Klarinet Archive - Posting 000101.txt from 2000/05
From: "Kevin Fay (LCA)" <kevinfay@-----.com>
Subj: RE: [kl] My new clarinets
Date: Wed, 3 May 2000 06:15:36 -0400
Tski1128@-----.com wrote:
<<<Here is another question where are the clarinets that cost the same and
play as well as an R13 from the other makers?>>>
David Niethamer responded:
<<<It was my impression that the Yamahas (72's) were about the same price as
the R-13s. But I haven't bought a new one in the last 10 years, so I don't
really know.>>>
. . . and Bill Hausmann commented:
<<<If you mean clarinets that play the SAME as the R-13, you will have to
stick with Yamaha, Jupiter, and anyone else who is making R-13 COPIES.
Selmer and Leblanc, among others, have similar quality instruments in the
same price range, but they play distictively like Selmers, Leblancs, etc.>>>
2 points:
First, you should check out the Yamaha line. The instruments are comparable
to the European manufactureres in quality, both of sound and construction.
How much they cost is a function of (a) cost to produce, (b) currency
fluctuations and (c) the amount of profit that the distribution chain will
require. Depending on current market conditions, the "street price" for a
Yamaha could be much higher (as in years past) or lower than the Buffets.
As I noted in another post, the defining factor in my very recent purchase
of a Yamaha YCL72CS in A was that it played virtually identically to a
Buffet Festival that I lusted after, and was sold for an incredibly
attractive price. (Incidentally, it was also purchased from an authorized
dealer, and is not "grey market") So be a smart shopper!
Second point -- many more instruments on the market are "Buffet copies" than
you would think. At one level, of course, all of these horns are a "Buffet
copy," since Messrs. Klose and Buffet were the genesis of the "Boehm" system
clarinet. What's bandied about here, however, is much more likely to be R.
Caree's invention of the polycylindrical bore. Yamaha modeled Buffet, sure
-- but if you took a micrometer to Leblanc's Opus/Concerto/Infinite, you'd
see the same thing. The primary difference for the Opus is the register key
placement, which (you guessed it!) is one of the design variables for the
Buffet Festival and the clarinet that I just bought. Leblanc's own catalog
gushes on about the advantages of polycylindrical design -- see
http://www.gleblanc.com/gleblanc/welframe.html.
The Selmer 10-G also is advertised as having a polycylindrical bore: see
http://www.selmer.com/htdox/clar4.htm. I recall reading an article by A.G.
in the Clarinet, moreover, where he stated that the clarinet was an attempt
to produce the equivalent of a Moennig-modifed R-13. So it's a copy, too.
Both Selmer & Leblanc offer other bore styles, too (reverse cone
construction) -- and so does Buffet, at least in that the RC has a reversed
cone in the lower joint.
The upshot here really isn't who copied who (although Francois Kloc can note
with justifiable pride that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery) --
but that you can probably get a really fine clarinet from any of the listed
makers. I was very impressed with all of the clarinets I tried. The
quality control amongst the makers is at an all-time high. Other niche
makers (Patricola, Rossi, Eaton, Howarth) make clarinets on the high end,
too, and should not be discounted in your search; we do indeed live in a
happy time.
In the end, it's just a tube. How you play it is much more important than
what you play on. With all of the options available, however, getting a
good clarinet to play on shouldn't be that big a problem.
kjf
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