O'Malley Jazzer Tenor

[slipmo]

Wanted to share a little update! After the incredible response to the orchestral tenors that Miles and his team have been building along with Jay Friedman and I, we’ve been working up the next model in the O'Malley lineup which is our .500" jazzer model!

I’ve got the prototype here in L.A. right now if anyone wants to swing by and give it a test. It will be at The Brass Ark until December wen it makes the trip back to Chicago for the Midwest Clinic if you’d rather check it out there.

This horn has the full ornate engraving done by Adam Bender (looks ridiculously great in person), but the standard version will have a less ornate hand engraved O’Malley logo similar to what's on our orchestral tenors. Everything’s handmade in Chicago by Miles and his team!

Specs

• .500″ Bore handslide

• removable threaded leadpipes, one included

• hand engraved bell

• Bell: yellow or gold, 1 piece with French bead, 7 3/4″ or 7 1/2″ diameters

• Tuning slide: seamed yellow or seamed gold

• Handslide: wide or narrow width, yellow or nickel crook, yellow or nickel outers, standard weight or lightweight (no oversleeves)

• Sold in raw brass, lacquering is available for an additional fee

• Cut bell available as an add on option for +$350

You can read about it more on https://www.brassark.com. In the meantime, enjoy some photos!

omalley_jazzprototype_1.jpg

omalley_jazzprototype_2.jpg

omalley_jazzprototype_3.jpg

omalley_jazzprototype_4.jpg

omalley_jazzprototype_5.jpg

omalley_jazzprototype_6.jpg

[nateaff]

Wow!! Was there a design basis for this horn (looks Bach-ish to my eye) or is it completely new from the bottom up?

[slipmo]

Certainly some influences from historical classics, but trying to do our own thing here! Thanks!!!

[JohnL]

Is it just my perception, or are the ferrules slightly concave?

[slipmo]

Is it just my perception, or are the ferrules slightly concave?

They are indeed!

[CalgaryTbone]

A beautiful looking instrument!

JS

[EriKon]

As I already wrote on Facebook: This will be an amazing high quality option for a high-end jazz trombone for a really fair price. Lätzsch, Thein, M&W and many more custom makers are much more expensive usually.

Really looking forward to a medium bore 36B-ish like design and might try to get my hands on one

[slipmo]

We actually can do the symphonic model with a medium .525" slide now. It's technically in production and you can have it with a 8", 8.25" or 8.5" bell diameter. Straight or with valve.

[Posaunus]

We actually can do the symphonic model with a medium .525" slide now. It's technically in production and you can have it with a 8", 8.25" or 8.5" bell diameter. Straight or with valve.

WOW!

[tkelley216]

Looks great, and released just as my jazz horn is getting redrot....

-Have you considered recording it side-by-side with some more common horns (3b, 6h, 16m, etc) for those if us that can't try/hear it in person? It sure looks like a Bach 12 to me, but if you are trying to go in another direction I'd love to hear how it sounds.

-Considering all the options for this horn (and the large bores), will it possible to try out all the variations at the O'Malley factory or your shop in the future?

[slipmo]

Looks great, and released just as my jazz horn is getting redrot....

-Have you considered recording it side-by-side with some more common horns (3b, 6h, 16m, etc) for those if us that can't try/hear it in person? It sure looks like a Bach 12 to me, but if you are trying to go in another direction I'd love to hear how it sounds.

-Considering all the options for this horn (and the large bores), will it possible to try out all the variations at the O'Malley factory or your shop in the future?

Thank you so much! We’re really proud of how these turned out.

There should be some recordings floating around soon so folks can get a sense of how the instruments sound. We just wrapped up a quartet video featuring Jay Friedman and friends, all playing O’Malley trombones, which will be a great showcase for the large tenors. As I mentioned earlier, while we’ve taken inspiration from some historical designs, we’re very much charting our own path. These horns certainly carry a bit of that classic sonic DNA, but they also have their own distinct voice. I’ve been playing my large tenor for a few months now, and every time I take it out of the case I discover something new about it. It’s been such a rewarding journey.

I do have some demo instruments available at my showroom here in LA for anyone who wants to stop by and give them a try. I also try to keep a few in stock for purchase in fun or popular combinations for folks who don’t want to wait the 4–6 months for a custom build. The O’Malley factory in Chicago has instruments available for testing too.

Appreciate all the nice feedback and kind words from everyone about our projects! More exciting things are in the works.

[RJMason]

I played this horn today and it was wonderful. The feel and blow has been improved since I tried an earlier version in July. The horn reminds me of a Williams (!!!) more than a Bach now, but is its own (quite refreshing) thing. It’s got some 6H juice with the .500 slide w equal oversleeves as well. Really stunning work.

[hornbuilder]

Lätzsch, Thein, M&W and many more custom makers are much more expensive usually.

Please do some research before making misleading sweeping statements like this.

[EriKon]

Lätzsch, Thein, M&W and many more custom makers are much more expensive usually.

Please do some research before making misleading sweeping statements like this.

I did, Matthew. No worries. Lätzsch jazz tenor: 4,8k€ ; Thein Maxim jazz tenor: 5,5k ; your horn is listed with 3,5k on your website (which is a really good price too!), but the 3k of O'Malley is unbeaten of the boutique horns at the moment. Probably won't be anymore after the starting price has changed tho. But for now this is valid.

[hornbuilder]

The 3000 is an introductory price, in un lacquered brass. Applicable to the first dozen (?) instruments. The regular sale.price of 3560 gets a lacquered instrument from M&W. Meaning, the final sale price of the O'malley and M&W will be competitively similar. The Lätzsch and Thein are both "considerably" more expensive. To the point of not even being comparable. That is the issue I have with your original comment

[slipmo]

Howdy trombone friends. I put together a quick video tour of the O'Malley Jazzer prototype so folks can get a closer look at all the details, especially since most of you aren’t able to come by my shop in LA or the O'Malley Chicago shop in person.

Indeed, the price will go up after the first 12 horns are sold. As of today, I’ve got just three slots left at the pre-production price of $3000 in raw brass, with lacquer available for an additional cost.

We’re really fortunate right now to have so many top-tier boutique makers in the U.S.—M&W, O’Malley, Stephens, and others. Considering the materials, tooling, time, and skilled labor that go into building these trombones, the pricing from all of these makers is honestly pretty impressive. It’s truly a great time to be a trombonist.