Klarinet Archive - Posting 000425.txt from 1996/02

From: "Ronald E. Bowers" <ronbower@-----.COM>
Subj: Re: Selmer Clarinets
Date: Thu, 15 Feb 1996 04:46:10 -0500

You wrote:
>
>Ron,
>
>You got me started. I have a pair of Selmer Recitals, and I love
them. The
>tone is not excessively bright. On the contrary, it is one of the
darkest
>sounding [least strident and piercing/most mellow yet rich or heavy,
>presumably due to a preponderance of lower partials in the harmonic
>spectrum.] clarinets I've heard. Plus, the wood and keywork are as
good as
>anything I've played. The intonation is very exact, not sharp in the
throat
>and altissimo ranges, as I find most Buffets. It responds delicately
and
>evenly throughout its compass, although it does give me some problems
>articulating altissimo d'''-f'''# without half-holing. [That may be
due to
>my own problems, not the instrument.] The one real disadvantage I find
with
>the Recital is the weight: it weighs almost twice as much as a Buffet
R-13.
>I get around that by using a neck strap hooked to a ring I had braised
onto
>the upper part of the thumbrest.
>
>As for the Buffet R-13, I could complain about it for hours, but I'll
try to
>keep it brief. The irregularity of the workmanship on those things
drives me
>mad. Even my teacher, who plays them, admits that you have to try at
least
>ten of them to find a good one. And finding ten to try with silver
plated
>keys is extremely difficult. [I personally need silver plating
because I
>slide around on nickel and then wear through it after a few months,
leaving a
>chalky, gritty surface underneath.] I already mentioned the
intonational
>deficiencies; plus, the response strikes me as uneven: free blowing in
the
>chalumeau and throat registers, but stiff in the clarion. The keywork
does
>not impress me at all, especially those large left hand levers for
clarion b'
>and c''#. The R-13 does, however, have a very nice tone and good
projection,
>a bit brighter than my Recitals. I understand that many outstanding
players
>use this model, but it just doesn't hold up for me.
>
>I tried the Leblanc Opus at ClarinetFest last summer. Thus far, that
is the
>only clarinet that compares to my Recitals. I really liked the tone
and the
>response: both very good and even. The workmanship struck me as
excellent,
>and I found the keys comfortable and elegantly designed. The
intonation
>seemed very exact, but I only tried it for about fifteen minutes; so,
I don't
>feel qualified to comment on it under varying conditions. The one
thing that
>bothered me was the left hand e''b key: it was so high I couldn't
reach it.
>
>I suspect that Selmers have a reputation as brighter instruments
because they
>became associated with jazz some years ago. Most of the older jazz
players I
>know use Selmers, but most of the older classical players play
Buffets.
>Selmer, Buffet, and Leblanc now each produce a variety of different
models
>with different tone concepts.
>
>In the end I can only say that each of us has to choose the model
that's
>right for him/her. Try as many as you can, so that you can be
satisfied.
>Thank you for reading my ravings.
>
>Incipiant flammae! [Let the flames begin!]
>
>
>
>David Gilman
>
>
>On Tue, 13 Feb 1996, Ronald E. Bowers wrote:
>
>> infrequently mentioned. The Buffet R-13 certainly dominates
discusions
>> on this list.
>> I play Selmer 10S "A and Bb" instruments. I am not a pro, but
>> find the intonation of my horns to be "right on" on the tuner, and
that
>> they seem to have a more mellow or sweeter tone than the Buffets I
am
>> able to hear. I have several mouthpieces but always come back to
the
>> Selmer C85 120(opening) with a Vandoren V12 3 1/2 reed.
>> Are there any Selmer people on the list? I would appreciate
any
>> general comments about the (perceived) differences between the
Selmer
>> and Buffet or Leblanc.
>> I apologise in advance if this is an old subject.
>>
>> Ron Bowers
>>
>
Yes!!!!-I am speaking of the recital. I have a Selmer BT (1940's?) I
found on a back shelf in a music store and had restored. This, someone
told me, is the type played by Benny Goodman. The tone holes are
larger than the recital and it sounds brighter(more upper partials
etc).
I appreciate the comments very much. I think the resistance of the
recital may be a little greater-hence my preference for the 120
opening. It is heavy!
Thanks again.
Ron Bowers