Here is an exceptional snare drum, only one known to date...
The brand :
METJAZZ is a french brand created just after WWII by Jean METZGER. He began his career around 1918 in the Paul BEUSCHER workshops in Paris, and during the WWII, he began to create his own instruments. He decided in 1946 to create METJAZZ, an acronym for "MET" for METzger, and « JAZZ". He was work with his 3 sons, Henry, Jean Claude & André, and the workshop was located in SUCY EN BRIE near Paris. METJAZZ made banjos and drums, and quickly knows a great success for their high quality instruments. Great french drummers of this era wanted a METJAZZ, including André Jourdan (Django Reinhardt) or Arthur Motha (Edith Piaf)... Even Zutty Zingleton have played a Metjazz drum on 1954 ! Jean METZGER dies in 1961, and his sons try to continue the adventure, but the small workshop (which produced about twenty drumset per month in the 50s) closes its doors in 1964.
The snare drum:
Decorated drums were the great specialty of METJAZZ, tailor-made instruments, "custom" drums of this era ... This snare drum is mid-1940s, around 1946 and its card decoration is very original & rare ! No other Metjazz "cards" snare known at this time... 3 plies shell with re-ring, with a METJAZZ strainer and I've handmade the bearing edge like at this era…
Before its restoration, this instrument was brutalized : metric shell "badly resized" to have a 14", 10 extra-holes, totally flat bearing edges (1cm large), white painted shell interior (wood and screws), like gray painted hoops and nailed wrap... Just an horrible handyman !!…
A bientôt,
Emmanuel
olDrums Vintage & Custom
http://www.oldrums.fr/