 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: thehammerclarinet
Date: 2014-06-25 08:20
Hello all,
I am a high school player and I recently purchased an A clarinet. I own a Buffet R13 Bb and just bought a Selmer Privilege A (insanely good deal on purchase, too).
I plan on using the pair in my youth orchestras, along with soloing. I am not completely sure if becoming a clarinet performance major is the direction I want to head after high school. Music education is something that attracts me, but it doesn't mean I have to stop playing clarinet... In a perfect world, having matching Bb and A clarinets would be good, but does it really matter? I've noticed the keywork being a little different between the two brands. Any tonal differences(besides the the half step part, obviously)?
Is there anything else I should be aware of or look into?
Thanks.
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2014-06-25 09:35
You don't always have to have a matching set if you find you don't particularly like the A clarinet counterpart to your Bb, but do find the qualities you like in a different make.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: maxopf
Date: 2014-06-25 09:40
I've been playing in a high school youth orchestra for 2 years. While ideally matching clarinets would be best, I have no problem switching between a Yamaha 650 Bb and an R13 Prestige A, and they're pretty different (keywork styles are different, for example, and the A clarinet has the extra little finger Ab/Eb key whereas the Bb clarinet does not.)
The main thing to get used to is switching instruments, especially in the middle of a piece. You can (and should) use the same mouthpiece, reed, and ligature on both, but make sure you grease the cork on the mouthpiece often so your setup doesn't fall apart during instrument switches. (I've played some pieces with really fast switches where my setup falling apart would've meant totally missing an entrance. Take a look at the sheet music for Night on Bald Mountain... 4 or 5 switches total throughout the piece, many of which only give you 5-7 bars of fairly fast 2/4 time to make the switch.) After moving the mouthpiece from one clarinet to the other, make sure you warm up the instrument by blowing warm air through it, otherwise you'll come in flat. I would also get a clarinet stand so that you have somewhere to put one clarinet while using the other.
Barrels are not compatible between A and Bb clarinet, so if you have, for example, a Clark Fobes barrel for your Bb clarinet and you want to use a Clark Fobes on your A, you'd need to get a new one specifically for A clarinet.
That's all I can think of, but I'll leave another comment if I think of something else... Good luck with your new instrument. I personally love playing A clarinet, probably more so than Bb. It has a different timbre, plus there's all sorts of great music written for it (Mozart Clarinet Concerto in A, for example.)
Post Edited (2014-06-25 10:01)
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Author: maxopf
Date: 2014-06-25 09:47
Oh, there's one more thing that I never really noticed myself, but my teacher (a clarinetist in the San Diego Symphony) pointed it out to me. Bb clarinet tends to warm up a little more slowly and doesn't become too sharp (compared to its starting, non-warmed-up pitch), whereas A clarinet warms up fairly quickly and goes quite a bit sharper than Bb. After a couple of minutes on A clarinet you'll need to pull out at the barrel just a little bit. Tuning in the different registers can be slightly different too, you'll need to sit down with a tuner and check out tuning tendencies, possibly different altissimo fingerings, etc.
Post Edited (2014-06-25 10:03)
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Author: concertmaster3
Date: 2014-06-25 10:12
Brand matching really doesn't matter, as long as you're happy with the sound you're getting out of both instruments. The most important thing about your instruments is that they play in tune with good tone. As long as those two things are in place without too much effort, you're in good shape. My Bb and A match (Yamaha CSV's), but my Eb, C and Bass aren't Yamahas. Neither do my Oboe and English horn match for that matter.
Just to offer insight....
You can use the same barrel on Bb and A clarinets, as long as they are both in tune. I tend to use the same barrel on both instruments for most cases. But...I believe that Selmer makes their bores a bit different from other brands, and with that clarinet you probably won't be able to (although I could be wrong about that).
Ron Ford
Woodwind Specialist
Performer/Teacher/Arranger
http://www.RonFordMusic.com
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Author: maxopf
Date: 2014-06-25 10:21
Interesting, I'd always heard that the bore sizes on A and Bb clarinets in general are different (A clarinet's bore is slightly smaller I believe, contrary to what one might think) so the barrels are incompatible, but I guess if you still get a good sound it doesn't really matter. It would certainly be easier to switch instruments if you could take them apart at the barrel and not the mouthpiece.
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2014-06-25 13:50
If you compare a set of Selmer Recitals with all the keys off, you'll definitely see the differences in tonehole diameters between the two - the A having some considerably smaller toneholes compared to the Bb.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
Post Edited (2014-06-25 13:51)
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Author: Paul Aviles
Date: 2014-06-25 15:04
I find the timbre of the Privilege quite similar to the Buffet, so that matching should not be a problem. The feel of the keyword is different, but if you get used to what the "A" feels like, that shouldn't be an issue in time.
