Klarinet Archive - Posting 000082.txt from 2001/03

From: Eric Mumpower <nocturne@-----.com>
Subj: [kl] Strange clarinets: for sale
Date: Sat, 3 Mar 2001 19:18:03 -0500

My apologies for the semicommercial nature of this message, but I'm posting
this here not to make a dime but rather in an attempt to find a collector
who will appreciate these instruments for what they are.

If you're not interested in buying these instruments, and please ignore this
message.

I've decided not to keep these instruments because I bought them with money
earmarked for a C clarinet, and upon consulting with a couple local experts
(Emilio at Rayburn, and Albert Alphin), it's clear that the smallest
instrument is definitely not a C clarinet. They're lovely, but they're just
not in my budget. :-}

My best guess is that these instruments are: low-pitch A, high-pitch A
(possibly doubling as low-pitch Bb), and high-pitch Bb. But the pads on the
two larger instruments are so spotty that it's hard to be certain exactly
what they're tuned to.

Here are the facts:

All three clarinets marked with standard Buffet Crampon Paris France mark.
The largest clarinet is marked "LP", the medium clarinet is marked "A" above
the Buffet mark and "H" below, and the third clarinet has no markings of
this sort. Serial numbers J1xx, K4xx, 5xxJ, dating them to 1895-1896.

Three Buffet bells and barrels; one of each is marked "LP". The LP barrel
and one of the others are both 66mm long and marked "Buffet Crampon &Cie A
PARIS // MADE IN FRANCE"; the third barrel is 68mm long and is only marked
"Buffet Crampon &Cie A PARIS". The bells all also carry the mark of C.
Fischer.

Three mouthpieces: Buffet wooden mouthpiece, Buffet plastic mouthpiece, and
no-makers'-mark strange hybrid wood/metal mouthpiece.

(remember, these instruments all have a low Eb key)
Bodies with bells, without barrels: 55.6cm, 59.4cm, 62.9cm
Bodies with bells and 66mm barrels: 60.6cm, 64.0cm, 67.5cm

With the 66mm barrel and any of the included mouthpieces, the smallest
clarinet naturally plays as would a Bb instrument pitched a few Hz flat of
A@-----. Without too much effort, I can lip it up to sound as would a B
instrument pitched at A@-----.
the octaves and intervals all seem in tune), but I'm not an expert at
judging this and it's possible that I'm just too accustomed to playing
imperfect instruments.

I would be unsurprised if you could turn the smallest instrument into a
modern-pitched clarinet in B just by using a slightly shorter barrel!

The good news:

The wood on these instruments is a lustrous dark brown with a lovely
shimmering grain; largely unscratched. One-piece body, full Boehm, low Eb,
extra C# trill key, donut left-hand-middle key, wraparound register key. The
keywork probably predates assembly lines and is all very well-fitted; there
is hardly an unwanted wiggle anywhere; far better crafted than any of my
personal "good" instruments. The tops of the fingerholes have less-worn
inner edges than my 1960's Buffet in A. There is no visible wear on the
surfaces of the keys, though they are moderately tarnished/dirty.

As far as I can tell, these instruments were in top-notch working order
about 50 years ago, and have been sitting in a closet ever since. The
articulated C# mechanisms were even still correctly calibrated. :-) They
came in an old three-clarinet case with lovely velvet interior.

The bad news:

As mentioned before, I am not certain what pitch/key these instruments are
in. There is a single 2-3" surface crack at the barrel end of the body of
the smallest clarinet. Looking down the bore, I cannot see any sign of this
crack having penetrated to the bore of the instrument, but it does pass
through the topmost trill-key tone hole. The pads of the larger two
clarinets are quite shot, and honestly should probably all be replaced. The
pads on the smallest clarinet should also be replaced, but seal well enough
to play on reasonably well for purposes of demonstration or a loud Rhapsody
in B. ;-)

If you've read all this and you still have questions, please don't hesitate
to email them to me. I read my email very frequently and will reply as soon
as possible. :-)

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