Klarinet Archive - Posting 000971.txt from 1998/03
From: craig and beth morgan <cmorgan@-----.net>
Subj: Re:neckstraps
Date: Tue, 17 Mar 1998 19:20:59 -0500
I FIND THAT THE NECKSTRAP IS A GREAT HELP, ESPECIALLY TO ANYONE WITH WRIST
PROBLEMS. AFTER SEVERAL GANGLION CYSTS AND A BROKEN HAND I SOMETIMES WONDER
HOW I EVER MADE IT WITHOUT A STRAP!At 11:53 PM 3/11/98 -0500, you wrote:
>
>klarinet-digest Wednesday, March 11 1998 Volume 01 : Number 750
>
>
>
>
> re:Kinder Clari
> re: An Experience Worth Sharing
> Re: NeckStraps
> Re: NeckStraps
> Re: NeckStraps
> Re: NeckStraps
> Re: Buffets don't need oil?
> re: An Experience Worth Sharing
> Re: NeckStraps
> Re: A bass clarinet
> Why are there clarinets in A, Bb and C?
> Re: NeckStraps
> Re: Bass in A
> Re: Bass clarinets in A
> RE: Full time Orch jobs
>
>----------------------------------------------------------------------
>
>Date: Wed, 11 Mar 1998 21:55:50 -0500
>From: "David C. Blumberg" <reedman@-----.com>
>Subject: re:Kinder Clari
>
>John Denman makes it. I got serial #7.
>
>David Blumberg
>
>
>
>
>
>Date: Wed, 11 Mar 1998 17:04:53 -0800
>From: "Jason Hsien" <jasonavhs@-----.com>
>Subject: Re: Kinder Clarinets
>
>- - -----Original Message-----
>From: Jack Kissinger <kissingerjn@-----.EDU>
>
>
>|In countries where the Oehler system is popular are there any
>|manufacturers turning out (cheap) plastic 12-key Albert system clarinets
>|(probably pitched in C) for children starting out. I have seen what I
>|believe to be such an instrument and am wondering at its origin. It
>|looked quite new and had no markings.
>
>I'm wondering if this is a coincidence or if this is what you saw, but
>Buffet makes a plastic Eb Boehm System Clarinet for young children called
>"Kinder Clarinet". It is held in a backpack case out of foam and
>nylon/polyester that the child can carry like a backpack.
>
>------------------------------
>
>Date: Wed, 11 Mar 1998 21:58:08 -0500
>From: Bill Hausmann <bhausman@-----.com>
>Subject: re: An Experience Worth Sharing
>
>At 04:37 PM 3/11/98 -0600, Roger Garrett wrote:
>>...So......to Bill Hausmann and the others I argued vehmently with regarding
>>new instrument service........things are looking up. There is a guy in
>>town who knows what he is doing (finally), and Boosey & Hawkes is a much
>>more friendly, interested company that they I recall them being in many a
>>moon. If you haven't visited, you should.......Libertyville, IL.
>>
>Sweet vindication! :-) I wonder how Selmer is on this sort of service?
>
>
>
>Bill Hausmann bhausman@-----.com
>451 Old Orchard Drive http://www.concentric.net/~bhausman
>Essexville, MI 48732 http://members.wbs.net/homepages/z/o/o/zoot14.html
> ICQ UIN 4862265
>
>If you have to mic a saxophone, the rest of the band is too loud.
>
>------------------------------
>
>Date: Wed, 11 Mar 1998 20:09:49 -0700 (MST)
>From: Shouryu Nohe <jnohe@-----.edu>
>Subject: Re: NeckStraps
>
>On Wed, 11 Mar 1998, Jennifer Rose McKenna wrote:
>> if you have a callous on your thumb you may want to try a thumb rest
>> cushion, they cost about $100, or you could just take the top of a
>
>Most of you who know me know that I RARELY use such language...but I gotta
>here...pardon my mouth...
>
>But, Jenn -
> Where the HELL are you getting your thumb rest cushions???
> Someone is doing something illegal to ya, girl...
>
>Shouryu Nohe
>Professor of SCSM102, New Mexico State Univ.
