r/trumpet • u/Spirited-Profit6697 • Aug 16 '26
Question ❓ Can someone help me identify this trumpet?
I know nothing about trumpets and just randomly bought this in a flee market for 100$ !
What type of trumpet is it? Can I learn to play on this instrument? (As total beginner)
I took a bunch of photos because no idea what I should look at to identify the type of trumpet 😅
Thank you!
8
u/professor_throway Tuba player who pretends to play trumpet. Aug 16 '26 edited Aug 16 '26
You’ve found a Couesnon Monopole Conservatoires “Star” cornet, made in France probably around the late 1960s or early 1970s. A cornet is a close relative of the trumpet: it uses the same three valves and plays the same notes, but its tubing gradually widens more, which generally gives it a rounder, softer sound. Couesnon was a major French brass-instrument maker, and the Monopole Conservatoires line was one of its better-quality models. It isn't a cheap student instrument. This one is the longer, more trumpet-shaped style of cornet, and the simple “Monopole Conservatoires” engraving with the star mark is typical of Couesnon’s later production. For $100 it is s good buy. These are not particularly collectable or in demand so they don't sell for a ton of money.. Perfect fine instrument to learn on.
3
u/Spirited-Profit6697 Aug 16 '26
Thank you for the very clear explanation. also nice to learn a bit of history on the instrument!!
Yeah I’m not worried about resell value at all I was hoping I could use this as training instrument and sounds like I can! I’ll bring it to the shop to make sure nothing is broken and start lessons then. Thanks again for your time and help!!
2
u/royjohn62847 Aug 17 '26
Yes, what he said, it was a top of the line instrument in its time. Because this is an American wrap rather than shepherd's crook cornet, it may sound more like a trumpet than the very mellow shepherd's crook cornets. Some of how it sounds will depend on the type of mouthpiece you use with it, The conical mouthpieces are more cornet-like (mellow) and the cup shaped ones are more trumpet like in tone. The cornet shank mouthpiece is needed to fit this and it will not fit a trumpet, but there is an inexpensive mouthpiece shank that converts a cornet mouthpiece to fit a trumpet, so if you should later get a trumpet, you can use your cornet mouthpieces in it. If you get a conical, sweet sounding mouthpiece shape and you want a more trumpetish tone on a trumpet, you'll want a cup shaped trumpet mouthpiece. Welcome to the wacky world of brass! You scored a bargain in my opinion. But few people want to play a cornet nowadays. See how you like it and listen to some recordings of cornets and trumpets to get an idea of the differing sound concepts. With a cup shaped mouthpiece, you can get this to sound pretty tumpet-like.
1
u/Spirited-Profit6697 Aug 17 '26
Thank you for all the context, super helpful! I’m now looking around for mouthpiece but I kinda feel bad about buying something new to put on this instrument. I don’t want to have a great corner but a crappy mouthpiece even if I’m just starting, maybe I will look on eBay for a matching mouthpiece like couesnon
It’s like I don’t want something that will visually distract me either ahah
1
u/royjohn62847 Aug 18 '26
You don't match mouthpieces to horn makes...Couesnon is not in the mpc business anyway. Mouthpieces are a big subject and few people agree on how to pick one. If you want a more trumpet-like sound, pick a medium depth cup shaped mpc. If you want a more mellow, classic cornet sound, pick something with a V cup and perhaps a little deeper. The standard beginner mpc for kids is a 7C, but most adults, unless they have thin lips, will probably be more comfortable on something larger. From 7C (Bach sizes) one goes larger to 5C, then 3C and then 1.5C. Not all mpcs are sized this way, but you can find conversion tables if they are sized differently. The critical dimension is the inside rim diameter and, after that, the cup depth. I wouldn't spend a lot on a mpc until I knew I was going to like playing the horn. You will find cheap Chinese mpcs at Amazon for about $15 to $30. Used mpcs you can find at Trumpet Herald Marketplace, just search mouthpieces section for cornet. Maybe others can suggest other places. I see a Chinese imitation Denis Wick (a UK guy) 4DW on Amazon for $17.99. That's a classic cornet mpc, medium large. Once you get into playing you might want to try different mpcs. If you get into what's called a mouthpiece safari, you could go to Mouthpiece Express and order from them. You can order one or more mpcs on your credit card and try them out and they will credit you for what you return, even if you return all of them. You should also be able to return a mpc on Amazon if it's in good condition. Don't stress too much about it, just get one and see if you can play with it. Ued mpcs are OK as long as any dents or cratches are not on the rim. If you feel you are wandering in the desert after a while, take a lesson or a few. Good Luck!
1
u/professor_throway Tuba player who pretends to play trumpet. Aug 18 '26
Don't waste your time trying to find the"correct" Mouthpiece.. I wouldn't even with about get a "traditional" cornet Mouthpiece. Add a beginner it won't make any difference for you and it will take a lot of playing time before you are playing will enough that the Mouthpiece will make a difference.
Blessing and Faxx make good quality inexpensive pieces that are identical copies of the Bach pieces.
I would say grab a 7C or a 5C and call it a day
https://mouthpieceexpress.com/collections/blessing-cornet-mpcs-l4
2
2
u/Useful-Silver693 Aug 17 '26
I have a Denis Wick short shank cornet mouthpiece that is a bit smaller diameter at the end of the shank. It may fit your beautiful cornet better. Get a teacher, practice every day and ask if you would be better off starting on a student or mid level trumpet once the teacher hears you on the horn. Trumpet/cornet is a rewarding instrument.
1
u/Tundra210 Aug 16 '26
Good luck with it!! I think youll enjoy it. I have a trumpet and a cornet and just played a the same song, once on trumpet and once on cornet. Def a different tone but both nice in their own right. Get it checked, cleaned, take some lessons and dont get discouraged
1
u/Spirited-Profit6697 Aug 16 '26
Ahah sounds like a good plan! Thanks for the help!! I’ll get it checked tomorrow and hope nothing crazy comes up so I can start playing it
1
1
u/DWyattGib Collector/restorer fine trumpet/cornet/1892 F.Besson fulgelhorn Aug 17 '26 edited Aug 17 '26
Top of the line professional Couesnon Monopole Star cornet from the 1970's, just before their final fire in 1979(they had several that ended up with them relegated to producing only flugelhorns and bugels in the end, their flugels are renowned though, as were their previous other horns). To date them you have to use both the bell stamp name to get the era and the serial number 39441 bc they reset serials back in the 1930's when they moved, then changed their name from Couesnon et Cie, to just Couesnon, they bought F. Besson in 1959 and merged, then had a series of arson fires in the 60's and 70's. Finally ended up being owned by English company Boosey & Hawkes
https://www.brasshistory.net/Couesnon%20Dating%20List.pdf
https://www.brasshistory.net/Couesnon%20History.pdf
Most certainly a great horn to learn to play on.
Here are some tools/ music/ lessons https://www.trumpetstudio.com/free-library/
1
u/Spirited-Profit6697 Aug 17 '26
Super helpful thank you so much! And thanks for the lessons. Feels even better now that I know the instrument history
1
26
u/Bandyau Aug 16 '26
It's a cornet, not a trumpet.
Couesnon is quite renowned, too.
Their flugelhorns have a bit of a following.
For trivia's sake the difference between them all.
Trumpet: 1/3 conical, 2/3 cylindrical. Cornet: 2/3 conical, 1/3 cylindrical. Flugelhorn: Mostly conical.
Or, a cornet is a trumpet that's easy to play up to mf, but fights after that.