Boston Musical Instrument Co.
Boss-Tone Trumpet in A-Bb
c.1920

Having picked a c.1922 Three Star Model 11 trumpet a month ago, I became interested in finding the rare Boss-Tone model that preceeded it. One came up for auction but it seemed too beat up for the price but a while later I saw one come up that I knew I had to buy as a keeper for the collection. This one is not only gold plated but has some of the most intricate engraving that I have ever seen. As an introduction, below are two catalog pages from c.1919 that Robb Stewart was kind enough to send me.

The case is in nice condition and only needed a little cleaning and a new handle.

Thankfully this came with all original parts including two gold plated mouthpieces, music lyre, extra tuning slide, and grease cup.

It's in need of a valve job and some plating repair but otherwise is dent free and very straight. This looks to have never been damaged except for a few tiny dings. Enjoy the views!

This has the original owner's initials. CMD or perhaps CDM? This came from the Pepperell, Massachusetts area so if anyone knows what wealthy or famous player may have bought this please let me know.

The story is that this was found in the trash in front of a house that later went up for sale. One man's junk is another man's treasure for sure!

One of the things that I wondered about with this trumpet was how the inside of the bell got worn down to the brass. I had never seen that before and figured that the original owner who wore out the valves must have used a stand a lot. When a trumpet friend stopped by recently to play some of my horns, he loved the small bell and was amazed how the original mouthpiece gave it a richer tone than he expected. When he put his hand on the end of the bell to rip out some great 1920s jazz effects, I suddenly realized how the wear got there. His hand was right on the worn area! This must have done many hours in a Boston jazz club.

At first glance, the Boss-Tone model looks like a C trumpet. Here's a shot with the 1920 Boston on top and a 1904 Jerome Thibouville Lamy C trumpet on bottom. The bell diameters matched exactly and the proportions were very close. Was Boston copying the French original?