Klarinet Archive - Posting 000125.txt from 2007/03

From: "dnleeson" <dnleeson@-----.net>
Subj: RE: [kl] Bright and dark sounds
Date: Thu, 08 Mar 2007 14:43:22 -0500

Bud Hinson,

These are charming and delightful anecdotes. I am sure that your
daughter likes the tone she got from the Boosey, but what on
earth motivated her to say that she liked the dark tone? Could
she not have liked the way she sounded by simply saying that;
i.e., "Dad I like the way I sound on the Boosey!" For her to
say, "I like the dark sound I get on this Boosey," says to me
that someone told her that it was a dark sound, maybe you, so she
accepted the statement as fact, particularly if it came from you.
I presume she did not invent the concept of a dark sound out of
her own knowledge, inner being, and experience. If she did that,
she might have called it a velvet sound, or a vanilla pudding
sound. Think about why she used that vocabulary. Who primed
her?.

That you can identify your daughter when she plays is very nice.
It's fatherly. It's the kind of thing that warms you. You may
have a great ear for recognizing one instrument from another, but
to suggest that you know a dark sound when you year it, is not
evidence. It is an anecdote.

Dan Leeson
DNLeeson@-----.net

-----Original Message-----
From: Hinson's [mailto:bud@-----.net]
Sent: Thursday, March 08, 2007 10:51 AM
To: klarinet@-----.org
Subject: Re: [kl] Bright and dark sounds

I make a meager living restoring vintage clarinets from my small
shop in NC.
My daughter, 1st chair high school and community band, had the
opportunity
over the years to try many different makes and models of
clarinets. I first
bought her a Selmer Signet that she still has. When she needed or
wanted a
better quality clarinet I bought her a new Buffet. One day she
tried a King
Marigaux, and traded her Buffet for it because of the tone. A
couple of
years later she tried a Boosey & Hawkes 8-20 and traded with me
again. She
insists the "dark" tone is what she likes and gets from the
Boosey. I do a
lot of old Selmers for some very good pro jazz players, and I
know
beforehand that she won't like the tone. She'll say it's easy to
play but
it's too bright. I can take that same clarinet to her after
changing the
tone by trying a few different mouthpieces and she'll love it. I
conclude
from those experiences that the tone differences are largely
dependent on
mouthpiece and reeds.
When I think of a darker sound, it's a mellow and sweet tone,
regardless of
volume. I can pick out the sound from my daughter from a very
full clarinet
section...it projects well, but is without the edge of the other
players.
She played recently in a 20 clarinet section in the all district
band, and I
was able to tell her, and she said later she knew I'd be able to,
where she
got lost in a couple of fast runs and faked it. The brighter tone
many of my
jazz customers want has the sharp, cutting edge that competes
with the brass
and can with effort demand attention. I have a customer now
looking for a
clarinet with a "dark" tone...I told her to come try a few
different
mouthpieces first and we'll take it from there...I can't agree
that "dark"
and "bright" sound are meaningless, since I have to deal with
tone issues
constantly...but there should be some better way to describe the
variety of
different tones....soft,sweet,fluid,harsh,brash,...maybe my
daughter sounds
mildly sweet with pleasing harmonious projection ?

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