Couesnon Natural Horn with Removable Ascending 3rd Piston Set

Here we have a Couesnon natural horn with an ascending 3rd piston set (sauterelle), made around 1910 and part of the highly sought after Monopole line. While this horn started out as a piston horn, this design is based on a natural horn corpus and was adapted by Miles O’Malley to be a very versatile instrument which was common during this time period.

This horn plays well as both a natural horn and piston horn, and would be a great first instrument exploring French period instruments. In great condition for being over 100 years old with a few small dings. It comes with a variety of parts:

Natural Horn Corpus

Original Couesnon G Crook

O’Malley G Crook

Seraphinoff G Crook

O’Malley F Coupler

Greer E Coupler

O’Malley Eb Coupler (tenon sits loose in horn)

Original Couesnon Main Slide

O’Malley Main Slide (A=430)

O’Malley Removable Natural Horn Slide Legs

Original Couesnon Ascending 3rd Piston Set

This horn can play at A=440 and A=430 from G down to C basso. Higher and lower keys would require additional parts made by someone like Richard Seraphinoff or Miles O’Malley. As a piston horn the piston set plays in F with one of the G crooks and has an ascending 3rd valve.

A rare chance to get a lower cost antique natural horn with a removable ascending 3rd piston set. See photo of the 1906 Couesnon catalog with this piston horn design.