 The Clarinet BBoard
|
Author: Lelia
Date: 2000-09-05 13:26
Does anyone know anything about a clarinet maker named E. Lerue? I recently bought a clarinet in A (serial number 388xx) by this maker and am restoring it. It's a modern-type 17-key Boehm system wooden clarinet. The style of the case and the type of junk left inside it probably date from sometime around the middle of the 20th century. I bought this clarinet despite the unknown maker because it had some unsual characteristics, and because the wood is really fine, and in perfect condition. It may be cocus, as it is very heavy, undyed jet black with no streaking.
A couple of things interest me in working on this clarinet. The work is precisely and carefully done. Beautiful hand sanding has removed evidence of the types of tools used on the wood, but I've found much evidence of hand tools on the undersides of the keys, which are forged brass with very heavy nickel plating. The nickel polishes to a dull, gray sheen that looks a lot like old "Indian head" nickel coins. Despite evidence that the clarinet was played a lot, the plating has worn *down* but has not come close to wearing *through* on any of the key touches. The keys and everything else about this clarinet are well made, but in a large, solid way . I wouldn't say it's crude, because it's too well crafted for that, but there's nothing purely elegant or decorative going on here. Everything seems solidly functional, and it looks to me as though that was a deliberate, artistic decision (similar to the attitude of "Arts and Crafts" period furniture makers). The clarinet came apart very easily and is a delight to work on. I may find it difficult to play, though, because of the large size of the key rings. My thin fingers will have trouble closing the holes completely.
One possible negative is that the entire instrument uses only three sizes of pads! Maybe that indicates crude tuning. (?) The entire upper joint takes only 9 mm pads. The lower joint takes a pair of 12 mm pads and the rest 16.5 mm. I can't report on the sound yet because I'm missing a pivot screw (all the pivot screws are the same size, too, BTW) and waiting for an order of screws and pads -- ran out of 9 mm pads, naturally! I think I use three times more 9 mm than anything else. Any information about E. Lerue much appreciated.
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Don Berger
Date: 2000-09-05 14:25
Not listed by Rendall, Lelia, perhaps Marc C can find it in Langwill. I have an old [40-50's] Thibouville which I'll look at carefully, in light of your description, to maybe find similarities, already note the wood character!. Don
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Don Berger
Date: 2000-09-05 17:12
A number of similarities, my Thib may be cocus also, has all 10mm? UJ pads, 2 12's and 3 16.5's? and looks like a smaller Ab/Eb. Quite large rings, only the 3rd LJ tone hole appears to be oversized. Is heavy but good tone quality [like an earlier Thib given to a teacher!]. MarK gave me a Langwill "dossier" on the Thib "empire", no mention of your's name tho. Have fun, yours may be equally good, but "old" cyl. bore with +s and -s. You might want to ask on Early Clarinet, to contact the collectors! Don
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Lelia
Date: 2000-09-05 21:21
Don, thanks so much for checking the similarities. I saved your message. Thanks also for the good suggestion about the Early Clarinet group. I made the difficult decision to quit that group a few months ago, because it's on e-groups. It seemed to me that e-groups was generating spam. I quit all my e-groups lists and pulled my e-mail address out of the e-groups database. The spam nearly stopped. I used to say the spam completely stopped, but when I said that on an e-mail list recently, I almost immediately received a spam, no doubt from a list member with a sense of humor, so I can't truthfully say *completely* any more! -- but *almost* is good enough for me and I won't subscribe to e-groups any more. I'm sorry, because I think the Early Clarinet list is a very good one. Thanks again!
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Lelia
Date: 2000-09-06 12:51
Mark Charette wrote:
-------------------------------
No Lerue in the New Langwill ...
--------------
Thanks for checking, Mark. The pads and screws I needed arrived yesterday late, and I had just time to put together the lower stack before bed. I'm becoming convinced that this is the work of either a tiny shop or an individual crafter. None of these keys, rods, etc. are mass-produced. Even though all the upper stack pads are 9 mm and the four lowest pads are all 16.5 mm, no two pad cups are exactly alike. They're individuals, with their own tiny discrepancies in the shapes. As far as I can tell, someone did all the turning and forging without power tools, strange as that sounds for a clarinet with modern keywork that can't be more than about 75 years old -- and is probably more like 50 years old. It may end up playing like a pig, for all I know, but it sure is interesting. More later....
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: ron b.
Date: 2000-09-07 17:44
Just curious, Lelia -
What does the makers mark, stamp, imprint, whatever, look like? - plain lettering, a logo (devise), and whether it appears in more than one place?
A number would logically, whatever that means in this business, indicate not a one-of-a-kind instrument. 388xx could mean anything... or nothing. I'm sure you've thought all this through and through, over and again and then some but, is there anything about the case or in it that would give you any clue at all? Does the m'pc, the reed - tell you anything? Does the seller of the horn have any connection with its previous owners?
Being an A pitched (modern pitch?) Boehm would seem to rule out a maker in a far distant country cranking these out, foot powered lathe and three tone hole bits, in a wee shop off the kitchen of his little house. But, on the other hand... stranger things have been known to....
(go sit down, ron 
ron b.
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Don Berger
Date: 2000-09-07 21:18
VUNDERBAHR, Ron, haven't had such a good laugh for a while!!You prob. said it, that here we have a skillful, small maker [like Busine of Martin, or Masson of Thibouville] [have each], getting their name "in lights" for a moment. Don
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Lelia
Date: 2000-09-12 16:00
Rob B. and Don have nailed exactly the curious thing about this clarinet. The workmanship is that of the 19th century, but the clarinet clearly isn't that old. The keywork and the case point to something closer to 1950. Ron, the logo is just "E. Lerue" in block letters (for all I know it could be LeRue, come to think of it) embossed in a rectangle with rounded corners, on the barrel. Under the rectangle is a small "dingbat" in the shape of a bracket (below and paralleling the bottom edge of the rectangle) of a flowering vine. The serial number is at the bottom of the lower stack. That's all. No other markings.
I still haven't finished the work on it, BTW. I'll start a new thread later, I guess, because I don't think I'll be able to touch it until the end of September. I've got 8 film noir reviews due Friday and a book review and 12,000-word feature article due by the end of September. On top of that, my husband and I are in drywall hell at the moment. The ceiling of our "music room" (a small study where he practices violin) started collapsing when we were on a short vacation over the weekend. :-( On the bright side, we did the demolition yesterday without getting ourselves killed.
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
The Clarinet Pages
|
 |
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
