 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: jdbassplayer
Date: 2014-05-06 21:12
Hello all,
I was recently given the opportunity to purchase a conn low D bass clarinet. I can't test it out until next week, so I thought I would try and get some information from you guys first. Does anyone play a conn low D as a main instrument or backup? If so does it play well? A low D bass seems like an ideal compromise between the light weight of a low Eb and the extra low notes of a low C, perfect for long band related trips, but that doesn't mean anything if it doesn't play well. Any opinions will be appreciated.
Thank you in advance!
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2014-05-06 21:32
Genuine Conn bass clarinets will have what seems to be a long serial number with both letters and numbers in it which refer to the instrument model, the serial number and the pitch. If it's a short number containing only numerals, then it's most likely a Malerne bass. I'd be interested in seeing some photos of this bass - especially the low D mechanism to see what they do.
Looking at modern student level basses, they're all built to low Eb with the pad cup on the bell so low Eb issues from the bell itself, but Jupiter basses (and I think the Buffet intermediate model bass) have all the keywork on the slightly longer lower joint and a bell vent for the low Eb, so in theory they can be converted relatively easily into a low D instrument by adding a bell key to close off the bell vent and a RH thumb key to actuate the bell key for the low D.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
Post Edited (2014-05-06 22:35)
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Author: David Spiegelthal ★2017
Date: 2014-05-06 21:56
I've seen (though not personally touched or played) the low-D Conn instruments and as far as I can tell they were a relatively short-lived transitional model, probably between the post-WWII Malerne-made 'stencil' basses (to low-Eb) and the Selmer-USA/Bundy clones (also to low-Eb) made following the Conn-Selmer merger.
The idea of a low-D bass is not a bad one as perhaps the written low D note comprises the majority (or maybe somewhere around half) of the 'extended range' notes one encounters in the standard symphonic literature, at least it has seemed that way to me in my experience as primarily an orchestral player. The low-C# and low-C notes don't seem to come up as often as the D. A slight extension of the lower joint and a single, long rod operated by a thumb touchpiece are the only modifications needed and are what the Conn has.
I'm not positive but I think the low-D Conn basses had a single register vent, so I'd expect them to play more like Bundys than like Selmer-Paris basses (for example).
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Author: ebonite
Date: 2014-05-07 00:22
Yes, a low D bass will get you quite far in 20th century orchestral music. For example, you could play the whole of Prokofiev Romeo & Juliet Suite number 2 (the famous one), which has plenty of exposed low D's but only one note lower than that (a C# which can easily be played up the octave). Incidentally, the experience of playing that piece on my low Eb bass (using a cardboard tube in the bell for the low D) was what finally persuaded me to get a low C extension added.
Post Edited (2014-05-07 00:25)
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