 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Ralph G
Date: 2003-01-30 03:22
After months of playing on an R13 Prestige, I think I'm ready to become a made Buffet mafia man. And I kinda wish it wasn't so.
As I've mentioned before, this past summer I joined a local patriotic band affiliated with the VFW. They have official recognition from the Defense Department that allows them to procure hand-me-down instruments from the military bands. They issued me an R13 Prestige and gave me their blessing to play the heck out of it. So I also joined my local wind symphony and the chamber orchestra and have used it as my primary horn.
Tonight I had Patriots Band rehearsal. The Eb/Bb trill key pad on the Buffet is about to die, so I used my Signet 100 and a plain vanilla B45 mouthpiece. And, man, have I gotten spoiled by the Prestige! The Signet's intonation is terrible, about 20 cents sharp across the board, and I had to pull out the barrel so much it practically slid off the tenon. The throat tones make me wince. Before I got the Buffet, I was accustomed to keeping my right hand down on the throat tones. Didn't have to with the Buffet. Now I have to get used to it again. Before, I lived with the Signet's shortcomings because I really didn't know what I was missing. Now I know.
So I'm sold on Buffet now. Thing is, I kinda want to quit the patriotic band. With my other groups, I'm rehearsing three nights a week, which doesn't leave much time for the gym (my other activity) or quiet evenings with the wife. Plus, honking out marches and hymns and chorales over and over again isn't much fun, and since not many people show up to practice, the rehearsals are kind of a drag. We have very spotty instrumentation and, frankly, most of them can't play very well. When you have only 10 guys playing a Sousa march and 4 of them play baritone, you don't feel like you're doing justice to the music. I've had some good times with them, but most of these rehearsals are no fun at all.
But if I quit, I lose the Buffet. I was looking into buying my own, but I won't be able to swing that for several months. And tonight proves I can't go back to the Signet.
So, Buffet mafia, I'd love to take the blood oath and join up. But you'll have to wait until I can extort enough dough out of my "waste management clients" before I can buy my way in.
Anyway, thanks for listening to my rant...
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Author: Jim E.
Date: 2003-01-30 03:40
Yeah, but if you squeek during performance do you have to sleep with the fishes??!
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Author: GBK
Date: 2003-01-30 03:42
Ralph G... We'll be happy to have you join us.
In the meantime, you have my vote as an official Honorary member...GBK
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Author: Wes
Date: 2003-01-30 05:03
Perhaps someone could help you find a barrel suitable for the Signet and get any leaks fixed. It should not be such a bad clarinet if properly set up. Good luck!
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Author: Hank
Date: 2003-01-30 11:38
Hi Ralph,
So, if you quit the VFW band, the Prestige stays with the band for another player, right. So, how far is the VFW band's rehearsal site from say, Toledo, OH? And if within an easy driving distance, maybe I can just ah, slide into your old seat and under the Prestige.
It makes sense to me?
Hank
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Author: Ralph G
Date: 2003-01-30 13:27
Wes,
My wife had my Signet overhauled last June so I could join up again with the summer municipal band (it was out of commission for about 3 years so I never touched the clarinet at all during that time). So it's in good shape, no leaks, and I can actually play very nicely on it, except for those throat tones. Before rehearsal I ran through some scales and excerpts from Beethoven's 6th (my favorite) trying my Marcellus impression (and failing!), and I sounded pretty sweet. Then I sat down with the tuner and recoiled in horror. So it's the intonation and throat that makes it rough. You're right, a new barrel may help the Signet, as well as using my M13 Lyre mouthpiece which is optimized for 440 Hz. I need to get it in shape for the municipal band again. I live in Corpus Christi, TX, right on the Gulf coast, and we play at a waterfront park, so there's no way I'm gonna expose the Prestige to that humid, salty muck.
Hank -- we had a band meeting a few weeks ago to discuss getting some inactive members back in the fold. They had a roster of people I'd never heard of. One lady had been MIA for a couple of years and still had the band's bass clarinet. So I figure these guys aren't too diligent in keeping close track of their inventory. Maybe if I quit the group, the Prestige stays with me!
