 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: ruben
Date: 2020-08-13 16:01
Does anybody know if there is a clarinet builder that offers replicas of a Classical Mozart/ Schubert/ Beethoven with with a synthetic body? Why synthetic? In order to limit the cost, because some of us aren't sure we will get very far in the mastery of these instruments or find partners to play with. This would enable us to experiment a while before deciding to buy a proper instrument. Also to avoid the warping of boxwood, pear tree, etc.
rubengreenbergparisfrance@gmail.com
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Author: ACCA
Date: 2020-08-13 16:36
Check out Stephen Fox of Toronto's website esp the page on Reproduction historical woodwinds (http://www.sfoxclarinets.com/Reproduction_Historical_Woodwinds.html) Fascinating site- might be a good place to start?
He Writes "Exploration is being carried out towards offering a Classical clarinet with a synthetic body, which would be ideal for music schools; please check back for further developments."
Good luck!
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Author: Paul Aviles
Date: 2020-08-13 16:48
Keep in mind though that the vast majority of cost is in the time and detail put into the complete fabrication of the final product..........not the material.
That said, in the this day in age where we have so many good CNC fabricated horns, it may only be a matter of enough folks expressing interest to get someone to program replica horn. It really only comes down to will to do it. There is no lack of technology these days.
..................Paul Aviles
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Author: ruben
Date: 2020-08-13 17:50
Paul: You're right..it shouldn't pose any technical problems; shouldn't be very different from making a plastic recorder, for example. As for the demand, I shouldn't think it's very high.
rubengreenbergparisfrance@gmail.com
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Author: jdbassplayer
Date: 2020-08-13 19:11
Keep in mind that a plastic clarinet won’t be cheaper than a boxwood one in this case. You can buy boxwood blanks for clarinets for under $100. Meanwhile Delrin stock will probably be around $20. So at best you are only saving $80 on a $2000+ instrument. Most of the cost is due to the fact that period clarinets are entirely handmade, much like high end recorders.
There are other options though. I have a little 3 key chalumeau made by a Korean company called YAN. I paid $120 for it, but I believe they are a bit more now. I mainly bought it for fun, but my girlfriend who’s going for her PhD in music history found it to very usefully for playing in her baroque ensemble, especially when playing pieces by Telemann that call for chalumeau.
There’s also a company called “Hakam Din” that makes a 6 key clarinet for $300. I have not tried it and can not vouch for the quality though.
There’s also the option of buying an older instrument, many of the 5 key clarinets you see for sale are actually from the late 19th century and were made as instruments for students in modern pitch. You just neen to be careful and make sure the length is correct in order to avoid buying a high pitched instrument.
-Jdbassplayer
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Author: ruben
Date: 2020-08-13 20:17
bassplayer: good information! thank you. The company I work for has made period instruments, but not very successfully. This is basically my fault as I don't know how to play them so can't really test them properly.
rubengreenbergparisfrance@gmail.com
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Author: Simon Aldrich
Date: 2020-08-15 00:40
If the reviews on the Hakam Din site are to be trusted, it appears David Blumberg bought a 6-key Bb reproduction from this company in 2015, and claims in the review to be happy with the instrument.
David is a regular contributor to this list. You could ask his impression of the instrument.
It appears from the photos on the Din site and the linked Youtube video, that one uses a modern mpc with this instrument. I hope I am wrong.
Simon
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Author: donald
Date: 2020-08-15 05:02
David Blumbergs opinion on a classical era 5 key clarinet is not really of any value. He is very competent player of the modern instrument, but does not have expertise on the classical clarinet and has demonstrated no interest or skill or even knowledge of HIP. It would be like asking Lance Armstrong to evaluate a Penny Farthing. In more ways than one.
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Author: donald
Date: 2020-08-15 05:29
Oddly enough, I know people who play (and make) classical clarinets AND people who ride penny farthings.
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Author: seabreeze
Date: 2020-08-15 22:39
Relatively inexpensive but accurate and durable copies of historical clarinets (6-key, 13-key, etc) would be welcome. Two ways to get this to happen would be for smaller scale clarinet makers like Ridenour and Backun to produce them. But Ridenour's lowest-priced rubber (Boehm) Noblissima sells for about $600.00 and Backun's entry level Alpha goes for about $1,000.00. These prices are certainly much more than you would have to pay for a decent plastic alto recorder, which suggests the second way: Plastic recorder makers like Yamaha, Aulos, and Zen-on could explore the costs of making keyed clarinets out of the same (or similar material). Would they be able to beat the $600 - $1,000 price range? How much would buyers be willing to pay for a rubber, plastic, or composite historical clarinet?
Yamaha would likely have the greatest array of resources to draw on, since they already make inexpensive plastic beginner clarinets and plastic recorders.
Post Edited (2020-08-15 22:43)
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Author: AB
Date: 2020-08-16 01:19
Part of the reason that Yamaha etc... can make plastic recorders for the price that they do is the sheer number of instruments they are able to sell.
Moeck used to have historical winds - sadly- I wasn't looking for a chalumeau while they were still making them.
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Author: donald
Date: 2020-08-16 12:13
The Moeck chalumeaux were crap, and not historically accurate anyway. You haven't missed out on anything. They're so bad they're not even fun to play or experiment with...
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Author: ruben
Date: 2020-08-16 16:03
Donald: What would you personally want a copy made of? It would seem to me to make more sense to copy a Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert clarinet than a Baroque chalumeau that has a tiny repertoire (Rameau, Vivaldi, Handel..). Couldn't plastic clarinets be molded; holes and all, in order to reduce costs. Once again, I insist on the fact that the goal of producing an inexpensive historically informed instrument is to allow one to experiment before deciding whether it's worth it to buy a proper instrument. It is very defficult to find partners for playing Classical music on period instruments; much harder than finding Baroque players.
rubengreenbergparisfrance@gmail.com
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Author: DougR
Date: 2020-08-18 01:01
Ruben, I don't know if you know Vincent Bernolin or not, but he's a pretty well known maker of resin baroque flutes and recorders. (He also makes them in wood, as well as a grenadilla Boehm flute.) I mention him because he seems to manage the resin material very successfully; when I was looking for a cheap baroque flute, his was one of the main instruments I was considering--since they run a third to half the price of good-quality handmade wood flutes, and have an excellent reputation.
His grenadilla Boehm flute, on the other hand, is NOT cheap; nor is there a sign of any clarinets or chalumeaux of any kind on his site.
I'm assuming he's not attempting early clarinets due to lack of demand. What do you think?
https://www.bernolin.fr/english/recorders.htm
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Author: AB
Date: 2020-08-18 04:21
Donald (and anyone else who may know) Is there a chalumeau out there that manages to be decent in playing and reasonable in price?
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Author: ruben
Date: 2020-08-18 09:01
Doug: thanks for the tip and I will look into this. Of course, there is a bigger market for Baroque flutes than for Classical clarinets. The 18th century flute repertory is simply so much bigger than ours.
rubengreenbergparisfrance@gmail.com
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