>http://web.nmsu.edu/~jnohe; ICQ 6771552
>Coffee Drinker, Musician, Otaku, Jesus Freak, Admirer of Women
>(Not necessarily in that order)
>- --------------------------------------------------------------
>"Mein Gott...Is THAT what I'm piloting?" - Asuka
>"God in Heaven, what kind of monster have we made this from?" - Dr. Akagi
>
>------------------------------
>
>Date: Wed, 11 Mar 1998 20:12:23 -0700 (MST)
>From: Shouryu Nohe <jnohe@-----.edu>
>Subject: Re: NeckStraps
>
>On Wed, 11 Mar 1998, Jennifer Rose McKenna wrote:
>> sorry that was 1.00...not 100
>
>Ohhhhh...that makes a LOT more sense!
>
>^_^
>
>Shouryu Nohe
>Professor of SCSM102, New Mexico State Univ.
>http://web.nmsu.edu/~jnohe; ICQ 6771552
>Coffee Drinker, Musician, Otaku, Jesus Freak, Admirer of Women
>(Not necessarily in that order)
>- --------------------------------------------------------------
>"Sex fiends." - Ibuki Maya
>
>------------------------------
>
>Date: Wed, 11 Mar 1998 22:08:50 -0500
>From: Bill Hausmann <bhausman@-----.com>
>Subject: Re: NeckStraps
>
>At 04:02 PM 3/11/98 -0800, Karena S wrote:
>>I'm only a kid, but I don't really get the point of a neckstrap on a
>>soprano. I play the alto clarinet and my soprano is such a relief to
>>switch to. Comparatively, the weight is a huge diffferance on your
>>thumb. I was playing the alto for over 4 hours and by the time I was
>>done, my thumb was all red. If it was my soprano, I wouldn't have
>>minded. my point is I think neckstraps on sopranos are for weaklings
>>or wusses.
>Are you saying that you were playing alto clarinet 4 hours a day WITHOUT a
>neck strap? What sadistic director/instructor sentenced you to do that?
>The instrument is DESIGNED to be played with a strap. You are flirting
>with serious thumb or wrist damage!
>
>
>
>Bill Hausmann bhausman@-----.com
>451 Old Orchard Drive http://www.concentric.net/~bhausman
>Essexville, MI 48732 http://members.wbs.net/homepages/z/o/o/zoot14.html
> ICQ UIN 4862265
>
>If you have to mic a saxophone, the rest of the band is too loud.
>
>------------------------------
>
>Date: Wed, 11 Mar 1998 22:16:47 -0500
>From: Bill Hausmann <bhausman@-----.com>
>Subject: Re: NeckStraps
>
>At 07:36 PM 3/11/98 -0600, jennifer mckenna wrote:
>>Jason,
>>if you have a callous on your thumb you may want to try a thumb rest
>>cushion, they cost about $100...
>
>What do they make them out of? We sell Runyon thumbrest cushions for just
>a couple of bucks!
>
>
>
>Bill Hausmann bhausman@-----.com
>451 Old Orchard Drive http://www.concentric.net/~bhausman
>Essexville, MI 48732 http://members.wbs.net/homepages/z/o/o/zoot14.html
> ICQ UIN 4862265
>
>If you have to mic a saxophone, the rest of the band is too loud.
>
>------------------------------
>
>Date: Wed, 11 Mar 1998 21:24:20 +0000
>From: rrozinek@-----.net
>Subject: Re: Buffets don't need oil?
>
>> "Jason Hsien" <jasonavhs@-----.com> asks
>
>> Someone on the list said that he or she visited Buffet in Europe and they
>> said that Buffet's don' t need to be oiled.
>>
>> I was wondering if someone could confirm this?
>
>I sent a similar question to BooseyH@-----.com when I saw their
>comments about the Scientific American article. I got a response
>from Francois Kloc (Woodwind Product Specialist) that said, "I also
>encourage you, if one day you purchase a new wood clarinet, to not
>oil the bore either. We oil the wood when we make our instruments
>and they are full of oil."
>- ---------------------------------------------------
>Russ Rozinek, Maxwell, Iowa
>
>------------------------------
>
>Date: Wed, 11 Mar 1998 21:38:58 -0600 (CST)
>From: Roger Garrett <rgarrett@-----.edu>
>Subject: re: An Experience Worth Sharing
>
>Aw gee Bill, have a heart........you just snipped the part that makes you
>look good.....
>
>;)
>
>Roger Garrett
>IWU
>
>On Wed, 11 Mar 1998, Bill Hausmann wrote:
>
>> At 04:37 PM 3/11/98 -0600, Roger Garrett wrote:
>> >...So......to Bill Hausmann and the others I argued vehmently with regarding
>> >new instrument service........things are looking up. There is a guy in
>> >town who knows what he is doing (finally), and Boosey & Hawkes is a much
>> >more friendly, interested company that they I recall them being in many a
>> >moon. If you haven't visited, you should.......Libertyville, IL.
