Hi Eugen,

Thank you for contacting Mearto with your appraisal inquiry.

Clarinets were produced under the name Cabart à Paris are most closely associated with the French instrument-making tradition centered in La Couture-Boussey and Paris. The brand evolved through a family firm that became Thibouville-Cabart (1869 onward). Later “Cabart à Paris” as a quality designation for higher-end instruments.

The name “Cabart” comes from a family connection (through marriage into the Thibouville instrument-making dynasty), which was common in French instrument businesses of the 19th century.

Cabart’s story is really part of the larger Thibouville instrument empire. From the mid–late 1800s: Thibouville-Cabart begins making woodwinds in Ezy-sur-Eure. Between the 1890s–1930s: “Cabart à Paris” becomes associated with higher-quality, professional-level instruments. The early–mid 1900s was the peak production era when instruments were sold in Paris workshops and exported. Beginning in the 1940s and continuing to the 1970s, the company declined and was eventually liquidated. In 1974, the Cabart name was later revived/repurposed when F. Lorée acquired it for student oboes (not clarinets). Most “Cabart Paris” clarinets you see today are pre-WWII or early postwar instruments.

Louis & Co. (Chelsea, London) was a British woodwind brand active mainly in the late 19th and early 20th century, producing clarinets, oboes, and related instruments. They operated out of Chelsea, London (Kings Road area) and were associated with a small circle of professional musicians and instrument dealers rather than mass-market production.

Despite the British branding, however, most Louis instruments were frequently imported from French workshops but finish, regulated or re-stramped in London under the Louis name. This was a common practice in the British instrument trade in the early 1900s.

Sotheby & Co. is directly the predecessor of the modern auction house Sotheby's, which initially started life in 1744 by bookseller Samuel Baker, whose nephew John Sotheby joined the business in 1778 after Baker's death; it specialized in book auctions initially. By the 1800s, the firm operated under a few different variations, particularly with partnerships with Wilkinson & Hodge but later simplified into Sotheby & Co. The name became "Sotheby's" in 1977.

It would be interesting to see the 1970 catalog to see if these two clarinets had special provenance that might increase their value, which without any other influencing factor have a combined value now of $7,000-10,000 in as-is condition.

Please let us know if you have additional items to appraise, or questions/concerns, and thank you again for using Mearto.
~ Delia