Expert: Kenton Scott - 8/2/2011

Question
My son is about to begin band, and his teacher cautioned us not to buy instruments from China that are cheap because of the lead. I have been looking at various used places for a good trumpet, and I discovered a Senator trumpet listed for $50. This is VERY cheap compared to the other prices I've seen, so I was just wondering, is a Senator trumpet of good quality? Where are they made? (I know nothing about instruments.) Thanks for the help!

Answer
There used to be a Senator model that Fisher imported from Germany years ago.  I don't know if that might be the horn you saw or not.  And, it might be a risk as to whether it might be a good starter horn or not.  It would probably be a safer choice to look for the student lines of established companies - even older companies.  Conn, Reynolds, Olds, Yamaha, Holton  - as examples - would all be reasonable choices.  

Of course that assumes that the horn is in good working condition.  You can't always tell that by looking at them, they may look good (or poor) and play the opposite.

But, if you don't know about horn, it would probably be wise to have someone who does know about horns, look over any choices before you buy.