Trumpet owned by Louis Armstrong
Object Details
- Created by
- Henri Selmer Paris, French, founded 1885
- Vincent Bach Corporation, American, founded 1918
- Owned by
- Louis Armstrong, American, 1901 - 1971
- Caption
- This 1946 Henri Selmer B-flat custom-made and inscribed trumpet belonged to Louis Armstrong. Armstrong had been playing an earlier version of a Selmer trumpet since 1932. Even though he believed you could play a trumpet for a long time, he had the habit of playing his trumpets for approximately five years before he passed it on as a gift to a friend or colleague. In February 1946, Armstrong’s manager and close friend, Joe Glaser, wrote to Selmer Instrument Company and asked for a new trumpet custom-made for Armstrong’s use. Selmer agreed and presented him with this inscribed Selmer B-flat trumpet. This personally inscribed trumpet was made only for Armstrong and was not mass produced.
- Description
- A brass trumpet with mouthpiece and case. The trumpet has a Henri Selmer Paris inscription near the bell and valve case, and "Louis Armstrong" is engraved on the leadpipe.
- Credit Line
- Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture
- September 1946
- Object number
- 2008.16.1-.3
- Restrictions & Rights
- No Known Copyright Restrictions
- Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.
- Type
- musical instruments
- trumpets
- Medium
- brass
- Dimensions
- H x W: 5 3/4 x 21 7/8 x 4 3/4 in. (14.6 x 55.6 x 12.1 cm)
- See more items in
- National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection
- Classification
- Musical Instruments
- National Museum of African American History and Culture
- Topic
- African American
- Jazz (Music)
- Record ID
- nmaahc_2008.16.1-.3
- Metadata Usage (text)
- CC0
- GUID (Link to Original Record)
- http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/fd59839eca5-786d-4261-acf3-1d264ee3a271
Related Content
This image is in the public domain (free of copyright restrictions). You can copy, modify, and distribute this work without contacting the Smithsonian. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Open Access page.
International media Interoperability Framework
IIIF provides researchers rich metadata and media viewing options for comparison of works across cultural heritage collections. Visit the IIIF page to learn more.