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City Desk

Compared with the cacophony surrounding Chandra Levy’s disappearance, a Reston man’s missing saxophone has produced little more than a muted screech—except along the 200 block of Florida Avenue NW. Alex MacPherson—a 51-year-old molecular biologist at Georgetown University and fledgling jazz cat—recently plastered the area with 50 “Saxophone Wanted” posters. MacPherson says that he lent his alto sax to his music teacher, Zacheus Maggetti, a Florida Avenue resident who regularly performs at the Rosslyn Metro station, on June 5. Shortly after borrowing the instrument, MacPherson says, Maggetti disappeared, prompting his student to post the fliers, which also include a photograph of Charlie Parker—to whom MacPherson claims Maggetti bears a strong resemblance. A month later, MacPherson received an apologetic phone call from Maggetti, who said he was in New Jersey and would return the sax soon. MacPherson still remains saxless, however. “He’s a good musician and a good teacher,” MacPherson says of his former mentor. “But he’s no Charlie Parker.” —Felix Gillette