Klarinet Archive - Posting 000452.txt from 1998/03

From: SAXY R13 <SAXYR13@-----.com>
Subj: Re: Woodwind
Date: Sat, 7 Mar 1998 10:01:28 -0500

<<I was wondering about wood instruments. When you buy a wood clarinet, does
the playing sound quality changes (bad) on the instrument as it gets older?>>

My Buffet R-13 (wooden) clarinet is well over 50 years old, and it plays
just as well (perhaps better) than a Buffet R-13 I played on for over a year
that was made in 1991. Age in a wood clarinet usually doesn't matter too
much.
What really matters is how the wood instrument has been taken care of. For
example, sure, if you buy an old wood clarinet that's been roasted by the sun
in the window of a pawn shop, you're bound to have problems with the wood.
If you buy a wood clarinet that's been sitting is someone's attic for the
last 45 years, well, you're bound to have wood cracks too.
See what I'm saying? It doesn't matter how old the clarinet is, it's how
the wood is taken care of.

Robyn Barthel