 The Clarinet BBoard
|
Author: Bigno16
Date: 2005-05-14 18:51
I'm going off to college at UMASS Amherst this fall. I got accepted to the Hartt School but chose not to go there mostly for financial reasons and location.
Would it be more beneficial to buy an Eb Clarinet or an A clarinet? I'm sure it depends on what I'll be doing, of course. But the problem is, I'm unsure at the moment. I know that if I intend to be in the wind ensemble, then an Eb clarinet would be the smarter choice, but if I intend to be in the orchestra, then the A would be more beneficial.
Thing is, I don't even know how often I'd use either, if at all. I'm sure they'd come in very handy eventually, I just don't know when and certainly don't have the money for both at the same time. Any suggestions?
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Wicked Good ★2017
Date: 2005-05-14 20:19
Why not save your money and use the school's harmony clarinets? Surely UMass-Amherst owns Eb, A, etc., harmony clarinets. You could take that money, put it in an interest-bearing account, and buy yourself both an Eb and an A upon graduation.
Anyhow, that's just a suggestion - it's what I did. Were I personally going to buy a harmony instrument for college I'd get an A. I played my alma mater's A clarinets far more frequently than I did their Eb clarinets. You'll get more mileage out the A in woodwind quintets, too, not just orchestra.
Good luck with whatever you choose.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
There are only 10 kinds of people in the world:
Those who understand binary math, and those who don't.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Mark Charette
Date: 2005-05-14 20:26
Wicked Good wrote:
> Why not save your money and use the school's harmony clarinets?
Generally squeeking, clarinets lower than the A are considered harmony; A and above are considered soprano (with a few other names attached, some not so complimentary ...  )
> Anyhow, that's just a suggestion - it's what I did. Were I
> personally going to buy a harmony instrument for college I'd
> get an A.
I would second that.
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Clarinetgirl06
Date: 2005-05-14 20:56
Have you emailed your going-to-be college professor? They'd give you the best answer. Is there a possibility that you can go to college and wait a little and then see which one you should buy? Well, good luck!
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Tyler
Date: 2005-05-14 21:21
Eb is the "black-stick-of-death" where I come from, lol
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: RosewoodClarinet
Date: 2005-05-14 22:41
When I was freshman at college, first thing was to buy an A clarinet. Fellow student told me that I would need an A if I would play in school orchestra. So, I bought one.
Having a set of Bb and A is the first thing to do, I think. The school has Eb and other harmony clarinets, you can play them as you start schooling the next fall. You should talk to clarinet professor, and he/she will gice you the guidance.
Good Luck!!
RosewoodClarinet
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Morrigan
Date: 2005-05-14 23:10
I can second (or third, etc.etc.) that - a Bb and A pair are more or less REQUIRED for college, whereas an Eb isn't. Plus, you'd just get stuck with all the Eb parts.
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: hartt
Date: 2005-05-14 23:27
aha.....buy em both
depending on other students and where you will be sitting in the 'pecking' order, you may find more playing time if you have an Eb.........assuming UMASS dosen't already have a 'resident' eefer player.
If you will be playing in the orchestra, then the A will usually be more useful. If you are playing in the band, then the Eb gets the nob........assuming the conductor likes the sound of an Eb in his band.
Whichever (or both) you choose, be sure to have a very knowledgeable player help in the selection process. Both can be prone to poor intonation and stuffiness.
Good Luck !!
Now go practice
regards
dennis
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: GBK
Date: 2005-05-14 23:37
Wicked Good wrote:
> You could take that money, put it in an
> interest-bearing account, and buy yourself
> both an Eb and an A upon graduation.
I don't think so.
Putting an initial $2000 in a 4% interest bearing account for 4 years will give you about $2340 at the end of college.
Hardly enough to buy both.
-------------
A or Eb?
This is a question that probably doesn't even need to be asked.
If you are serious about playing the clarinet you MUST have an A clarinet. It also should be of the highest quality you can afford.
