 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: LeWhite
Date: 2003-12-08 04:22
It's been MONTHS, and the store here in Australia still can't get their hands on any Concerto A's.
I'm beginning to think I should just get my money back and try and find one elsewhere - but I don't know the first thing about getting an instrument from the US, or about sending it back for another one if I don't like it, or even whom to contact about it. And I've only got AU$4000 which is the cost of the A over here, don't know how much it would be to order from elsewhere.
Someone help! I don't know WHERE to start!
IMS?
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Author: David Peacham
Date: 2003-12-08 07:16
I'm surprised you gave them money in advance!
I bought my Concerto Bb from www.dawkes.co.uk (but I bought it in the shop, not online). They list the Concerto A for £1485, which is 3500 Oz. You'd presumably save the 17.5% VAT (sales tax) included in this price, but have to pay Oz taxes instead.
If it turns out they don't actually have one, you could try www.myatt.co.uk, who list it at £1650 and mark it with a tick meaning "normally stocked".
Dawkes actually charged me less than their advertised price for my Bb: I've no idea why, I didn't even realise till after I'd paid.
You might want to think whether you know a competent clarinet player in the US/England/France/wherever who could pick an instrument for you. Maybe your teacher has contacts who could help. But I doubt you will be offered a dozen Concerto A's to choose from.
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If there are so many people on this board unwilling or unable to have a civil and balanced discussion about important issues, then I shan't bother to post here any more.
To the great relief of many of you, no doubt.
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Author: icecoke12
Date: 2003-12-08 08:57
Could the shortage of concerto As be due to the fact that they are now producing the new Concerto IIs As ? I take it to mean that you are ordering the original Leblanc concerto and not the 2002S concerto II for the A clarinet?
For my area, (Singapore), the average price of a Bb Concerto I now is around $2000 Sing dollars, which will be about slightly less than AU$1600. I am not sure how much is the A clarinet though.
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Author: icecoke12
Date: 2003-12-08 09:01
Just called up to ask the price on a Concerto I Bb at one of my local stores. A new one will be around $2300 Sing dollars currently.. sorry for the error above. So it will be about AU$1850.
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Author: icecoke12
Date: 2003-12-08 09:26
I regretted not getting the Concerto earlier... 1.5 years ago, it was $1500... (silver plated too)
I think the price difference may be due to the fact that the Australian dollar is very strong currently. At about $1.26 sing to 1 AU if i'm not wrong?
Do you mean you paid $4000 for both concertos or was it only one? If its for one, it will be a bit expensive. If you are a student and have time to spare during hols, you might as well buy an airticket to another country, pick out your clarinet there from a much wider selection, tour around for a week and have more than a thousand bucks left to spend on reeds?
Post Edited (2003-12-08 09:56)
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Author: CJB
Date: 2003-12-08 12:35
David
Don't always believe the little tick in the box meaning they actually have the instrument in stock - when I was purchasing my Eb a couple of years ago the websites listed Selmers and LeBlancs as being 'normaly in stock' when in reality there were none for sale in the UK.
LeWhite
It can take time - it took nearly 7 months to get hold of the Selmer, and another 10 before a LeBlanc appeared. Have you been given any explanation of the delay - I managed to find out that the delay with the LeBlanc was that they weren't making any Ebs at that point and concentrating production on the Sonata Bbs - though that could have been the rep trying to fob me off.
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Author: diz
Date: 2003-12-08 23:59
LeOpus ... skating on VERY thin ice mate.
LeWhite ... perhaps you might phone Leblanc's distributor ... I think I can root around and find the number if you like? Let me know. They're based in NSW, from memory.
and the number is: (02) 9737 0404.
Hope this helps
Without music, the world would be grey, very grey.
Post Edited (2003-12-09 00:07)
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Author: LeWhite
Date: 2003-12-09 00:44
Thanks Diz. The store spoke to the distributor and he said, and they quoted me, he 'doesn't like to order through LeBlanc in the US', and that he orders LeBlanc 'from elsewhere', but they have no idea where he means.
It wasn't that long ago that Lisa herself posted in one of my threads that they just released a batch of Concerto A's, and that I should get it soon. However, if the supplier doesn't order that way, then I have NO chance, apart from getting my money back and taking a gamble and ordering from somewhere in the US, WWBW or IMS or something.
I know that my teacher get instruments for his students through Lisa at IMS, he has a good rappor with them, and earlier in the year when another student was looking at getting an R13 Eb, she sent out 2 when he'd only paid for one, which was so generous of her I thought, and because she's done so many deals with my teacher, I think he has her trust.
So why don't I just order through my teacher? Another student paid A$10,000 for her pair, which were nickel plated. Don't know why the high price.
Plus, I can't seem to get onto my teacher...
icecoke; yeah, A$4000 for the A, I paid $3500 for the Bb. Every other store I asked at had a hard time doing a price better, provided they could even get any in.
