brian Crowne |
Sammy Peralta | Art Sherod | Skip Mesquite |
Jeffrey Allen | Diego Borotti | Eric Darius |
Timothy Ishii | Branford Marsalis | Marcus Miller |
Sebastien Trognon | Sam Skelton | Edgar Wallace Jr. |
Charles McPherson | Russ Bryant | Teo Avery |
Keith Anderson | Jerry Martini | Pete Miranda |
Mike Dubaniewicz | Gregory Smith | Ross Walters |
Robert Zuckerman | Errol Buddle | Roman Dudok |
Katja Rieckermann | Tommy Marth | Ralph Moore |
Stanley Turrentine | Dr. Ray Smith | Edgar Winter |
Brent Jensen | Mark Bunney | Ralph Franke |
Justin Robinson | Joe McGlohon | Johannes Mueller |
Bootsie Barnes | Clive Stevens | Glenn White |
Ben Appleby | Pete Christlieb | Mark Fransman |
Glenn Kostur | David McMurray | Najee |
David Schiff | Erin Stroup | John Isley |
The New Century Saxophone Quartet also endorses Cannonball horns.
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