Klarinet Archive - Posting 000020.txt from 1996/05

From: "Edwin V. Lacy" <el2@-----.EDU>
Subj: Re: Questionable Eb
Date: Wed, 1 May 1996 20:51:50 -0400

On Wed, 1 May 1996, SHELLEY A BARABASH wrote:

> Hi folks. I have an Eb that my teacher gave me to try and restore to
> some playable degree. He said that it had been sitting around his
> house for years so I thought that it would be in horrible shape. To
> my surprise it wasn't, and just needed a good cleaning. It's wood,
> and has either silver or nickel keys. The
> makers are V. Kohlert Sons, and it was made in Graslitz, Bohemia.
> Any info on this would be greatly appreciated.

Kohlert is a very well known manufacturer among bassoonists. Your
instrument must have been made prior to 1918, because Kohlert was in that
part of the world known as Czechoslavakia from that time on. During the
1920's and 30's, Kohlert was thought of as the second leading bassoon
manufacturer in the world. If a bassoonist couldn't afford a Heckel,
they tried to get a Kohlert. The firm went out of business in the late
1930's or '40's I think, primarily because of some very unsound business
decisions. As it was explained to me, the firm agreed to supply a
certain number of bassoons per year, for a period of 10 years, to an
American importer, at no change in price! Then, due to extremely high
rates of inflation, they were unable to keep up with their production.

The current successor to Kohlert is Moosmann, who are making bassoons in
Germany today. BTW, there was a recent thread on the flute list about a
wooden flute made by Kohlert.

For more thorough and documented information about the company, see "The
New Langwill Index: A Dictionary of Musical Wind-Instrument Makers and
Inventors," by William Waterhouse (London, 1993).

Ed Lacy
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Dr. Edwin Lacy University of Evansville
Professor of Music 1800 Lincoln Avenue
Evansville, IN 47722
el2@-----.edu (812)479-2754
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