SELMER 2025, 140 ans de la manufacture

The year 2025 marks a major milestone for Henri SELMER Paris, a world reference in the manufacture of wind instruments, with the celebration of 140 years of history, expertise, and innovation. Founded in Montmartre in 1885, the Maison designs and manufactures in France exceptional saxophones, clarinets, and mouthpieces, acclaimed by the greatest musicians around the world. A universal reference for saxophones, clarinets, mouthpieces, and reeds, Henri SELMER Paris has accompanied music lovers worldwide for one hundred and forty years with legendary models that have shaped the sound of several generations of musicians.

Founded in 1885 in the Montmartre district of Paris by clarinetist Henri Selmer, the brand relies on the expertise of musicians to design, innovate, and improve its range of instruments. Henri SELMER Paris also owes its success to the precious know-how perpetuated in its workshops in Mantes-la-Ville, where all instruments have been manufactured for over a century. Attentive and at the service of instrumentalists, Maison SELMER aspires to unleash the creative breath of all musicians, regardless of their musical genres and requirements.

An iconic brand spanning eras, SELMER embodies both timeless legends and the talents of today and tomorrow, whether in classical, jazz, contemporary music, or world music. Among its renowned ambassadors is Thomas Pesquet, amateur musician, who, during his space missions, was able to play his Axos alto saxophone thanks to the European Space Agency, a magical sequence immortalized in the film 16 Sunrises, awarded at Cannes. Henri SELMER Paris is also closely linked to the history of French military bands, particularly the Orchestra of the Republican Guard, which left its mark during the Paris 2024 Olympic Games alongside singer Aya Nakamura.

The Festival Éclats d’Email Jazz Edition and the Bibliothèque Francophone Multimédia of Limoges are delighted to host two exhibitions dedicated to Maison SELMER: a photographic exhibition featuring great names in Jazz associated with the brand, and an exhibition on the history and evolution of the Manufacture, presenting historical instruments, unique pieces, and photographs of the Manufacture. This will be the first time in France that SELMER will be showcased in this way outside its own workshops.

SOME HISTORICAL MILESTONES:
1885 – Creation of the company
1900 – First clarinet
1919 – Establishment of the factory in Mantes-la-Ville
1922 – First saxophone
1929 – Acquisition of Adolphe Sax’s workshops
1932 – Django Reinhardt’s guitar
1933 – Louis Armstrong’s trumpet
1957 – The “Mark VI” saxophone and the “Centered Tone” clarinet
2018 – A Selmer saxophone in space
2021 – The “Supreme” saxophone and the “Muse” clarinet
2023 – Creation of new reeds

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