 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: DB55047
Date: 2004-10-21 16:09
Does anyone know about what year Leblanc quit labeling clarinets G Leblanc Paris and and started using Leblanc Paris.
Thanks Don
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Author: Vytas
Date: 2004-10-21 17:21
Until about 1955 Leblancs had the letter "G" on the same line as Leblanc and after that the "G" was placed above the Leblanc, centered in the line above it. So the "G" was always there just in the different place.
Vytas Krass
Professional clarinet technician
Custom clarinet mouthpiece maker
Former professional clarinet player
Post Edited (2004-10-21 17:37)
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Author: kal
Date: 2004-10-21 20:47
On a similar note, does anyone know about when the different Noblet logos were used? As far as I can tell (please correct me if you know otherwise), the order is 1) dotted oval, 2) solid oval, 3) diamond, 4) oblong. If anyone has insight on what years these were used, I'd appreciate it.
-kal
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Author: susieray
Date: 2004-10-22 03:20
I don't have any information about the years, but I do know the one with diamond is the Noblet 45 whereas the oval and oblong are the Noblet 40 (or the equivalent). Someone please correct me if I'm wrong.......
sue
Post Edited (2004-10-22 03:22)
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Author: Roger Aldridge
Date: 2004-10-22 11:24
In doing a search on the forum about the history of Noblet and Leblanc there was a question posted about when the Noblet company was acquired by Leblanc. In a related way, a question was posted about the quality of older Noblet clarinets. That is, if they were always considered to be an intermediate level instrument or if they were of better quality before Leblanc took over Noblet. These questions weren't answered either. Can anyone help us?
I, too, have wondered about the evolution of the Noblet clarinet. I've been curious if Noblet clarinets might have been similar to Buescher saxophones in how they were superb instruments but began to go downhill in the mid-to-late 50's. Then, around 1963 Buescher was bought out by Selmer and the Buescher Aristrocrat saxophones evolved into the Bundy student line. What a difference there is between a great Buescher New Aristrocrat or Aristocrat from the 30's and a Bundy! I'm curious if there is a similar difference between the old Noblet clarinets and the ones made now by Leblanc.
Thanks! Roger
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Author: Terry Stibal
Date: 2004-10-22 14:24
The "reorientation" of brands of musical instruments is nothing new, and for the sterling example you need to look no further than the many fine products of the Colonel.
Conn saxophones were the "American gold standard" at one point, with as many (if not more) professional adherents as products of the Selmer company. Examine any number of photographs of groups like Paul Whiteman Orchestra and the like and you'll see a predominance of Conn instruments, with their distinctive proportions, key placement and "tuner necks". (If we had "scratch 'n' sniff" photos, you could probably also detect their presence by the musty smell so associated with Conn horns...sometimes a lack of technology is a good thing.)
Yet, by the heyday of musical instrument production for the baby boomers, the Colonel's products had become "stencil" instruments, cheaply turned out for a number of makers for sale under their label. What happened?
Tastes change (the "fat" American saxophones have their adherents, but the "gold standard" these days is the French style of horn, aka Selmer. There is s difference, and the "French" style crowded out the "American" save only a few holdouts like me. Also, the Colonel's industry changed. World War II had a major effect on the instrument manufacturing industry, and I don't think that Conn and others every really recovered from the disruption.
Noblet (as the LeBlanc ad materials are quick to tell you) goes WAY back, and during the 1800's they produced what would be considered "professional" quality instruments. However, business fluctuations and the like put them in the position of being an attractive acquisition for the French Leblanc folks, and somewhere along the line they decided that Noblet would fill their perceived need for an "intermediate" line of instruments.
Some of the reviled names associated with "student" horns were (of course) those of men who were or are major "players" in the music industry. George Bundy ran the Selmer operation in America for a while, and the Vito moniker came from one Vito Pascutti (a name that I think I got right from memory), a top dog with the Leblanc firm. Push comes to shove, though, they're not the names that a manufacturer would want to use to push their "top end" horns.
I've played some very decent Signet (a made up name for Selmer's intermediate lines) and Noblet horns over the years, as well as some dogs. (I've even had one $25.00 garage sale Vito that was a spectacular horn, measuring right up there with the pro ones in intonation, flexibility and so forth.) Fit and finish wasn't on a par with Leblanc, Buffet or Selmer, but most of what goes into the sound of a clarinet is located north of the mouthpiece in any event.
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Author: sbbishop
Date: 2004-10-22 16:52
"but most of what goes into the sound of a clarinet is located north of the mouthpiece in any event."
But what if you are facing North while playing?![[grin]](http://test.woodwind.org/clarinet/BBoard/smileys/smilie5.gif)
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Author: Dee
Date: 2004-10-25 21:26
Per Leblanc's website, Leblanc didn't "acquire" Noblet in the sense of buying them out. The last of the Noblet patriarchs to run the company didn't have any close heirs to continue the company so made an arrangement with Leblanc to carry it on. Leblanc was not a company at the time but simply a person at Noblet seriously interested in continuing the business. For a while, Leblanc maintained the company name under the Noblet banner but eventually changed the company name to Leblanc.
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Author: Don Berger
Date: 2004-10-25 21:39
TKS, Dee, for putting this history into perspective. Don
Thanx, Mark, Don
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