Klarinet Archive - Posting 000098.txt from 1999/04

From: GrabnerWG@-----.com
Subj: Re: [kl] Leblancs - Mea Culpa
Date: Fri, 2 Apr 1999 11:56:51 -0500

In a message dated 4/1/99 9:03:13 PM Central Standard Time,
CA2scooter@-----.com writes:

<< I was "snubbed" MANY times showing up to a job,
audition or whatever when I pulled out that LeBLanc, that I felt was silly.
This is a HOTTTTT topic, not taken lightly, but CANT WE ALL JUST GET
ALONG!!!:) CA >>

Interesting! I was guilty of such snobbery recently. A colleague of mine has
an old Leblanc A clarinet. It was probably made in the 40's.

Whenever my friend pulled this thing out, mentally I went, Oh Boy!

One day in rehearsal he was having some problems and asked me to take a look
at the instrument (I am competent at making minor repairs, repadding, etc.)

I took the instrument home, and boy was I surprised. Now I'm not saying that
if Larry Combs took a sabbatical and asked me to fill in for a year (fantasy)
that this would be the horn I would choose, BUT, it was a fine clarinet.

Nice centered tone, intonation decent (flat thumb F, sharp high B, C) and
typical of most A clarinets.

I returned the horn to my friend with new respect for Leblanc as a clarinet
maker.

IMHO, the mouthpiece, reed, ligature, barrel setup is the crucial thing. The
rest of the horn just has to have a decent scale.

Walter Grabner

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