Author: Terry Stibal
Date: 2002-07-12 23:21
I have always liked the Albert/simple system horns for playing in sharp keys, preferring them for that use over the Boehm. Perhaps the "jazz" folks are forced into sharp keys more often by the instrumentation (bass and piano both being in C, forcing us to add those two sharps). Just a theory, albeit one formed over many years of big band work.
I've just acquired a "new" Oehler/Albert horn (don't know which yet; where are the fingering charts hereon?). It's got more rings (6, none for the left thumb) than any Albert I every played before, but only has 15 keys (far fewer than I'd expect an Oehler horn to have...twenty would be more like it there).
It's a Penzel Muller "brand", but it also appears to have an European hallmark of an Imperial Eagle above the Penzel Muller stamp. Both joints are stamped "B", and there's a "LP" at the upper joint top and front. From fiddling around with it today, it appears to have an articulated C#/G# (Hurrah!!!), as well as two venting pads tied to the 1st and 2nd rings, and some sort of odd mechanism attached to the register key and these vents. On the lower joint, it has an auxiliary Eb lever (Hurrah!!! again), the C# thingamabob, and an odd split way of closing the two pads attached to the C/F key.Many more adjustment screws than any Albert I've ever played, too.
Not too bad of shape for a hundred plus year item. One spring not hooked just right, plus one "puffy" pad (C#/G#; why does that not surprise me), corks all shot and the end of the bell tenon is hacked up around the vent holes. Other than that, in pretty good shape and should clean up well.
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The Clarinet BBoard
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