 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Kride
Date: 2011-03-04 19:55
I've been playing a Yamaha 34 for the last couple of years and it is an in tune reliable wooden horn. But since she plays a Buffet Greenline I"ve been trying to get that sweet fat core of tone that the Buffets seem to get. So I can't afford a big purchase so I bought last week a Tribouville Freres horn from vintage doc for around 450. Had it fixed up by my repair tech and the tone is really alot better for me than my Yamaha tone. Only problem is that there are intonation issues with it. So, she (my teacher) says I sound fine on the Yamaha why mess around with this horn and I find that just a slow scale on the Tri horn sounds so much fatter and thicker than the Yamaha I'm willing to do all the long tone work to make this work out? Any comments from people having to choose between horns. The keywork is a little different so I dont' think I can go easily from one to the other. I need to chose. On another forum (sax on the web) a guy always says Go for the tone. I'm tempted to follow his advice. K
Ksaxman.com
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Author: grifffinity
Date: 2011-03-04 20:16
The Yamahas I have played have incredibly good intonation. The one downside I found is that they also have a uniformity of tone throughout the registers...that to my ear sounded a bit mechanical. Or just after years of playing Buffets I'm used to the funky intonation issues to compensate and know how to vent certain throat tones, etc. - and I relish the unique qualities within the different registers of the clarinet.
Interestingly, I also find the same tone difference in Yamaha piano's compared with Steinways - the individual characters of certain registers are absent from Yamaha products...which can be a pro or con depending on what you are looking for in an instrument.
This being said - I think a horn needs to have reasonably good intonation ... and I'd choose that over a horn with great tone but poor intonation. Poor intonation will become a headache that will make you forget the other good attributes of a horn.
Post Edited (2011-03-04 20:17)
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Author: Tony F
Date: 2011-03-04 20:44
My favourite clarinet is an old Jerome Thibouville Lamy. It had some intonation problems when I bought it, but a bit of fine tuning brought it up to an acceptable standard, at least acceptable to me and the director of the band I play in. Can the intonation problems be resolved by a good tech, or by a modification of your playing technique?
Tony F.
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Author: Alseg
Date: 2011-03-05 00:18
Did you not discuss the purchase and repair of the "new" instrument with your teacher prior to the purchase?
Former creator of CUSTOM CLARINET TUNING BARRELS by DR. ALLAN SEGAL
-Where the Sound Matters Most(tm)-
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Author: lllebret
Date: 2011-03-05 17:16
It is possible to get into very bad habits if one has to constantly make pitch adjustments to compensate for very a badly out of tune instrument. The clarinet is usually played (at least classically) with a "stiff" set-up that allows only limited pitch adjustments before the timbre changes - even if you could get used to it and play in tune there will be uneveness in sound and response plus you'll have a hard time playing in tune on any instrument that doesn't have the same pitch tendencies.
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Author: kdk
Date: 2011-03-05 18:34
My own experience says that intonation needs to come first. You shouldn't expect the pitch to be right on the money for every fingering, but if the pitch on this clarinet is wild enough to bother your teacher, even without reference to a tuner, it will likely be impossible to play in an ensemble without causing real headaches for your section.
Obviously, the best choice is an instrument that combines tone quality and accurate intonation, but most of your playing outside the practice room is probably done in ensemble situations, making intonation a more immediate priority.
Karl
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Author: John Peacock
Date: 2011-03-05 19:36
I agree with other comments about tuning: no-one will admire your sound if you are making it hard for everyone else to play with you. The best you can do is keep playing the Thibouville at home occasionally, just to reinforce your idea of a good sound, and try to get the Yamaha as close to that as you can. It never will be 100% as good, perhaps, but that's the price you pay because decent tuning is non-negotiable. Many Brits prefer the sound of Boosey & Hawkes 1010s to Buffets, but the profession switched en masse to Buffets about 30 years ago because the tuning was so much better. I know many players who regretted having to choose between sound and being in tune, but they knew what the priority had to be.
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Author: djphay
Date: 2011-03-05 23:00
Can I also put my tuppence worth in about this from an amateur perspective: I persevered for FAR TOO LONG with a clarinet that had intonation problems and I am still trying to 'unlearn' the massive adjustments I had to make with certain notes a year after finally ditching it and getting a lovely pair of Eatons.
I don't think I can stress enough: do not make the mistake I did. I should have stuck with my E11 until able to afford to select a decent upgrade clarinet. Might a different mouthpiece on your yamaha give you improved results?
David
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Author: Clarimeister
Date: 2011-03-06 00:22
I agree with those that say to ditch the horn if it's out of tune. No horn should be so extremely out of tune. When it's in tune, it'll have even better tone.
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Author: Arnoldstang
Date: 2011-03-06 16:12
The tuning issue will be more an issue in ensemble playing. When you practice alone it might not seem too critical for you but in a group it will drive you and other nuts. On a rather elevated plane it has been noted that the player's concept of sound has a lot to do with the results. If you practice with the older instrument and get that sound in your head it just may transfer to the Yamaha. So divide your practice time on both instruments. Then again it might not make any difference. Just keep playing and keep enthusiastic.
Freelance woodwind performer
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Author: Liquorice
Date: 2011-03-06 17:09
Poor intonation is unacceptable. If you're really in love with the horn then can't you have a tech work on the horn to get it to play better in tune?
In any case, ditch Dileep's advice!
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