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Play test of Amati 604 full Boehm

Author: L. Omar Henderson
Date: 2003-03-20 16:50

First the disclaimer – I have received or will receive no compensation from Amati or Graham’s Music, and received only a trade discount on the instrument. Additional work and add-on’s were paid for. This post only concerns my observations on one Amati instrument. I am not a professional woodwind player. The LBD Consortium including Doctor’s Products, Graham’s Music, and Dirk VanDamme will be exhibiting together at ClarinetFest 2003.

I have play tested a full Boehm 604 series Amati professional clarinet. I feel that it is worthwhile to set forth my expectations and reasons for wanting this instrument. I play some jazz sessions, ethnic music, and soul music numbers so I wanted a horn with a warm, full and rich sound. All of the latter are very subjective qualities and open to each individual’s perceptions.

In December 2002 I received a 604 horn and did some preliminary testing. The experience was much different than the usual instrument testing and buying experience, and I can only describe it as more “Cosmopolitan”. The instrument had some obvious shortcomings but I was assured that if I liked the tonal qualities that I was looking for that these shortcomings would be worked out in an ongoing process with Graham Golden. The instrument is very sturdy with formed metal end caps, good cork, and formed bell ring. With the extra keyword and select wood used in the full Boehm instrument it is on the heavy side.

The first obvious observation was the finish – there was a thick layer of finish that was very dull. The grain of the wood could be noticed and it was dense, tight grained and straight but the true nature of the wood was hidden. I have no problem with this aspect, and after deciding to buy the horn I proceeded to remove the finish with a special stripper that I have developed for instrument wood. The result was a beautiful piece of wood that was uniformly dark chocolate color with no swirling grain, and no light portions or filled checks in the wood.

The keyword was sturdy, solid to my feel, and silver plated. There was need of adjustment of the key height, and spring tension. The ends of the pivot screws protruded on some posts and there were some sharp edges (as explained that a power screwdriver was used at the factory for assembly) on the screw heads. The ergonomics of the keys had a different feel than the big 4 but not uncomfortable and easily adapted.

The pads were of good quality but there was air leakage on two pads and the seating of the pads needed adjustment.

The major shortcoming was the lack of A=440 barrel with the instrument. There were two shorter barrels. I did receive a prototype barrel turned from aluminum from Graham after sending the horn back for adjustments and upgrades. Graham indicates that Amati will produce A=440 barrels from his prototypes in the near future and he will offer custom barrels as options for the horns.

I early on determined that I needed to experiment with mouthpieces and reed combinations with the Amati. My standard Buffet set up seemed to give me a slightly unfocused tone. I have a rouges gallery of mouthpieces so it did not take me long to find one that worked the best and gave the center and focus that I was seeking. The best playing mouthpiece that I found was a Richard Hawkins custom slightly open mouthpiece with # 3 ½ Gonzalez F.O.F. reeds and a Peter Spriggs floating rail ligature. The intonation of the horn when received was flat in the middle C to throat Bb but the clarion and altissimo registers were good. The horn was very easy blowing and had the warm, rich, full bodied tone that I was looking for.

The case for the horn is boxy, leather covered, brass trimmed affair. It is very sturdy but with little style.

Corrections – I did a complete tuning chart, noted my observations on needed adjustments, fit and finish items, etc. and returned the horn for installation of Staubinger pads and purchase of a custom barrel to Graham in late January. Within two weeks Graham returned the horn. The sharp screw heads were ground off, re-slotted and polished. The air leaks were sealed and pad seating was excellent. Graham had performed phrasing and over-cutting on the horn and the intonation was corrected to within 1-5 cents throughout the full range and easily “bendable”. With the same mouthpiece, reed, ligature, and new barrel combination the horn was a joy to play and still maintained the rich warm sound that I was looking for. I have since returned the horn to Graham for some final tweaking of little aspects that I have noticed since playing the horn for some 40 hours. Graham indicates in lengthy email exchanges that his recommendations are being implemented piecemeal by the Amati factory and that current horns received from the factory show these attentions to suggestions – the finish on the wood will take a while.

Since tone, focus, richness, are all very individual observations I decided to get some input on these qualities from fellow musicians. All of the clarinet section of my community symphony orchestra play Buffet horns so I was eager to blend well with this group “sound”. The Amati “sound” was well received by the group members and comments indicate that it adds a richness without detracting focus or group harmony. I have listened to recordings of the same selections played by the group including my solo pieces, with and without the Amati, and I feel that the group sound was similar if not richer.

Summary – I was not looking for a Buffet other other “Big 4” clone at a cheap price. The adjustments needed to the initial horn that I received were many but the personal attention and thorough work done by Graham Golden was outstanding. It was a new process for me to work through certain shortcomings but in the end very rewarding. My final 604 specimen with my own wood refinishing work, new custom pads, numerous adjustments and phrasing, A=440 barrel, and some playing experience with the horn is very fulfilling. IMHO it has the rich, warm full-bodied tone that I was seeking and it is now every bit a professional level instrument that I was after for my own tonal requirements. The end price is ½ to 3/8 the price of a comparable level “Big 4” horn. This “sound” or the maturation process of adjustments and refinements is not for everyone’s demeanor but worth consideration for those that want a professional level horn with a warm and rich sound. I believe that with the continued input from Graham to the Amati factory and their reactions and improvements, recommendations and observations from other players (who are more talented and experienced than me) and more up front preparation work, that trying an Amati horn at ClarinetFest 2003 - or before - will be worth your time.
The Doctor

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