Klarinet Archive - Posting 000166.txt from 2000/05

From: jim & joyce <lande@-----.com>
Subj: [kl] metal clarinets
Date: Wed, 3 May 2000 18:26:35 -0400

Lars
Your web site has a wonderful list of serial numbers for
various makers. The H.N. White list shows fewer numbers
during WWII, but not no numbers. I have seen some metal
clarinets whose numbers would fit the WWII period and some
that come as late as 1950. If fact, a White catalog from
around 1953 is still touting the Silver King. I assume
that they must have made some after WWII. However, you may
be right.

LeBlanc says that they made metal clarinets through
the mid 1960s and continued to sell them through 1972. I
have a page from a 1968 catalog listing the metal Noblet.
It was the cheapest horn listed. I suspect the early ones
were higher quality, but that is based on a sample of 2. In
any case, this are the exception that proves the rule. Most
companies stopped making them by sometime in the 1940s.

On the other end, there were metal clarinets made in the
1800s -- I think the earliest reference I have seen was 1825
give or take. Buffet appears to have made metal clarinets
around 1900 and then again around 1930, but not in between.

So far, I know of five companies that made double walled
clarinets: Conn, Penzel Mueller, Triebert, Haynes and one
whose name I have forgotten, but there was one on eBay
apparently dated around 1900. I have a Triebert that is OK
but not great.

I will bet that there were at least a dozen american
companies making metal clarinets, half a dozen French and
some in Italy, England and Germany. There were a lot of
stencil models and also 'generic' brands that were not
closely associated with the actual maker. Also, some French
horns were imported using import names that were not really
associated with any specific manufacturer.

Will they be back? Maybe someone has the tooling for the
Silver King and could reintroduce them. Could somebody
develop a means of undercutting? Buescher said that they
did. I have one and it is not my favorite.

Currently, I have a set of Silva Bets and love them. My R13
is gathering dust. Well, I am not foolish enough to claim
that they are superior or even as good. But i like them and
play for fun and good enough is plenty good enough.

jim lande

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