 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Jeannette
Date: 2000-05-21 18:55
My daughter will be in marching band next year and wishes for us to buy her a wood clarinet. What models should we be looking at and what price range do these clarinets have. This will be her sixth year playing the clarinet.
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Author: J. Butler
Date: 2000-05-21 19:19
I would recommend she march with her resonite clarinet and perform on a good wood instrument for the concert portion of the school year. To me it really doesn't make sense to expose a $2000 dollar instrument to the elements.
You need to analyze how much money you can afford to pay for a wood instrument. Also, you can get a second hand pro model for about or not too much more than a new intermediate wood model. There are several good brands available (Yamaha, Selmer, Buffet, LeBlanc, Rossi, Patricola, etc.) and everyone is going to have his/her own opinion. There is much written on this subject in the archievs. I suggest you perform a search and read some of the past comments.
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Author: Mike Irish
Date: 2000-05-21 19:57
what age group is she and would she really benifit at this time with a wood horn..... she might be bettter off with an upgraded mouth piece and reed selection, that made a world of differance with my son.... he is finishing his third year in school with a bundy... we are currently looking at instruments, that will get him into and thru college....
the bundy will be his marching band horn and the other for stage...
the shop proprieters were mor then happy to let us try out mouth pieces, we did have to buy some reeds, but that is understandible...
MIke
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Author: Bob Gardner
Date: 2000-05-21 20:43
Jeannette all of material I have read in the past few months agree with the abive comments. Use can use the good mouthpiece with the marching horn. Just be sure she learns to carry on her person rather then leaving it with the horn. You may spend more for the mouthpiece then for the clarinet.
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Author: Justin
Date: 2000-05-21 23:35
If she is going to marching outdoors, I would not have her buy a wood clarinet. Your local music supplier can give you many reasons for this, so I will not go deep into detail. What I would suggest is that you look into the Buffet-Crampon R-13 Greenline. It is made from a special combintation of compressed wood chips along with glue and the resonite plastic. The company says that it's tonal qualities do not noticeably differ from their standard pro model, the plain old R-13. I would discuss this with your local shop, but this would probably be the ideal compromise between the beautiful tone qualities of wood, and the resistance to the elements that plastic offers. Another option is that you could get her an expensive wood instrument for indoors playing and a cheaper, yet high quality plastic resonite instrument for playing outdoors in the marching band. Good luck.
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Author: Bob Gardner
Date: 2000-05-22 01:31
No one thing does everything this also goes for clarinets. So the best thing is to buy for the 90% of what you are doing and maybe rent for the 10%
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Author: bill
Date: 2000-05-22 02:07
WHOA! Did I just hear you say "wooden clarinet" and "marching band"? Those are two words that do not belong in the same sentence! I think your daughter should play her resonite clarinet in the marching band and get a wooden clarinet for concert band or indoor playing (whatever
group she may be in). I mean, it makes no sense to invest a lot of $$$ into a wooden instrument and then wreck it by playing outside. I personally like the Buffet R-13's, but hey, that is just my personal opinion. She should try out several brands and choose the one she likes best. (Naturally, it will be the one that is most expensive...) But if money is no object, then I guess whatever she likes and you are willing to purchase is fine. ~Bill
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Author: Willie
Date: 2000-05-22 06:36
I too agree with all of the above. During concert season and in community band, my daughter plays her good clarinet. During marching season though, she plays her plastic Henkin or one of my old metal clarinets. Even if it doesn't rain, there's a lot of humidity (in the south) at night, and temporature extremes to contend with that can do nasty things to wood clarinets, flutes and piccolos.
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Author: RWW
Date: 2000-05-22 20:34
I disagree with all the above. You should get the band director or a very experienced adult clarinet player to go with you to a store with lots of new and used clarinets and using your favorite mouthpiece and others at the store, try them all. Pick the one that sounds the best for the price you can afford. It doesn't matter what it is made of or what it looks like. It is whether it sounds good and can play in tune over the whole range. All clarinets are different even if they are the same manufacture and model. You have to try them.
