Klarinet Archive - Posting 000851.txt from 1998/07

From: <Felix1297@-----.com>
Subj: [kl] Undercutting?
Date: Thu, 23 Jul 1998 15:33:11 -0400

Jack wrote:I seem to remember reading (a long time ago) that the undercutting
process was
not invented (or, at least, did not become common) until around 1950 and is
one
design advantage shared by more recent clarinets over older models. My memory
could be faulty, however, and the process may have been around longer. I have
seen older clarinets that appeared to have undercut tone holes but, of course,
the undercutting could have been done more recently later. Perhaps one of the
repair techs on the list could clarify this point.

To tell if a clarinet has undercut tone holes, look up into the bore. If the
holes look fairly large, the instrument has probably been undercut. If they
look quite small, it probably hasn't. A genesis of undercutting around 1950
would explain why Balanced Tone Selmers do not have undercut tone holes while
Centered Tone Selmers do as I believe the model change occurred around 1950
(+
or - a few years). Again, my dates could be off by a big margin though and I
would appreciate correction.

Dear Jack,

The 1st undercutting polycilindrical clarinet was made by Buffet Crampon
in1950 its name was the R13 that is still on a market today. The name of the
accoustician who design this instrument and many other for Buffet is Robert
Caree.

Hope this Help.

Musicaly Yours

Francois Kloc
Woodwind Product Specialist
Boosey & Hawkes Musical Instruments Inc.

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