Martin Committee
Martin Committee was a historic premium trademark for Martin band instruments, especially jazz-oriented trumpets, saxophones, and trombones.
Last updated November 4, 2026
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Overview
Martin Committee was the premier model designation used by the Martin Band Instrument Company for a family of professional brass and woodwind instruments made principally in Elkhart, Indiana. Although the name is often associated most strongly with the Martin Committee trumpet, the designation also covered important saxophone and trombone models. The instruments were marketed toward professional and serious amateur musicians and became particularly influential in jazz because of their distinctive tonal character, responsive playing qualities, and flexible intonation. The Martin company grew from the work of John Henry Martin, a German-born instrument maker who established an early business in the United States and later worked in Elkhart. His sons developed the Martin Band Instrument Company during the early twentieth century. By the 1910s and 1920s, the firm was producing a broad range of brasswinds and saxophones. Its model families included Handcraft instruments and names such as Master, Troubador, Imperial, Standard, and eventually Committee. The Martin Committee saxophone was introduced in 1936, replacing the Handcraft Imperial line. Its art-deco decoration, including skyline and searchlight imagery on early examples, has led collectors to use informal descriptions such as “Skyline” or “Searchlight.” A revised Handcraft Committee II appeared in 1939, followed after the Second World War by a redesigned line generally identified by collectors as Committee III. The later saxophone design developed a reputation among rhythm-and-blues and rock-and-roll players for a powerful, dynamic sound. The Committee trumpet emerged in the late 1930s. Renold Schilke is credited with the principal design work, while the company promoted the involvement of a committee of prominent performers, teachers, and conductors whose testing and feedback informed the instrument. The resulting trumpet was known for a warm, dark, smoky sound and for the ability to move between lyrical playing and forceful jazz projection. Players associated with original Martin Committee trumpets include Miles Davis, Dizzy Gillespie, Clark Terry, Chet Baker, Lee Morgan, Maynard Ferguson, Art Farmer, Wallace Roney, and Chris Botti. Miles Davis used custom-made examples during much of his career, contributing substantially to the model's historical reputation. Martin introduced its Committee trombone in 1939. The model was developed with input from a group chaired by Chuck Campbell and was offered in medium and medium-large bore configurations, with different bell sizes. A De Luxe version with nickel-silver trim was later added. Across the product family, Martin instruments were valued for professional performance rather than mass-market scale. The company also supplied stencil instruments for outside distributors, but the best-known Committee models remained closely linked to the Martin name and to American jazz culture. The brand's corporate history became unstable in the 1960s. Martin, E. K. Blessing, and F. A. Reynolds were combined in 1961 under the Roundtable of Music Craftsmen, an initiative intended to increase production for the student market. The arrangement broke apart in 1964, after which the Martin trademark rights passed to Wurlitzer. Wurlitzer eventually ended saxophone production at the original Martin facility and applied the Martin name to instruments made by other manufacturers. Martin Committee saxophones were no longer produced in their original form by the end of the 1960s, and the original Committee trumpet was discontinued around 1971. Leblanc acquired the Martin name in 1971. It later used Committee branding on trumpets made at the Holton facility in Elkhorn, Wisconsin, but these instruments were based on a different design and were not continuations of the classic Elkhart Committee trumpet. Leblanc also used the Martin name on imported instruments, including saxophones sourced from Yanagisawa. Conn-Selmer acquired Leblanc in 2004, and the Martin brand was discontinued after the Elkhorn facility closed in 2007. Original Martin Committee instruments remain important vintage instruments and collector items, but the trademark no longer represents an active production line.
