 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Don
Date: 2001-12-09 13:46
Does anyone out there have experience with this clarinet? I've never played one but would like to. I'm an R-13 player with reasonable jazz chops. I also play vintage saxophones and they are great. But what can I expect from a 1930's BT Selmer? Do 80-year old clarinets hold up?
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Author: jbutler
Date: 2001-12-09 14:29
Don,
I've restored these clarinets and they do very well actually. I restored one and gave to my wife and later restored one for my use. In fact, it is the clarinet I play the most now. It has been my experience they play a little on the sharp side with modern style mouthpieces. I bought one of Greg Smith's Chedevelle style and it helped a lot. I also have played it with an older Sumner Acousticut #4 and had good results with the pitch. It has very even intonation.
jbutler
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Author: C@p
Date: 2001-12-09 15:02
From my posts recently about my Selmer Kxxxx series clarinet, I got feedback that this is a 1920-1932 horn. As I read your posts in this thread, I wonder if the Selmer Balanced Tone horns you are writing about also have Kxxxx serial numbers.
I also would like to know:
Are the rings on the bottom section set a little higher than current models?
Did Selmer make different grades of clarient (such as professional, student, intermediate) back then?
Is Elkhart on the bell significant? One tech told me that this was put on in Elkhart, Indiana after the horn came from Paris. The horn did not sell very well until they took the Elkart lable off. Have you heard about this theory?
C@p
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Author: jbutler
Date: 2001-12-09 17:43
C@p,
To answer your first question, No....the K series and BT have significant differences in their design. The Balanced Tone will have the *BT* stamp under the Selmer logo of the top joint. The "K" series has somewhat smaller bore than the BT series. Some of the keys are designed a little different also.
Secondly, the ring height should be set similar to what the current models have.
Selmer (Paris) made only professional models as far as I know and is also the current practice. Someone may know differently and let us know. The student and intermediate clarinets are made in USA.
There is a brief history of Selmer on their website. It shouldn't take too long for you to browse through it. They also have published a booklet with this information in it. Alexandre Selmer first opened a branch of Selmer in New York. He eventually decided to return to Europe in the 20's and George Bundy took over the import operations in New York. He later moved the operations to Elkhart. That is when the Elkhart logo was stamped on the clarinet. I've seen the older ones stamped "New York-Paris"; "New York-Paris-Elkhart". I think it all had to do with marketing.
jbutler
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Author: Don Berger
Date: 2001-12-11 22:03
Don - J B has given you V G info re: choice among the several Selmer models. All I can add is that my Sel experience with a 1932 Full Boehm R adio I mproved and two early 1950's [a Centered Tone and an "unmarked CT?"] is that the '50's Selmers are excellent for all-around playing, being "large-bore" .590" [15.0 mm ] but very capable of being played softly! I have no experience with the earlier B T 's, but feel they should also be good.. Much luck in selection. Don
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Author: Don
Date: 2001-12-13 02:11
Thanks for your knowledgeable reply to my question about BT Selmers. You've encouraged me to take the plunge. I haven't done so yet, but I'm on the board looking down at the water.
Let's face it, I've always been drawn to that "broader" clarinet sound (I'm sure there's a better word... "less centered sound" maybe?) of the 1930's Benny Goodman recordings. As a kid, I loved my Bundy because it almost had it. Then as an adult, I hated my Signet because that clarinet didn't have anything but a penchant for trouble (pads that were water magnets and intonation demons, mainly).
I finally acquired a 1967 R-13, and (no surprise!) my Signet problems were gone. That was fifteen years ago and I still play the R-13 today.
But I'd still like to achieve that expressive, bigger sound. The R-13 sings, to be sure, but I'm looking for something with a more robust voice.
Do you work on clarinets and get paid for it? If I buy a BT and it needs an experienced set of hands to coax new life from her, are you available?
Don Denzin
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Author: azuka
Date: 2004-01-17 14:53
Interesting topic. However, nothing like the physical evidence to dispute theory. I have a K series Selmer clarinet which is clearly marked "BT" below the logo in standard fashion. To add to this, it has the "Full Boehm" key setup.
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Author: Fred
Date: 2004-01-17 16:04
Don, I think you're really going to like playing an older Selmer. I'd never get rid of my '66 R13, but it's my P-Series Centered Tone that I enjoy playing these days. I think your description of a "broader" sound is a pretty good one. It's more PC that "fat".
I'm doing a little mouthpiece experiment with the CT. I'll let you know if it works out.
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Author: jbutler ★2017
Date: 2004-01-17 17:00
Anything is possible, but I have not seen a "K" series before with the BT banner. Could be a crossover version or perhaps there were a some made with the "K" prefix. Thanks for your post.
jbutler
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Author: paulwl
Date: 2004-01-17 19:20
Supposedly the B-T began with the L series, but Selmer was always pretty casual about names vs. numbers. One of my 2 B-Ts is just serialed 96xx (no letter).
The big thing with any clarinet this age is keeping it well oiled (wood as well as keywork) and in good adjustment. The articulated models in particular can go out of whack easily. Another issue is keyposts that turn in the wood, causing key binding.
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Author: Clarence
Date: 2004-01-18 02:01
Don,
I have a BT full boehm with all the extra stuff. This one is in very good condition. Not sure of the history but the bore is smooth and shiny. Never a crack and the bore is straight as I have seen. I have enjoyed it. The serial is L46xx.
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Author: paulwl
Date: 2004-01-20 00:13
Has anyone here run across a (now defunct) web page called "A Guide to Dating Selmer Clarinets?" It was a very intriguing piece of "geek work" that proposed (inter alia) that the B-T series probably ran about 2 years later than the dates given on Selmer's web page.
Anyway, the page is down now and all I did was bookmark it. Did anyone happen to record the info per se?
The author was one Kevin Foster, if that rings any bells with anybody.
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Author: David Spiegelthal ★2017
Date: 2004-01-21 21:17
Don (and fellow readers), let me apologize in advance if this posting is slightly off-topic.....I'm currently playing on a freshly-overhauled wood G.M. Bundy-Paris clarinet, ca. early 1930s as far as I can tell by some of its design features, 7 rings (with the little vent on the upper joint covered by the l.h. sliver key as was fairly common on the better clarinets of this vintage). I mention this instrument here because, from what little information I've been able to glean on it from past postings on the BB, this may have been made by Selmer-Paris with a design very similar to (or maybe identical to?) the Henri Selmer professional clarinet of that time, which I believe was the Balanced Tone. My overhaul (with leather pads) included one minor modification, I undercut all the toneholes (please don't break my reeds, Selmer Mafiosi!). For what it's worth, this is one of the best-playing clarinets I've ever had -- intonation is as close to perfect as any clarinet I've tried (comparable to the best R13s I've worked on), and the sound and response are quite nice. I hope this has some relevance to the Selmer Balanced Tone issue, but if not, please forgive me!
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Author: paulwl
Date: 2004-01-22 01:19
Well – Geo. M. Bundy was one of Selmer's step-up makes in the pre WW2 era. F. Barbier was another (surely you must have run across some of those).
I assume these compared to the name brand as Conn/Buescher/etc. did to their stenciled saxes, which were more or less identical to the full price article except for patented features, some finishing touches, and less quality control. Most were serviceable, but every now and then you got a real performer. Yours obviously is one of those.
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