>> >
>> Sweet vindication! :-) I wonder how Selmer is on this sort of service?
>>
>>
>>
>> Bill Hausmann bhausman@-----.com
>> 451 Old Orchard Drive http://www.concentric.net/~bhausman
>> Essexville, MI 48732 http://members.wbs.net/homepages/z/o/o/zoot14.html
>> ICQ UIN 4862265
>>
>> If you have to mic a saxophone, the rest of the band is too loud.
>>
>
>------------------------------
>
>Date: Wed, 11 Mar 1998 21:41:32 -0600 (CST)
>From: Roger Garrett <rgarrett@-----.edu>
>Subject: Re: NeckStraps
>
>On Wed, 11 Mar 1998, Bill Hausmann wrote:
>> Are you saying that you were playing alto clarinet 4 hours a day WITHOUT a
>> neck strap? What sadistic director/instructor sentenced you to do that?
>> The instrument is DESIGNED to be played with a strap. You are flirting
>> with serious thumb or wrist damage!
>
>Some are designed to be played with a strap.....but others are not. The
>Buffet and Leblanc Bassets Horns are very similar to the Altos in design,
>and some altos include long pegs. I never use the basset with a
>peg.....and on the few occassions I have had to play alto, twice I have
>not had to use a peg.
>
>But....hey....who really cares anyway huh? The bottom line is, if it
>feels good....do it!
>
>Roger Garrett
>IWU
>
>------------------------------
>
>Date: Wed, 11 Mar 1998 22:40:52 -0500
>From: ROBERT HOWE <arehow@-----.net>
>Subject: Re: A bass clarinet
>
>This comes up every six months on this list. Selmer will special order
>a model 22 (I think) bass clarient to low Eb, in A. "A" bass clarinets
>exist for the same reason as A sopranos, but they are tres chic, so few
>players have ever owned one. I don't have one, although I know that
>Nick Shackleton has one. However, the low concert C# is essential.
>Placing a low Eb on Bb bass makes the note possible and the A bass
>irrelevant. Look at how Mahler uses the A bass clarinet in the 6th
>symphony for a better expanation of this than I can give you in words.
>
>Robert Howe.
>
>
>>>From: dfigi@-----.com (David Figi)
>Subject: Re: klarinet-digest V1 #747
>
>Re: Bass clarinets in A
> The last time I checked you could not buy a new bass clarinet in
>A
>(except possibly as a special order). There are a few used ones around
>but
>they are hard to find.
>
>------------------------------
>
>Date: Wed, 11 Mar 1998 22:41:09
>From: Lee Hickling <hickling@-----.Net>
>Subject: Why are there clarinets in A, Bb and C?
>
>H. Klose, who with Auguste Buffet Jr., adapted the Boehm flute mechanism
>for clarinets, explained why there were clarinets in various keys so close
>together. I cannot vouch for Klose's explanation, but he was present at the
>creation, so he deserves attention even if what he said might need
>discounting a little, because he was such an apostle for his new mechanism.
>Anyway, this is quoted from the preface he wrote to his Celebrated Method
>for Clarinet:
>
>"The clarinet was invented at Nuremberg about the year 1690 by a maker of
>stringed instruments named John Christopher Benner. It was in its design
>the most imperfect of wind instruments .... Possessing only a single key
>and wanting in regularity in the succession of different registers, the
>clarinet obtained at first but little attention. Some artists, however,
>attracted by the beauty of its sounds, endeavored to improve it. .... At
>length Ivan Mueller brought the instrument to a high state of perfection,
>and produced the clarinet armed with 13 keys.
>
>" .... The instrument was, however, far from having attained all the
>perfection of which it was capable, for since its invention the clarinet
>had been pierced according to the natural separation of the fingers. This
>resulted in a faulty tone, the notes being frequently dull, feeble or too
>shrill .... The mechanism of the keys caused insurmountable difficulties of
>fingering, making it impossible to play the clarinet in all the different
>keys; and hence arose the necessity, as onerous as it was troublesom, for
>three clarinets, C, Bb and A."
>
>So there you are, for what it's worth. Was it more common to score for A
>and C clarinets before the general adoption of the Boehm, or Klose system?
