Horn-u-Copia's Display of Makers

Lorenzo Sansone was a professional horn/alto player and manufacturer in New York. Sansone developed a system with a high Bb horn with 5 valves where the 4th valve changed it to an F horn (same as with a double trombone or 5 valved baritone). The thumb valve drops the pitch a 1/2 step for the purposes of hand stopping

All the notes of a double are acheivable on this horn, although low, low g and f# are a bit sharp. a limited number of these horns were manufactured by Alexander or Kruspe, many were manufactured in Czech or Italy. The German horns have a good reputation.

The Italian horn has a long throw for the valve lever, where the German horns don’t.

• 1881 Lorenzo Sansone was born in Monte St. Angelo, Italy
• 1903 Lorenzo emigrated in April to US, California, played for Chiaffarelli’s Italian Band in LA
• 1906 conductor for the Ventura City Band; married Marie La Prevoaux in LA
• 1907 son Nicholas born in Ventura, CA
• 1909-1910 played for the LA Symphony & Denver Symphony 1910 now living in Denver with wife Mary and two sons Nicholas (1907) and Lawrence Jr. (1908), theater musician
• 1910-1911 played for the St. Paul Symphony
• 1912-1915 played for the St. Louis Symphony
• 1914 invented a five-valve French horn produced by Wunderlich; played for the Chicago Symphony in the summer
• 1915-1918 played for the Cincinnati Symphony 1916-c1953 his horns made by Kruspe
• 1916 Lorenzo naturalized in October; lived in Chicago 1918-1919 played for the Detroit Symphony
• 1920 still in Chicago, listed as musician, he applied for a passport to tour with the New York Symphony in France, Italy and Holland; his wife is listed as Emma Grudt of Bohemia who he married in 1906
• 1920-1922 played for the NY Symphony
• 1921-1946 on the Julliard faculty
• 1925 established Sansone Musical Instruments
• 1927 played for the Beethoven Symphony
• 1928 living at #607 W. 190th St. in NYC
• 1929 played for the National Broadcasting Orchestra; son Nicholas moved to NYC probably joining him in the instrument company
• 1930 still at #607 W. 190th St.; orchestra musician; son Lawrence listed as orchestra musician in LA also played the French horn
• 1931-1933 played for the Metropolitan Opera
• 1940 son Lawrence in LA with a private music practice; son Nicholas at #3520 73rd St. and worked as the treasurer for Sansone Musical Instruments
• 1942 home at #9713 31st Ave, Jackson Heights, Queens; worked at Julliard School of Music
• 1952 home at #1658 Broadway, NYC
• 1954 started making his own horns at shop, #1658 Broadway
• 1955 catalog showed the #1658 address with a new added address at #549 W. 52nd St.
• 1975 Lorenzo died in Queens on June 25th, age 94
• 1986 son Lawrence died in LA

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