You have to change your way of thinking, because Bb and A clarinets must be thought of as a pair, not as individual instruments.
Trumpet players own (at the very least) Bb and C trumpets.
They are expected to have both.
BTW - You can always quickly pick up an inexpensive Eb clarinet for the few times you may need it...GBK
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: DavidBlumberg
Date: 2005-05-15 00:39
Do you want to get pegged as an Eb player yet?
I would wait and see just what you need and what your teacher there wants you to get. Let your teacher guide you.
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: SueSmith
Date: 2005-05-15 01:21
Definately an A clarinet...if not for Orchestra...at least for Chamber music where a great deal of work is required for A Clarinet (Brahms quint and trio) Mozart (quint and especially, the concerto) and don't forget the solo work that requires/recommends A clarinet (stravinsky 3 pieces ).
Eb is a beast...and if you decided to become specialized in it, get comfortable with a cheaper effer, because you may not know how to buy a great one yet. Why waste all that money on a horn that turns out to not be worth it. Keep a little cash aside to purchase a good Eb mouthpiece and barrel(wait to match that to the school horn)...which will make an average effer sound better.
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Jack Kissinger
Date: 2005-05-15 04:31
Bigno16 wrote:
"Thing is, I don't even know how often I'd use either, if at all. "
If I were you, I'd save my money until I knew because the answer might be that you don't need either. The school may have instruments you can use. Or you might not need either one for your studies.
$2,340 in the bank at the end of four years is better than the $1,100 - $1,250 you'll get if you have to sell your (now) used A or Eb R13 (figure even less if you buy Selmer, Leblanc or Yamaha) after you graduate because you need money for rent or food (and discover that middle school band directors usually don't need an A or an Eb).
For professional playing, before you're done, you may decide a saxophone or flute is a better investment
And GBK, where can I find a bank account (at least in the U.S.) that pays 4%?
Best regards,
jnk
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: starlight
Date: 2005-05-15 09:30
i would wait until college starts and find out which clarinet to buy.... it won't be too late right?
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: MSK
Date: 2005-05-15 23:45
In the last five years, the orchestra I play with has needed an Eb clarinet exactly once (Bolero). We need the A nearly every concert. Even the bass gets used more often (Pops concerts). On the other hand, I did use an Eb some back in college wind ensemble. I was able to borrow one from the school for that.
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: chicagoclar
Date: 2005-05-16 07:30
Wait until you get to school. You'll probably decide on buying an A, but at least this way you'll know for sure, and you'll have your teacher to help you with the search for a quality instrument. i've seen people come to school where I'm at with matching Bb and A, they've never used the A, or their not the quality that they should have gotten. I personally use the school's A, and that's allowing me to really look for a good instrument.
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Robert Moody
Date: 2005-05-16 11:46
I agree with most here that the A-Clarinet is the choice. I believe that the natural progression of buying instruments for personal use is Bb-clarinet, A-clarinet and then bass clarinet. In my experience, the Eb-clarinet is used less than all three of these instruments.
As Sue pointed out, there are a significant number of pieces that are written for A-clarinet that are staples of the repertoire. While you can certainly practice most of them by yourself on Bb-clarinet (like the Stravinsky she mentioned), performance practice is that you (particularly if you are at a music college and studying music) perform on the instrument written for--where feasible (exceptions being period instruments--sorry Tony ![[cool]](http://test.woodwind.org/clarinet/BBoard/smileys/cool.gif) ).
Go get that A-clarinet (if you are serious about being a clarinet player in your career) and buy the Eb-clarinet first thing after you land that RCA label.
Robert Moody
http://www.musix4me.com
Free Clarinet Lessons and Digital Library!
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: DavidBlumberg
Date: 2005-05-16 11:58
ING is paying 3% on it's savings accounts and there is no minimum time you have to have your money tied up.
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
The Clarinet Pages
|
 |
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
