Author: Bill
Date: 2016-05-31 03:41
A few times in my career with the clarinet I've struck it lucky: I got a circle Bettoney "interlocking Cs" QS mpc for free, I got a good-condition Series 9 clarinet for $150, and I bought Buffet 19764 in freshly-restored condition for a modest fee. When it arrived, inside the case I found a fully-metal-lined (table and chamber) ebony mpc, a "Qualite Superieure" glass mouthpiece (the QS mark was on the bottom of the metal tenon), and a fresh-looking (to say the truth, new-looking) "Joe Allard" Reso-Chamber Otto Link mpc. These items were a "bonus." It was like a care package from Artie Shaw.
Today, for the first time since I acquired this Buffet (6 years ago), I tried the Otto Link with the usual range of 2.5 and 3.0 reeds, some broken in, some new. I am so bummed out that this clean-looking mpc, so "black" and so pristine-looking, has the airy, chirpy quality of something that's warped out of true form.
What I (think) I need is a refacer who can bring this piece back with the minimum of invasive surgery. I want to keep the DNA of it, but it needs to be adjusted to correct the warpage. For myself, I learned *long ago* after trial and error that mouthpiece work belongs to those who are good at it. I am not. "Faggetaboudit."
Any advice? Anyone willing to work the minimum on this piece? I want to keep the Joe Allard in it.
Bill Fogle
Ellsworth, Maine
(formerly Washington, DC)
Post Edited (2016-05-31 03:48)
|
|