Klarinet Archive - Posting 000424.txt from 1997/04

From: "David S. Naden" <dnaden@-----.net>
Subj: Re: Wiseman cases
Date: Thu, 17 Apr 1997 08:58:55 -0400

HardReed@-----.com wrote:

I was wondering if anybody on the list owns or has any
experience/information
on the multiple combination clarinet cases constructed in England by
Howard
Wiseman.

My questions are:

1) Are they convenient -- room for all necessary supplies, extra
barrels and
mouthpieces, reed cases, etc...or does one need a case cover to
store gear?

2) Do they protect the instruments sufficiently? Are they secure?

3) Is there room for music storage (and the like)?

4) Does anyone in the US handle these...or are they only available
through
Wiseman?

5) How much?

6) Thumbs up? Thumbs down?

Thanks in advance!

Larry

Larry Liberson
Detroit Symphony Orchestra
Hard Reed@-----.com

Mr. Liberson--

I have met a clarinettist in California who uses the Wiseman case for
bass clarinet. I will try to contact her for more specific information,
but she absolutely likes the case. There was an insert in the I.C.A.'s
Clarinet several issues back, and depending on the model of the case,
there is storage room.

If there is a weak spot, it is that the case is secured by leather
straps with velcro. There is no latch mechanism of any type to secure
the case. However, the leather strips with velcro are sufficiently long
to prevent accidental opening under normal use. The only other weak
spot is that the cases are more cylindrical in shape, and there is at
present (to my knowledge) no case cover to protect the leather case, and
prevent accidental opening.

I was informed that the cases are approximately $500; this is about the
same cost as a replacement leather case for the Buffet Prestige
instruments. Overall, I was impressed with the case, and if I had $500
available today, I would order one. But please be aware, these cases
are not mass-manufactured, so there is a waiting period.

David S. Naden, Graduate Student
Califronia State University Los Angeles