Although you may just ditch the Bb in favor of another Privilege down the road :-)
...............Paul Aviles
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Author: William
Date: 2014-06-25 18:44
After searching for many years, I finally found an A clarinet that plays with the same resistance as my Bb although they are from different manufacturers--Leblanc Concerto Bb and Buffet R13 A. For ease of switching mpcs, I use the Leblanc barrel for both clarinets and that works for me although I find I have to pull out a bit on the Bb more than on the A so that basic intonation is stable. When playing both A & Bb, I use a 65mm length Leblanc barrel, but when playing the Bb alone, I use a 66--no particular reason, it just seems to work more easily. However, beyond the issue of barrels for tuning, my main device is my ear--I listen and adjust to everyone around me (and most think that I play very well in tune......LOL)
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Author: maxopf
Date: 2014-06-26 00:30
The whole barrel thing brings up an interesting question. If you were to use only one barrel for both clarinets (which I personally don't plan on doing, but just for the sake of the question), which would sound better tone-wise and tuning-wise: using your Bb barrel on your A clarinet, or using your A barrel on your Bb clarinet? The former would have a bigger bore diameter in the barrel than in the rest of the instrument, the latter would have a smaller bore diameter in the barrel than in the rest of the instrument. Maybe I'll give it a test today.
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Author: maxopf
Date: 2014-06-26 07:51
I just tried it. It doesn't make a huge difference, but it does change the sound a tiny bit... Using a Bb barrel on an A clarinet made it just a bit stuffier and more resistant compared to using an A barrel; using an A barrel on a Bb clarinet did the same but less so. If I had to choose one I'd choose using an A barrel on my Bb clarinet, but I prefer just switching the mouthpiece.
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Author: William
Date: 2014-06-26 22:13
My Bb Leblanc Concerto clarinet was described by a major symphony Buffet artist as "the most R13-like clarinet he ever played." Perhaps that is why my Concerto Bb barrel(s) work well on my vintage R13A so well. I do agree that it is more common practice to use the A barrel on the Bb, but for me, it works just fine the other way around :>) even tho' they are of totally different brands.
Now, if someone would invent a barrel to use on the effer and C as well.......oh well.
Post Edited (2014-06-27 19:02)
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Author: MSK
Date: 2014-06-27 05:53
When I started orchestral playing, I used a borrowed A of a different brand for two years. There was a minor adjustment to the larger size of the A, but it was unrelated to having unmatched brands. When I bought my first
A, it was the same brand, but different model, still without any issues. I presently have a matched set because I prefer that make and model not out of any need for marching.
That said, although my family owns five different Bb clarinets from four different brands (including plastic), there is one I just don't like. Although it is a professional quality instrument, the tone hole placement and keywork feel too different from the others. My take away lesson, is that the instruments don't need to match, but they shouldn't be drastically different.
Post Edited (2014-06-28 20:30)
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Author: William
Date: 2014-06-27 19:21
My "humble" opinion has always been, getting a "performance" degree is a big waste of time as no audition committee will notice it anyhow. When it comes to a career in performance, the ONLY thing that counts is, HOW WELL YOU CAN PLAY, not how *much* you have studied or researched. And believe me, there are a thousand clarinetists "out there" who all can play all the correct notes and rhythms at least as good as you ever will be able to. The competition is tough and a lot of anyone's success comes down to who on the audition panel likes what an individual does--tone quality, technique or interpretation, etc--and not necessarily who is better. So, if you want to become a "professional" clarinetist, it is more important who you take private lessons with, not what university degrees you qualify for. Go to NYC, find the top teacher who will accept you and test your musical wings there. Like the tune says, "If you can make it there, you'll make it anywhere".
Option Two--go to a university music school, major in music education and take all the clarinet lessons you can. Then, if you find that the world of professional performance is not for you, you have an alternative career to pursue. Of course, there are other career options--a good local clarinetist friend of mine has played in major symphonies around the world and was a finalist for a position with the NYC Met. However, as a student he was a double major and now prefers to make his living working locally as a mathematician, his second academic degree.
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Author: Ed Palanker
Date: 2014-07-01 07:21
I used to use Buffet Bb and A clarinet for many years until I bought a Selmer Bb Signature about 8 years ago because I loved the sound and response so much but still preferred using my Buffet A and I played them in the BSO for those last 8 years. Even when I played second in rotation no one, including the principle player relized I had changed my Bb to a Selmer for more than a year, when I actually said something. When I played my Buffet set there was a time I used one barrel since both required a 67mm for me. They worked best with a Backun barrel but eventually I began using a different one on each clarinet because I found a very slight improvements but either one would work fine one either clarinet. That never worked with any other make barrel, especially for tuning. I could not even begin to use the same barrel on my Buffet A and Selmer Bb, not even close. The Buffet I use a 67mm on my Selmer Bb I use a 62.5. Much different bore on the Buffets and the Selmers.
ESP eddiesclarinet.com
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Author: clarnibass
Date: 2014-07-01 12:28
>> In a perfect world, having matching Bb and A clarinets would be good, but does it really matter? <<
In a prefect world having either a matching or non-matching Bb and A clarinets could be good. Luckily this doesn't change in a non-perfect world.
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