Goofus redirects here. For the popular song, see Goofus (song). For the title character in the comic strip "Goofus & Gallant," see Highlights for Children.

Illustration from the French patent belonging to the manufacturer Couesnon (1924).

The couesnophone, also known as the goofus or queenophone, is a free-reed musical instrument resembling a saxophone. Its reeds vibrate when the desired keys are activated and the player blows through a tube. French manufacturer Couesnon was awarded the patent no. 569294 in 1924 for an instrument that was described as a saxophone jouet (fr. "toy saxophone"). However, the couesnophone is a polyphonic instrument, while the saxophone is monophonic.

[edit] Playing the couesnophone

The couesnophone may be held like a saxophone or like a melodica (horizontally), given that the mouthpiece consists of a rubber tube that allows both positions. The keys are set in a layout similar to that of the Hohner early (proper – see [1]) melodicas, i.e. in two parallel rows: one corresponds to the white keys of a piano keyboard, while the other comprises the black keys.

[edit] Performers

The couesnophone was introduced in jazz music by Dixieland bass saxophonist and vibraphonist Adrian Rollini. The term "goofus" might have been coined by jazz musicians.

[edit] References

• Berindei, Mihai (1976). Jazz Dictionary, Scientific and Encyclopaedic Press, Bucharest, p. 110
• Missin, P (2004). Couesnophone or "goofus"