 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: chinaboy61
Date: 2007-05-03 22:42
Is having a Leblanc A clarinet and a Bb Buffet clarinet a bad idea? I mean what if the keywork is different??? Is so is it bad to buy 2 clarinets of different brands?
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Author: Morrigan
Date: 2007-05-03 22:47
That is what my setup it - Leblanc Concerto A, Buffet R13 Bb. They're VERY different instruments, and I had a little trouble at first but the trick is you have to play on both of them every day. If you play too long on one, the other will feel even more different.
I have this combination out of circumstance, not so much choice. Given the choice, matching instruments are better. Remember than they're going to be different no matter what, and Leblanc make REALLY good A clarinets.
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2007-05-03 22:52
There's no reason or any harm in having an odd pairing of clarinets, though it's generally thought best to have a matching set.
There are several contributors on here that play an odd set, and they have no problem.
I used to use a B&H Bb and a Selmer A, then the A was bought by a player to go with her Yamaha Bb when I got my Centered Tone pair.
My current pair are both Series 9, but the A is from 1962 and the Bb from 1978.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: Iceland clarinet
Date: 2007-05-03 23:01
Eddy Vanoosthuyse used to play Leblanc opusII Bb clarinet and older buffet R-13 A clarinet because he was in the Leblanc mafia and was sponsored by them so he wasn't allowed to have new Buffet A clarinet. But the strange thing is that now plays the Buffet Tosca clarinet which are VERY different from the Leblanc Opus II. And almost all of his students play on Leblanc clarinets.
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Author: Max S-D
Date: 2007-05-03 23:21
If you can make it work, it's cool. If you're looking into buying an A clarinet now, bring your Bb along when you try it. Bb and A will always be a little different, but make sure that they are tonally in the same ballpark. I have a Bb/A R-13 set that works out pretty well for me, but I've actually never played any other brand of A clarinet. Maybe I should have, but I didn't, and now I have two very nice R-13's that I am still extremely pleased with. Which is good, because I still have to buy a bass clarinet, bari, alto and soprano saxes, and a flute, so new clarinet money is going to be rather scarce. Of course, I'm a music major, so money's just going to be scarce in general...
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Author: Ralph Katz
Date: 2007-05-05 13:21
I think the Buffet R13 A & Bb play radically differently. The nameplate isn't everything.
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Author: sfalexi
Date: 2007-05-05 17:45
As long as you're comfortable with it and you can switch back and forth comfortably, go for it.
US Army Japan Band
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2007-05-05 18:13
Compare the tonehole sizes (of the same named toneholes) on a matching pair of Selmer Recitals - the differences are huge and surprising in that the A has a lot of smaller diameter toneholes in comparison to the Bb, and some of the relative tonehole positions (eg. trill key toneholes) are spaced closer together on an A in comparison to a Bb.
And some matching A clarinets have a narrower bore than their Bb counterparts, and can even have a shorter barrel in some cases.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: sherman
Date: 2007-05-05 18:53
Years ago, we learned as students that the A clarinet was quite difficult to play, and we were advised to get an A that was less resistant than the Bb. The idea of a "matched set" is just a euphemism in my memory, and while I do have a set of Model 55 Selmer clarinets with serial numbers within four digits of one another, I would call them matched in no sense of the word, for they are not.
In theory then, if the teaching I received was correct, an A that plays with less resistance is ideal, but then again, when we wanted to really sound well on the Bb, we practiced on the A, exclusively, for the Bb was quite simple to play after the A.
Even further backward in time, the two clarinets were or are to be played with different mouthpieces, and even further back , the attachment could be bought which, when lowered into the Bb made it almost an A. That was actually the thick string which made the horn terrible stuffy and plain "out of tune", probably resulting in the thought that the A was more difficult than the Bb.
And looking even further back, when first I played the classical three-keyed clarinetr in boxwood, I then had made another joint to replace the lower of the Bb to make it into an A. That seemed to work quite well.
The A clarinets of the last 10 or 15 years or so are equal to the Bb, and sometimes they are better. My current A clarinet seems to almost play itself and all the resistance and intonation worries are quite resolved.
If you have a good A clarinet, playing those first notes in the slow movement of the Brahms 4th symphony is quite close to heaven. You seem to be able to hear that middle B as if you were in the back of the hall at the same time.Ah, memories.
Sherman Friedland
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Author: Iceland clarinet
Date: 2007-05-05 20:36
Sherman Friedland sorry but I don't understand what you are saying could you put into fewer words so it will at least be easier for me to understand what you are saying?
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Author: sherman
Date: 2007-05-06 00:19
I am sorry as well, and will try to be clearer in the future.
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Author: sherman
Date: 2007-05-07 15:39
Here is an idea for your consideration. It is made seriously and from one who has done it and did it for a number of years. You already own the best A clarinet available. It is your Bb clarinet. Why not play everything on one clarnet? The transposition can become second nature in a short time.
After a while and when becoming familiar with all of the repertoire you will naturally wish to secure a Bb clarinet with both a low Eb and articulated G#, as well as the third ring.
Really, if you can come upon a good full-boehm with a low Eb, you will be quite happy.
I certainly was. Once, in a major concert, I played the very lovely clarinet solo in Respighi "Pines of Rome" on the Bb clarinet. Yes, it was a full-boehm, but actually easier than the A. Why? Because you don't have to choose that special reed that will give you the legato in the large leaps, and ending on the low E, which is almost inevitably flat on the horn.
Admittedly, it is a difficult chore, the transposition, the getting of a full-boehm instrument, but what isn't?
The confidence you gain is more than worth the effort. I know that this will not be the start of a trend, but it is in many parts of the world, playing it all on the Bb clarinet. It is at least worthy of consideration.
sherman friedland
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