History
The Martin Committee name belongs to the Martin Band Instrument Company, an Elkhart, Indiana manufacturer whose roots lay in the work of John Henry Martin, a German-trained instrument maker who emigrated to the United States in the nineteenth century. Martin established an early company in New York and later operated in Chicago, where his factory was destroyed in the Great Chicago Fire of 1871. The family subsequently moved to Elkhart, an important American center of band-instrument production. John Henry Martin worked for C. G. Conn and other manufacturers before retiring from instrument making. His son Henry Charles Martin and other members of the Martin family developed the Martin Band Instrument Company in the early twentieth century. Family accounts place the beginning of the business in 1905, while full operation under the four Martin brothers is documented by 1910. After internal family disputes and a change in ownership involving Francis Compton, the firm expanded its production of brasswinds and saxophones. Its products served both professional and amateur musicians, and its Handcraft model family gained a reputation for distinctive construction and sound. The Committee designation became central to Martin's premium positioning during the 1930s. Martin introduced the Handcraft Committee saxophone in 1936 as a successor to the Handcraft Imperial. Early examples featured elaborate art-deco engraving with urban skylines, searchlights, and an aircraft motif. The Handcraft Committee II followed in 1939 and was distinguished by a larger bell and deeper voice. After 1945, Martin changed the naming and design of its saxophones. Instruments were generally marked with the instrument type under the Martin name, while the Committee designation reappeared on some later examples. Collectors commonly refer to the postwar model as Committee III, although that label is largely retrospective. The Committee trumpet was developed during the late 1930s. Renold Schilke is identified as its main designer; Martin's promotional story emphasized testing and advice from a committee of notable players, teachers, and conductors. Schilke later characterized the design as effectively the work of one principal designer. The trumpet became associated with a dark, warm, smoky sound and flexible intonation, qualities that made it attractive to jazz musicians. Miles Davis was among its most prominent users, and the model was also associated with performers including Dizzy Gillespie, Clark Terry, Chet Baker, Lee Morgan, Maynard Ferguson, and Art Farmer. Martin added the Committee trombone in 1939. Its development involved a group chaired by Chuck Campbell and included several working trombonists and teachers. The line included medium-bore and medium-large-bore variants, followed by a De Luxe model with nickel-silver trim. Martin continued making Committee instruments through periods of restricted production, including the Second World War and Korean War era, when limited output and the company's professional reputation helped it remain viable. The business also produced stencil instruments for distributors and created the Indiana Band Instrument Company as a distribution vehicle for some second-line products. This broader manufacturing activity coexisted with the premium Committee identity. In 1961 Paul E. Richards brought Martin together with E. K. Blessing and F. A. Reynolds under the Roundtable of Music Craftsmen. The initiative sought greater scale in student instruments but broke apart in 1964. Martin's trademark rights subsequently passed to Wurlitzer, which eventually stopped making saxophones at the original Martin facility and used outside production for some instruments sold under the Martin name. The original Committee saxophone line ended toward the end of the 1960s, and the original Committee trumpet was discontinued around 1971. Leblanc acquired the Martin name in 1971 and later applied Committee branding to Holton-based trumpets made in Elkhorn, Wisconsin. Leblanc also sold some imported saxophones under the Martin name. These later products were not continuations of the classic Elkhart Committee designs. Conn-Selmer acquired Leblanc in 2004, and the Martin brand was discontinued in 2007 after the Elkhorn facility closed. Today, Martin Committee instruments survive primarily through vintage markets, specialist repairers, musicians, and collectors.
- 2007
Martin brand discontinued
[1]The Martin brand was discontinued after closure of Leblanc's Elkhorn facility.
- 2004
Leblanc acquired by Conn-Selmer
[1]Conn-Selmer purchased Leblanc, bringing the Martin trademark under its corporate ownership.
- 1971
Leblanc acquires Martin name rights
[1]Leblanc acquired the Martin trademark after Wurlitzer's control of the name and later produced different Committee-branded instruments.
- 1964
Roundtable arrangement collapses
[1]The combined manufacturing arrangement ended, followed by changes in control of the Martin trademark.
