Klarinet Archive - Posting 000735.txt from 1998/01

From: ROBERT HOWE <arehow@-----.net>
Subj: Re: 5 & 6 key clarinets
Date: Thu, 15 Jan 1998 21:41:41 -0500

The number of keys on a woodwind is NOT a reliable guide to its age. It
may be much younger than you think. I have 5 and 6 key clarinets from
the mid 19th century--built to be cheap, for players who would be
working in only a few keys. I have a ten key oboe by Buffet, a Triebert
Systeme 3, from 1900-1915; this is a design that was current in 1840
and outmoded by 1850. But they were cheaper and easier to make, and
thus had a place in the retail trade.

RObert Howe