>
>Klose'sCelebrated Method for Clarinet was in use for more than a hundred
>years, although nowadays it seems to have been mostly supplanted by
>Langenus. I still use parts of it in teaching, particularly the five pages
>of technical exercises that he wrote to demonstrate that his new system
>made it possible to execute passages smoothly and quickly which were
>difficult to play at all on the older clarinets. There are also some great
>duets, and some solo material including a very showy Staats Fantasia on a
>theme from I Puritani, and a movement from Carl Spohr's Third Concerto for
>Clarinet, a charming example of the 19th century virtuoso style, all flashy
>arpeggios and chromatic runs through the whole gamut of the instrument. Not
>great music, but a lot of fun. A revision and enlargement of the Celebrated
>Method by the virtuoso C.L. Staats was published in the United States in
>1899, and is still in print, I believe.
>
>It is interesting that we call the Klose-Buffet system the Boehm system.
>Klose himself seemed to be reluctant to give Boehm much credit, and never
>mentioned the Swiss flutemaker's name in his introduction. It's poetic
>justice, perhaps, that his name is so seldom mentioned any more.
>
>Also in the introduction to the Celebrated Method is a quaint little
>section headed Of the Advantage of Playing with the Reed Underneath. I
>think someone asked about that on the list a week or two ago.
>
>"The three following advantages result from playing with the reed below.
>1. A much softer and more agreeable tone is obtained.
>2. The tongue, being naturally placed under the reed, possesses a much
>greater facility of articulation.
>3. This manner of playing appears more graceful, gives greater powers of
>execution, and is much less fatiguing."
>
>Lee Hickling <hickling@-----.net>
>
>------------------------------
>
>Date: Wed, 11 Mar 1998 22:55:04 -0500
>From: Ken Bryson <kbryson@-----.com>
>Subject: Re: NeckStraps
>
>I am not a kid anymore (a fact of life that I am reminded of more and
>more frequently these days). About a year ago, I got curious about the
>possible benefits of a neckstrap, having seen a few players use them and
>having read about them on this list. I had begun noticing pain in my
>right hand and wrist after extended practice sessions (anything over an
>hour and a half of serious playing), and I was concerned about
>exacerbating some condition or other. I started using the strap for
>long practice sessions at home, and found that it seemed to keep the
>pain from developing. Also, it seemed to leave my right hand
>considerably freer, which loosened up the finger action on the right
>hand. Then in December I fell and injured my right shoulder. The
>doctor allowed me to play before and after the surgery with the proviso
>that I use a neck strap so that I wouldn't be supporting the whole
>weight of the instrument with my "bad" arm. Now I have been using the
>neckstrap for over two months for all of my playing, and I find that I
>am much more comfortable with it. Perhaps one of the few advantages of
>aging is losing most or all concern about how I look to others. So if
>people see me playing with a neckstrap and think to themselves
>"weakling" or "wuss", I am not particularly troubled. The neckstrap
>allows me to play without causing pain (to myself anyway--I reserve the
>right to cause pain to others), possibly allows me to play a bit better,
>and I hope will allow me to play longer in life. And there's no down
>side that I can see.
>
>Nancy
>
>
>Gary_VanCott@-----.com wrote:
>>
>> Certainly a very helpful comment for all those with physical problems or
>> who otherwise derive some benefit from a neckstrap. : - (
>>
>> Were you playing the alto clarinet without a neckstrap, too?
>>
>> Gary Van Cott
>> Las Vegas, NV
>>
>> south_park7@-----.com on 03/11/98 04:02:32 PM
>>
>> Please respond to klarinet@-----.us
>>
>> To: klarinet@-----.us
>> cc: (bcc: Gary VanCott/NHIN)
>> Subject: Re: NeckStraps
>>
>> I'm only a kid, but I don't really get the point of a neckstrap on a
>> soprano. I play the alto clarinet and my soprano is such a relief to
>> switch to. Comparatively, the weight is a huge diffferance on your
>> thumb. I was playing the alto for over 4 hours and by the time I was
>> done, my thumb was all red. If it was my soprano, I wouldn't have
>> minded. my point is I think neckstraps on sopranos are for weaklings
>> or wusses.
>> DO YOU YAHOO!?
>> Get your free @-----.com
>
>------------------------------
>
>Date: Wed, 11 Mar 1998 23:05:34 -0500
>From: ROBERT HOWE <arehow@-----.net>
>Subject: Re: Bass in A
>
>I must gently dispute Dan Leeson, the reason composers wrote for Bass in
>A is not unknown. It was the same as for soprano in A or piccolo in D,
>ie, to provide a comfortable scale for the player working in sharps.
