Subcontrabass saxophone

The subcontrabass saxophone is the largest of the family of saxophones that Adolphe Sax described in his 1846 patent. He called it the saxophone bourdon, named after the very low-pitched 32′ bourdon pedal stop on large pipe organs. Although Sax planned to build one, the first playable instrument was only built in 2010. It is a transposing instrument pitched in B♭ one octave below the bass saxophone, two octaves below the tenor, and three octaves and a major second below its written pitch.

History
Although described in Adolphe Sax's patent in 1846, a practical, playable subcontrabass saxophone did not exist until the 21st century. An oversized saxophone that might have qualified was built as a prop circa 1965; it could produce tones, but its non-functional keywork required assistants to manually open and close the pads, and it was reportedly incapable of playing a simple scale.

The tubax was developed in two sizes in 1999 by German instrument manufacturer Benedikt Eppelsheim, the lower of which, pitched in B♭, he describes as a "subcontrabass saxophone". This instrument provides the same pitch range as the saxophone bourdon would have, while the smaller tubax in E♭ covers the range of the contrabass saxophone. Compared to a regular saxophone, the tubax has a narrower bore and uses a smaller reed.

In the 2000s, contrabass and subcontrabass saxophones became popular in church orchestras in Brazil, and are made by Brazilian instrument manufacturers J'Élle Stainer and Galassine. J'Élle Stainer produced a working compact subcontrabass saxophone in 2010, which was shown that year at Expomusic. In September 2012, Eppelsheim built the first full-size subcontrabass saxophone in B♭ (distinct from his B♭ tubax). In July 2013, J'Élle Stainer completed a full-size subcontrabass saxophone. It stands 2.74 m high and weighs 28.6 kg. In Brazil, at least one, built in E♭ an octave below the contrabass, has been made.

Repertoire
There is no historical classical music or jazz repertoire specifically scored for a subcontrabass saxophone, since playable instruments have only existed since 2010. Two works first performed in 2022, Slovenian composer Igor Krivokapič's Symphony No. 5 and Colores by Belgian composer Jan Van der Roost, both feature the subcontrabass. Low saxophones have become popular in Brazil, particularly in the large church orchestras of the Christian Congregation in Brazil that accompany hymns.