 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: AdamForester
Date: 2006-11-13 15:00
Hello,
I purchased a bass clarinet a few years back. I did not know the brand or age of the clarinet so I decided to do some research. Unfortunately, the only marking I can find on the clarinet was almost obliterated by age. It's located on the top of the barrel, about halfway between the middle-A key and the mouthpiece attachments. All I can read is "(unreadable) Suns, Makers, Graslitz, Czecho-Slovakia, Bb, 257335". It also has an emblem of 5 medals overlapping like:
((()).
My research has led me to believe that it may be a Kohlert ca. 1919-1923 or so, based on the Czecho-Slovakia label combined with the five medal emblem. However, every Kohlert I've seen has the information etched into the bell, not into the top of the barrel.
Can anyone confirm this information? It is a good sounding instrument, and it's still in good shape for being at least 70 years old. I've contacted a few dealers and when I mentioned Kohlert they laughed or just said no. A few hung up outright. Do Kohlert instruments have a bad reputation?
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Author: David Spiegelthal ★2017
Date: 2006-11-13 15:08
It is a Kohlert. They were very inconsistent over the years (and models) as to where they did (or didn't!) mark their instruments. I've had (and still have) quite a few Kohlert clarinets and saxes of various sizes and vintages and I like them a lot. But, often I have to fix and/or modify many things on them to get them to play well. They are good working instruments but (except for a few particular sax models) are not worth much on the resale market, and being older are probably rife with repair 'issues' -- thus your dealers' reactions.
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Author: AdamForester
Date: 2006-11-13 15:15
Yes, it does need two repairs, I don't know the severity of the repairs required. The strap ring needs to be reset and the end of the arm that opens the holes under the mouthpiece when the A key is pressed needs to be reattached.
Of course, it also needs some pretty heavy refurbishing; every bit of metal on the clarinet is tarnished.
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