Nah, they'll find me eventually... maybe...
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Author: Bob
Date: 2003-01-30 14:10
Oops, what if the Prestige you purchase doesn't play like this one!
Why not inquire about purchasing the one yer playing. Ugh, the mouthpiece yer using on the Selmer may be the problem?
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Author: Hank
Date: 2003-01-30 15:05
Hi Ralph,
Can't blame a guy for trying, right.
Bob, from my experience, it is very hard to sell government goods except by auction.
H
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Author: larryb
Date: 2003-01-30 15:06
Hard to believe that the US Military is spending American taxpayer dollars on French clarinets. And "Patriot" bands are playing them too!
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Author: William
Date: 2003-01-30 15:12
Ah yes, Ralphie, to paraphrase T (or GBK, whoever), "once your in (the Buffet Mafia), there is no getting out." You can run (and try some Leblanc Concertos, or whatever, like I did for a while), but eventually, you will realize the "error of your ways" and return to the Buffet family. If you value your musical life, that is.........
Ok, enough of this Tony Soprano silliness. There are lots of great instrument families out there that produce good instruments--mainly, LeBlanc, Selmer, Yamaha and Rossi. It is just that many of us--as well as most major symphony orchestral conductors and audiences--prefer the sound of the Buffet instruments. They tend to be inconsistant--you have to play a few before you find "the one"--and they may need tweeking to play their best--intonation and eveness of scale--but once you find a good Buffet, you (like many of us) will never be happier.
Recommendation: start saving your pennies, but in the meantime, stick with your P band and enjoy the Buffet in your hands. (A quick thought--if you buy that Prestige, isn't it then your own to take where ever???)
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Author: Ralph G
Date: 2003-01-30 15:26
Larry -- I kinda agree. Given the type of music the band blasts out and the conditions we play in (like the Christmas parade we were in), we'd be better served with a fleet of Bundys.
Speaking of barrels, anybody had experience with Click barrels?r
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Author: Liquorice
Date: 2003-01-30 15:34
William wrote: "many of us--as well as most major symphony orchestral conductors and audiences--prefer the sound of the Buffet instruments".
LOL! I very much doubt that the audience will be able to tell that you are playing Buffet. And I've yet to meet an orchestral conductor who can hear the difference!
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Author: Ken
Date: 2003-01-31 01:13
Larryb wrote: "Hard to believe that the US Military is spending American taxpayer dollars on French clarinets. And "Patriot" bands are playing them too!"
--they spend $100K+ a year on Yamaha stuff too. I remember once in my own band we had a tenor sax player on a gov-provided Super Action 80. After a jazz band gig some irrate WWII Vet stormed the stage and approached the guy personally bitching about his "Japanese made" saxophone and why he wasn't playing on an American brand. I don't recall the entire exchange but the next night I happened to look over at his horn and caught a glimpse of the "brand stamp" on his bell. Apparently he had gotten ticked off by the kodger because he had taken a reed knife (something sharp) and scratchd off the letters Y, M, and H so all it read was A_A_A (Triple A)! True story.
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Author: Brenda Siewert
Date: 2003-01-31 14:44
I'd just like to find a band that provides Prestiges. And, I agree with the advice--being a former Prestige owner and all.
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Author: Brenda Siewert
Date: 2003-01-31 14:44
Woops, didn't finish my thought. I agree with the advice to try any Prestiges before buying one. But save that dough!!!
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Author: James
Date: 2003-02-03 18:18
I am assuming this is an R13 prestige. Why not just hunt for an R13 with silver plated keys? You have a better chance of coming by a true fine r13 than an r13 prestige becuase you have a larger slection of r13s.
Good Luck,
James
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Author: Susan
Date: 2003-02-05 16:46
Our local high school somehow acquired some government surplus instruments a few years back. One was a Buffet low-C bass clarinet, which was loaned to me to play in the symphony. What a wonderful horn! I had never seen a low-C bass before, and it was amazing. The 1st chair clarinet borrows a surplus Buffet A clarinet from the high school sometimes. Wouldn't it be nice if individuals could somehow have a chance at these instruments? Wow.
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