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Author: icecoke12
Date: 2003-12-09 03:41
Lewhite:
I took a look at Leblanc's webpage at gleblanc.com and there is a list of their authorized retailers there. Under Australia, their list includes:
Eltham Woodwind & Brass
Grevillea Distribution
Melbourne Brass & Wind
Theo's Music
Woodwind & Brass Musical Instruments
Wrights Music
Is the retailer you bought from listed here? I bought my concerto from one of the retailers listed under Singapore in the website and the price was half the price you got it for. The Leblanc clarinets comes in from the France headquarters/factory. Ordering it from elsewhere will go through a lot of channels which probably increase the price you are paying for.
I hope that you will not have to pay so much extra just because the store you bought it from got the concerto from some roundabout source.
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Author: LeWhite
Date: 2003-12-09 04:15
Melbourne Brass and Woodwind were the only ones that had any in stock, that's where I got mine from.
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Author: LeWhite
Date: 2003-12-09 09:14
Ok, spoke to my teacher, he's going to help me out with getting one from IMS, he's been doing business with Lisa for 20 years or so and has a good rappor with the store.
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Author: icecoke12
Date: 2003-12-09 09:49
That's great! Hope you get a much better price from them...
AU$4000 really sounds a bit steep for a Leblanc Concerto A clarinet. The new Concerto IIs in A key are going for like only US$1899 at wwbw.com.
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Author: LeWhite
Date: 2003-12-09 10:53
Yes we discussed getting a Concerto II if it falls within my price range, and it may do so. Then the only thing left to do is to get a Concerto II Bb...
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Author: William
Date: 2003-12-09 15:22
When I went to the Leblanc factory in Kenosha, WI (1992) to pick out a Concerto A, Tom Ridenour met me at the door and said he had some "good news, and some bad". The bad news was that they only had one Concerto A in stock. The good news was that it was an excellant instrument and if I didn't like it, it was going to be shippped to a professional clarinetist is Cleveland. Tom gave me "first chance" at it--I played it, liked it, and made arrangements to buy it through a Milwaukee music store (and was allowed to take it with me when I left the factory).
At that time, Tom explained that only a realtive few Concerto A's were being produced in France compared to the Bbs, because of lesser demand and production costs. A year later, when I revisited LeBlanc to audition Concerto Bbs, Tom had over a hundred setting on a cart, assembled and ready for me to play. But there were no Concerto A's available at that time. He asid that the demand was so great, they were shipped out as soon as they arrived. To my knowledge, Concerto A's have always been on "back order"--at least to the "little town player" like myself. And most probably, that trend continues as like with most business's, the mighty $$ is the main reason that dictates Leblanc's rate of production and marketing practices.
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Author: David Spiegelthal ★2017
Date: 2003-12-09 15:31
What's the big deal? Go to Wal-Mart, buy a Chinese Bb clarinet, and drop a shoelace through it ---- presto, "A" clarinet!
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Author: Mark Charette
Date: 2003-12-09 20:31
JMcAulay wrote:
> David: Are there Wal-Marts in Australia?
Not yet, but - it'll work if you live in Argentina, Brazil, Canada, China, Germany, Japan, Korea, Mexico, Puerto Rico, the United Kingdom, or the United States ![[tongue]](http://test.woodwind.org/clarinet/BBoard/smileys/smilie6.gif)
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Author: LeWhite
Date: 2003-12-10 11:45
Good news - at the WWBW price I can easily afford a Concerto II. Bad news - probably not in stock, probably get a completely different price from IMS, and probably won't get one I like straight away.
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Author: icecoke12
Date: 2003-12-11 03:47
Since we are talking about Leblanc supplies, I would like to say what I feel about the company.
The Leblanc people has been very responsive and are top rated in providing customer satisfaction in my case. I had a problem with my barrel length and emailed the company to ask if I could get a shorter one from them. Their reply came immediately the next day.
At first I had expected to purchase a new barrel, however, they asked me to send it back to their factory in France for a one to one exchange instead. Their email response was very fast which was like within hours for the 2nd email I sent.
I was also impressed by the fact that they actually sent out my barrel without even waiting to see that the one I sent had arrived first. The barrel length(64mm) I wanted wasn't even in stock in their france factory and they started making one for me immediately and it was ready in a day.
With this type of after sales service, who wouldn't be impressed...
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Author: LeWhite
Date: 2003-12-11 04:52
Yes I'm also impressed with the quality of manufacture of their instruments. Although I'm annoyed I haven't gotten my A clarinet yet, I'm also glad that they don't just pump out instrument after instrument like, erm, some other brand which will remain nameless but you know exactly whom I refer to...
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Author: sfalexi
Date: 2003-12-11 04:56
LeWhite wrote:
>Although I'm annoyed I haven't gotten my A
> clarinet yet, I'm also glad that they don't just pump out
> instrument after instrument like, erm, some other brand which
> will remain nameless but you know exactly whom I refer to...
>
Oh man. That one had me laughing pretty hard over here!
Alexi
US Army Japan Band
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