Douglas Pipher, has been performing and recording in the Toronto area for more than 30 years playing with jazz, blues, rock and world-music ensembles. Along with his passion for performance came a passion for saxophones and he subsequently built a substantial collection of vintage saxophones with a focus on early Selmers.
As the collection grew, so did his curiosity about Selmer history. What started as a mild interest became a full-fledged passion. Douglas has spent years photographing and archiving thousands of Selmer saxophones, researching historical documents and making several visits to saxophone archives in Paris and Elkhart. The result of his work is perhaps the most complete record of Selmer-Paris saxophone production in existence.
Seeking to showcase his rare and unusual saxophones, Douglas founded the Allsax 4tet, a saxophone quartet featuring the full range of saxophones from Contrabass to Sopranissimo. Each member of the group performs with at least four instruments (Soprano, Alto, Tenor, Baritone) which allows a wide diversity of tonal colours and compositional opportunities.
As a Selmer Artist and Historian, Douglas has created and hosted the Selmer Roadshow, a series of Selmer history clinics where he shares detailed information about individual instruments as well as Selmer saxophone production history in general. When possible, he brings a selection of saxophones from his personal collection to allow local saxophonists to see and play some exceptionally rare vintage instruments.
Douglas is currently completing a Masters Degree in Musicology at York University in Toronto. His thesis focuses on unraveling the mystery and mythology of the Selmer Dorsey Model.