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Author: bill
Date: 2000-05-23 01:32
RWW wrote:
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I disagree with all the above. You should get the band director or a very experienced adult clarinet player to go with you to a store with lots of new and used clarinets and using your favorite mouthpiece and others at the store, try them all. Pick the one that sounds the best for the price you can afford. It doesn't matter what it is made of or what it looks like. It is whether it sounds good and can play in tune over the whole range. All clarinets are different even if they are the same manufacture and model. You have to try them.
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RWW-
It makes absolutely no sense to go and buy an expensive wooden clarinet for outdoor playing, only to turn around and find it full of cracks. I agree with you about finding the right one, but for indoor playing only. If it is plastic then it can be played outdoors without a problem. I never play my R-13 outside. ~Bill
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Author: Jim
Date: 2000-05-23 04:46
Just to echo much of the above advice, There is no way to justify subjecting a good instrument (and ANY wooden one) to the rigors of marching band. Most bands (at least around here) will play during pouring rain storms, and in all other extremes of weather. (It rained so hard at the Thanksgiving game this year that the drum line had to repeatedly tip their drums to drain the water from the heads!) My son plays a school owned wooden Selmer bass clarinet in the marching band, and I permit it only because I didn't pay for it (except indirectly!) Besides the water hazards, I've watched instruments in cases thrown from busses, and saw one clarinet spill out of the case onto the parking lot. The possibility of theft cannot be overlooked as well.
Use a plastic Bundy, Vito or the like for marching (and school practice) and a carefully chosen wood instrument for home practice, contests, auditions, and performances! (And in any event, in most situations the tonal difference between a good and a cheapo clarinet will never be heard in a field show. The exception... an amplified solo.)
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Author: Willie
Date: 2000-05-23 06:19
Yes, Jim is right here about the other abuses school horns get during marching season. My daughters first clarinet (a Vito) fell through the bleechers at a game and onto a concrete slab. The barrel and a few keys and screws were all I could salvage from it. Had it been her Buffet, we would BOTH be still crying.
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Author: Hiroshi
Date: 2000-05-23 06:33
Frankly,I dislike marching band. It jeopadizes good sound quality and only enhances sound volume. Namely,no sound quality is necessary.
However, even a wood clarinet may be used for marching band if it is suitably broken-in. Does clarinet players of President's own band or famous marching bands only use plastic clarinets? I doubt that.
By the way professional wood clarinets price levels are
R-13 1750$
Selmer Signature 2100-2200$(10SII or Recital are far cheaper,Selmer's PROLOGUE is a very good wood clarinet for primers.)
Rossi 3500$
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Author: Hiroshi
Date: 2000-05-23 06:35
Frankly,I dislike marching band. It jeopadizes good sound quality and only enhances sound volume. Namely,no sound quality is necessary.
However, even a wood clarinet may be used for marching band if it is suitably broken-in. Does clarinet players of President's own band or famous marching bands only use plastic clarinets? I doubt that.
By the way professional wood clarinets price levels are
R-13 1750$
Selmer Signature 2100-2200$(Signature has very good intonation.10SII or Recital are far cheaper,Selmer's PROLOGUE is a very good wood clarinet for primers.)
Rossi 3500$(One body hand made clarinet)
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Author: Willie
Date: 2000-05-23 06:55
The Presidents own gets paid a little more than most school kids. Plus you can bet they all have at least one back up instrument for bad weather.
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Author: RWW
Date: 2000-05-23 20:59
I played in the U.S. 5th Army Band and all our Clarinets were wooden. We used the same top of the line instruments for concerts and we were very very good. A few of them were pinned. Not a big deal. This information should not imply they needed to be made of wood to sound good. They don't. Contrary to popular belief (at least on this thread), "marching" bands can and should sound good. A bad instrument sounds bad inside or out and should not be used in either place. Suggesting that it is ok to use a junk instrument because it doesn't make any difference if it sounds bad in a "marching" band is bad advise.
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Author: Jeannette
Date: 2000-05-24 05:08
I wish to thank all who gave me information on buying a wood clarinet v/s resonite. We will probably invest in a wooden clarinet for my daughters symphony class and a resonite nice clarinet for the marching band. Thank you all again. Jeannette
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