- 1961
Roundtable of Music Craftsmen formed
[1]Martin joined E. K. Blessing and F. A. Reynolds in a production initiative led by Paul E. Richards.
- 1945
Postwar Martin saxophone redesign
[1]Martin dropped the Handcraft wording from its principal saxophone branding and introduced the postwar design later known as Committee III.
- 1940
Committee trumpet receives national advertising
[1]A Martin Committee trumpet advertisement appeared in Down Beat, presenting the model and its associated group of musical advisers.
- 1939
Committee II saxophone and Committee trombone introduced
[1]The company introduced a revised saxophone design and added its Committee trombone family.
- 1936
Handcraft Committee saxophone introduced
[1]Martin launched the Handcraft Committee saxophone as the successor to its Handcraft Imperial line.
Products and positioning
A premium professional instrument line associated with American jazz, distinctive tonal color, responsive mechanics, and historically significant Elkhart craftsmanship.
Trumpet · 1930
Martin Committee trumpet
The flagship Martin Committee trumpet was developed in the late 1930s, principally by Renold Schilke, with evaluation by a group of professional musicians and teachers. It became strongly associated with jazz because of its warm, dark, smoky tone, broad expressive range, and flexible intonation. Miles Davis and numerous other influential jazz trumpeters used original or customized examples. The classic Elkhart design was discontinued around 1971; later Committee-branded trumpets made by Leblanc were based on a different Holton-related design.
Saxophone · 1936
Martin Handcraft Committee saxophone
Introduced in 1936, the Handcraft Committee saxophone replaced the Handcraft Imperial. Early instruments are recognized for elaborate art-deco engraving depicting a city skyline, searchlights, and an aircraft. The model is a major collectible chapter in Martin's saxophone history and is often described informally as the Skyline or Searchlight model.
Saxophone · 1939
Martin Handcraft Committee II saxophone
Introduced in 1939, Committee II used a revised body and larger bell to produce a deeper tonal character. Its engraving is often associated with a lion-and-crown motif, while the instrument itself may be marked with an abbreviated Committee designation rather than the full model name.
Saxophone · 1945
Martin Committee III saxophone
The post-1945 Martin saxophone design is commonly called Committee III by collectors. Martin removed the Handcraft wording from the principal engraving, and later examples sometimes restored the Committee name. The model was noted for a strong, dynamic response and found favor with rhythm-and-blues and early rock-and-roll players. Production continued until the late 1960s.
Trombone · 1939
Martin Committee trombone
Introduced in 1939, the Committee trombone was developed with input from a group chaired by Chuck Campbell. It was offered in medium-bore and medium-large-bore forms with different bell sizes, and a De Luxe version later added nickel-silver trim. The model formed part of Martin's professional brass portfolio.
Brand decisions
2007
Discontinue the Martin brandStrategyBackground
Conn-Selmer had acquired Leblanc in 2004, and the Elkhorn facility that produced later Martin-branded instruments was closed.
Action taken
Conn-Selmer ended production and withdrew the Martin name from the active instrument portfolio.
Aftermath
Martin Committee instruments remained available mainly as vintage instruments through collectors and the secondary market.
1971
Transfer Martin trademark rights to LeblancM&ABackground
Wurlitzer had acquired the Martin trademark after the breakdown of the Roundtable arrangement and had reduced original Martin production.
Action taken
Leblanc acquired the rights to the Martin name and subsequently used it on instruments made or sourced outside the original Elkhart Committee operation.
Aftermath
Later Martin Committee-branded trumpets and Martin-branded saxophones were not continuations of the classic original designs.
1961
Join the Roundtable of Music CraftsmenStrategyBackground
Martin sought greater production capacity and stronger access to the student-instrument market.
Action taken
Paul E. Richards combined Martin with E. K. Blessing and F. A. Reynolds under the Roundtable of Music Craftsmen.
Aftermath
The arrangement broke apart in 1964, and control of the Martin trademark later moved to Wurlitzer.
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