>This practice was NOT merely theoretical or such worldly, practical
>composers as Strauss, Mahler and Ravel would not have used A bass
>clarinet.
>
>Ever played La Valse? I did in 1990, and the bass clarinetist took sick
>a night before the concert. I own a bass, so calls were made. You
>haven't LIVED until you are asked to cover the bass clarinet solos at
>sight at a dress rehearsal, while also ostensibly playing the English
>horn part, and find that the major bass parts are for bass in A!
>
>I will look up what Strauss sez about A bass in his revision of Berlioz'
>text, but not now, it is late on the East coast and I have surgery
>tomorrow.
>
>RObert Howe
>
>------------------------------
>
>Date: Wed, 11 Mar 1998 23:17:31 -0500
>From: peter.stoll@-----.ca
>Subject: Re: Bass clarinets in A
>
>Yes, quite a lot of it; about 1/2 the bass clarinet part in the first 3
>acts, and most of the last act. The bass usually changes with the
>clarinets from Bb to A and vice versa.
>
>Dan Leeson wrote a great article on the purchase of his A bass clarinet in
>a past "Clarinet" magazine, pointing out that you can take some of the
>harder solo licks (I think he cited "On the Trail") and play them on the
>A, making them a bit easier up a 1/2 step (which assertion was vigourously
>poo-poohed by the bass clarinetist of the Baltimore Sym., I think).
>
>Did I read that Michael Rusinek won the principal job in Philadelphia?
>Grew up listening to him; amazing player, total confidence with any
>piece, no matter how difficult (ie.Nielsen Concerto). If so, that's
>the second Canadian wind player to win a major 1st job in the last while;
>horn player James Sommerville is joining Boston next year.
>
>Peter Stoll
>Instructor, Univ.of Toronto
>
>On Wed, 11 Mar 1998, J. Blake Arrington wrote:
>
>> I can't remember for sure, but I think some of La Boheme is written
>> for bass in A.
>>
>>
>> J. Blake Arrington
>>
>>
>
>------------------------------
>
>Date: Wed, 11 Mar 1998 23:07:23 -0600 (CST)
>From: "Edwin V. Lacy" <el2@-----.edu>
>Subject: RE: Full time Orch jobs
>
>On Wed, 11 Mar 1998, J. Michael Norsworthy wrote:
>
>> Only 18.... wow, guess that says something doesn't it?
>>
>> On Wednesday, March 11, 1998 8:18 AM, bkinlein [SMTP:bkinlein@-----.com]
>> wrote:
>>
>> > According to an officer with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, there
>> > are 18 full-time now.
>
>Yes, it says that the information is incorrect. Let's name a few
>full-time orchestras:
>
>Atlanta, Austin, TX, Baltimore, Baton Rouge, LA, Boston, Buffalo,
>Charlotte, NC, Chicago, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Columbus, OH, Dallas,
>Detroit, Houston, Indianapolis, Los Angeles, Louisville, Metropolitan
>Opera Orchestra, NY, Milwaukee, Minnesota, Nashville, TN, National
>(Washington), New York Philharmonic, Oregon, Philadelphia, Phoenix,
>Pittsburgh, Richmond, VA, St. Louis, St. Paul Chamber Orch., San Antonio,
>San Francisco, Seattle, and Utah.
>
>That list includes 34 full-time orchestras. There probably are others
>(some of the Florida orchestras, New Orleans, Denver, North
>Carolina/Raleigh), as well as several additional ones which employ a "core
>orchestra" full-time (such as Fort Wayne, IN, and others). Further, a few
>of those on the list above, while they call themselves full-time, actually
>barely pay a living wage.
>
>So, the situation is bleak enough, but not quite so bad as if there were
>only 18 full-time orchestras.
>
>BTW, this list came from information supplied to the World Almanac by the
>American Symphony Orchestra League.
>
>Ed Lacy
>*****************************************************************
>Dr. Edwin Lacy University of Evansville
>Professor of Music 1800 Lincoln Avenue
> Evansville, IN 47722
>el2@-----.edu (812)479-2754
>*****************************************************************
>
>------------------------------
>
>End of klarinet-digest V1 #750
>******************************
>
>
>
GOD BLESS YOU!!
BETH MORGAN
