Klarinet Archive - Posting 000782.txt from 1995/03

From: Pat Flannery <pjfnefro@-----.EDU>
Subj: Instrument Identification Request
Date: Fri, 31 Mar 1995 13:34:39 -0500

I would like to enlist the aid of the list-members in trying to identify a
clarinet of mine. It is wooden, has the markings "A. Fontaine" and
"couesnon Paris" on the bell, and has serial #8716 stamped on the main
center joint. What has me curious about this instrument is that it is
shorter by about 3 inches, has a noticably wider bore, and is amazingly
easier to blow (but harder to blow in tune) than my other (plastic Bundy)
Bb soprano clarinet. It has no "extra" or unusual keys and I'm using a
Selmer HS*2 mouthpiece (the original was lost somehow).

One thing that bothers me about this clarinet is that it blows so flat
compared to my other horn. I have never seen an A clarinet and wonder if
I've been trying to play one and don't know it!! That certainly would
explain why I can't seem to keep it high enough. :-) On the plus side, it
does have a wonderful low register which I never tire of playing in (alone,
that is, since I'm afraid to use this instrument in groups). I find myself
playing standards an octave lower just to enjoy the sound.

I would appreciate help from anybody for whom this rings a bell.

-Pat Flannery