 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Buster Brown
Date: 2005-01-12 12:32
My daughter played on an early 70's Evette-Schaefer. I used it for a year and half while getting back into playing. A friend of mine recently borrowed it (his old Conn was giving him trouble) and loves it. My friend's son had an early 70's R13 (150 year anniversary model) which he tried to use. After comparing the 3 clarinets he prefers my daughter's E/S to the Conn and R13.
I'm trying to figure out what this means. Is a pro clarinet always better? Is it worth the money? Incidentally, I replaced the E/S with a R13 Vintage which is clearly a better horn (for me) than the E/S.
Comments? Should I sell him the horn or save it for grandchildren? What's its value? Interesting.
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Author: clarnibass
Date: 2005-01-12 12:40
It doesn't sound that surprising. I've played great professional clarinets, and bad professional clarinets. It's possible that the E/S is a good one, and the R13 is a bad one.
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Author: sfalexi
Date: 2005-01-12 12:46
I also have an E13 (Evette/Schaeffer predecessor to the E13) which IMO sounds better than any R13 that I have playtested (which is only five so far, but still, that's five 'pro' instruments which don't rival mine). As far as I know, it's all about how well it sounds, not the brand/model. And one of the 'main' differences between the E13 (or evette-schaeffer) and the R13 is the quality of the keywork.
But go with the sound. If you feel more comfortable and like it's sound better than a particular R13, stick with it.
I for one am not a hoarder of things. So when I find something that is CLEARLY better and that will put other things on a backshelf, I sell off the other things. However if you don't have a 'backup' already, it may be worth keeping it as a backup. For when your horn is in the shop or if yours breaks directly before a concert (knocks on grenedilla . . .)
Alexi
US Army Japan Band
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Author: DavidBlumberg
Date: 2005-01-12 13:22
The answer is no. Just because a clarinet is a professional model doesn't ensure that it will be better than a great lower end model. If the pro model is a poor one it will play not nearly as good.
When I bought my set of R-13 Prestige's back in 1988, I went through over 50 Clarinets and found that there was a tremendous difference between the best and the worst.
Some were so bad that I was taken aback. I don't mean leaking pads either, it was poor wood, badly cut tone holes, etc.
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Author: Synonymous Botch
Date: 2005-01-12 14:05
Having sold out of all my "spare horns" I can say the following about those instruments I had:
1) Young kids prefer the new and shiny, no matter how well a horn plays.
2) Recognizable names carry higher resale value than "hidden gems".
3) If you have something you don't (and likely won't) use - sell it.
4) If you're friend wants the something from you - trade rather than sell.
Among the best instruments I sold were made by Couesnon, and they were nearly impossible to sell, regardless of price.
Among the worst instsruments I sold were bright, shiny examples from major makers, and buyers were throwing around large sums.
Go figure.
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Author: Buster Brown
Date: 2005-01-12 22:18
Thank you all. I will keep the E/S as a backup. It's a nice clarinet that doesn't shine much anymore. I think I'll take the polishing cloth to the keys.
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Author: donald
Date: 2005-01-13 04:03
Bridget Miles, Associate Principal of the Auckland Philharmonic, has beaten me in several auditions and plays with a fine tone and excellent intonation. Reccently we were doing "clarinet nerd afternoon" and comparing our A clarinets with an R13 A that i had purchased 2nd hand from the US.
The best clarinet intonation wise was her A clarinet- which on closer inspection turned out to be an E13!!!!!!! Her old teacher had "souped it up" in the late 1980s, and she had used it ever since. When i tried this instrument i didn't like the tone as much as either of the other instruments, but when i heard Bridget play it sounded fine. I could clearly hear differences in the characteristics of the 3 horns, but one didn't stand out as sounding obviously worse. She doesn't feel bothered to get a new "professional" A clarinet, and i'm not going to try to persuade her otherwise!
donald
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Author: Fred
Date: 2005-01-13 13:54
The sad truth of these situations is that really great non-pro clarinets seldom, if ever, will be worth what they are "worth". When you find a jewel like that, it's best just to keep it or pass it along to a worthy student, because the hundred or so that it would bring on ebay would grate on your sensibilities for years. Or at least I know that's how I would react.
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