Klarinet Archive - Posting 000708.txt from 2002/07

From: GrabnerWG@-----.com
Subj: Re: [kl] Re: What kind of mouthpiece does a soprano C clarinet take?
Date: Tue, 23 Jul 2002 13:28:51 -0400

In a message dated Tue, 23 Jul 2002 10:23:15 AM Eastern Standard Time, Gregory@-----.com writes:

<< Chadash makes a standard C barrel that is designed to play on C clarinets with regular Bb mouthpieces. All 4 of us in the Chicago Symphony clarinet section play our C clarinets (Buffet and Leblanc) with our regular Bb mouthpieces. ......>>

Greg, thanks for your contribution on this issue. Although I do not claim to be in the same league as Guy Chadash, I too have made barrels for "C" clarinets that have addressed this issue well.

It seems to me that most "C" clarinet barrels are too short and have a bore that is too wide. Several I have measured have a totally cylindrical bore of nearly 15 mm. Put this with any good mouthpiece, and you will have intonation problems.

I have had good success by making a barrel about 1 to 1.5 mm longer, incorporating a narrowre bore with a rather severe inverse conical taper.

I made such a barrel for David Niethamer's Buffet C, and I believe it was a complete success. (I think this C was once owned by our very own Dan Leeson!).

Anyway, my $.02 worth.

Walter Grabner
www.clarinetXpress.com

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