 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Claire Annette
Date: 2009-06-30 20:47
Someone talk me back down to Earth!
I believe it started when a student of mine recently bought a nice Buffet--newer and possibly nicer than mine.
If I look at it in a positive way, my clarinet:
1. Still plays nicely
2. Could be called "vintage"
3. Was totally overhauled a year ago, costing $$$
4. Is my old pal that I purchased with my own money 30 years ago
5. Has sentimental value
So, is there something wrong with me? Should I just be grateful for what I have? Should I scrimp and save for a new R13...or better? Should I just go eat chocolate and watch TV to get my mind off of this?
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Author: Wicked Good ★2017
Date: 2009-06-30 21:02
Oh, I'm in sort of the same boat. :-(
I love my 33-year-old R13, but I also want better keywork due to tendinitis issues, and perhaps a more soloistic voice.
Maybe we just have GAS; that will eventually go away. :-)
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Author: tictactux ★2017
Date: 2009-06-30 21:09
You may want to buy a new reed after those 30 years. ![[tongue]](http://test.woodwind.org/clarinet/BBoard/smileys/smilie6.gif)
"new" isn't necessarily "better". You'd have to get accustomed to new ergonomics, to new quirks, maybe to a different sound (maybe not, because it's still you) and so on.
If it really really bugs you, go and rent one for a month or so, just to check out if that "new friend" still appears sexy after a hard day's work, so to speak. Or if just our age-old hunter-gatherer genes got the better of you.
You may do the opposite: Buy a clunker for 20$ off That Auction Site, and find out how good your main instrument really sounds.
--
Ben
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Author: weberfan
Date: 2009-06-30 21:26
Oh, isn't the ache awful?!
Here are two options:
Option One:
Go to a music store. If a good one is a distance away, take time to drive there and spend a day or plan to stay overnight. Play a bunch of clarinets-- R13's, Yamahas, Selmers, whatever.
Then go home.
Option Two: Go to the auction site. Find a mouthpiece you don't need. Bid on it. Pay more than you think you should--just so you win. Add it to your collection.
If neither of these alternatives works, then buy the clarinet you're hankering for.
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Author: Koo Young Chung
Date: 2009-06-30 23:31
The more you think about this it'll only get worse.
Don't even come and read this BB at least for a week.
You'll thank me then.
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Author: marcia
Date: 2009-07-01 01:01
>Maybe we just have GAS; that will eventually go away. :-)
The texbooks say that if you walk around a lot, eventually the pressure will be "relieved". ![[happy]](http://test.woodwind.org/clarinet/BBoard/smileys/smiley12.gif)
Marcia, the nursley
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Author: Alicia
Date: 2009-07-01 02:45
Scrimp and save.
I just went today to try some R13 clarinets because I've been so frustrated lately with the intonation and resonance of my 20+ year old clarinet that I've had since I was 13. For me (and likely for you too), it really is the clarinet. And as soon as you go play on some nice horns, you be able to hear and feel the difference.
I've had so much work done to my Bb (overhauls and voicing, re-boring, customized barrels, etc.). But as much as I love and adore my little old clarinet, it's sweet voice is starting to fade. So I'm going to start saving my pennies o that I can buy a long overdue replacement.
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Author: GeorgeL ★2017
Date: 2009-07-01 03:04
A lot of clarinetists seem to get a new barrel when they want to change their tone. That would be a lot less expensive than a new clarinet.
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Author: Bassie
Date: 2009-07-01 07:46
Diagnosis is bad GAS...!
Have you played your student's Buffet with your mpc/reed? It's the only way to know...
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Author: Ed Palanker
Date: 2009-07-01 15:01
You sound like the average car buyer in America but they're a whole lot more expensive and use a lot more "gas". ESP http://eddiesclarinet.com
PS. My website has nothing to do with cars or gas but I do have some nice pictures of my gardens on it. What good does that do to you? Maybe it will make take your mind off of the clarinet.
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Author: Dileep Gangolli
Date: 2009-07-01 15:56
Take two aspirin and think about this in the morning.
If pain persists, make an appointment with your bank officer, procure a loan, and start looking for new instruments.
If upon purchase of new instruments, pain still persists, we can take up a collection for a frontal lobotomy.
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Author: tictactux ★2017
Date: 2009-07-01 16:30
Problem is, most people indiscriminately start collecting soprano clarinets until one day it dawns unto them that what they really really want is a bass clarinet...
--
Ben
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Author: Chris Hill
Date: 2009-07-01 16:37
If you find a clarinet you like better then the one you have, and can afford it, then buy it. Don't buy one just to get one, but always keep your eyes open for something better.
Chris Hill
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Author: JJAlbrecht
Date: 2009-07-01 16:51
You also might want to see about saving a few bucks on used instruments and looking in the Classifieds.
Jeff
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Author: Matt Locker
Date: 2009-07-01 17:12
Annette:
From your description I think you should keep your old clarinet! Whatever you do, though, do not sell your old clarinet - ever. If you really feel you need to, wait until at least 2 years after you buy the "new" clarinet. By then you'll know if the new one is indeed better than the old "clunker".
If you do decide to buy a new instrument, don't forget to try Yamaha.
MOO,
Matt
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Author: Claire Annette
Date: 2009-07-01 17:34
Well, you've given me some good feedback and I've had a good laugh, too!
I did see a lovely lime green plastic clarinet at the auction site....
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Author: Ed Palanker
Date: 2009-07-01 18:05
Lime green produces a great tone and perfect intonation, buy it. It's a green world. ESP
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Author: Ebclarinet1
Date: 2009-07-01 18:15
Why not buy a different instrument such as an A or Eb or if you've got big bucks a bass, alto or basset horn? That way you can justify the purchase as new gigs, new groups, new oppurtunities, etc.
Tale it from another addicted instrument purchaser, it feels SO good to open that case for the first time.... OK that sounded a little sick but there are a lot of you who know it's true.
Eefer guy
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Author: Bluesparkle
Date: 2009-07-01 23:24
I feel your pain, although it's not my old clunker I want to replace. I just want a C clarinet. Until I have the cash scraped up for it and can pay for it without my bank account freaking out, I'm holding off. But...I look online every day, just in case.
I went through this with tennis racquets. They come out with a new line every year. Titanium this, composite that, pretty colors. Took about 20 racquets out to demo before I bought one. Bought one I really liked and was overjoyed at its newness. Played a few games and began to notice that I was working to convince myself that it was better than the old one. Was behind in a match, pulled out the old one, and it felt like an old friend. All of a sudden I could play again without putting much thought into my strokes.
Sing along now...Make new friends, but keep the old...one is silver and the other gold.
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Author: BobD
Date: 2009-07-02 14:08
"So, is there something wrong with me?"
You're probably charging too much for lessons. My mother used to tell me "You spend money like a drunken sailor."
Bob Draznik
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Author: JJAlbrecht
Date: 2009-07-02 14:24
Bluesparke, you ought to check out Tom Ridenour's Lyrique C clarinet. He has a no-interest financing plan, and the instrument is quite reasonably priced, to boot. http://www.ridenourclarinetproducts.com/ACclarpg.html
Jeff
“Everyone discovers their own way of destroying themselves, and some people choose the clarinet.” Kalman Opperman, 1919-2010
"A drummer is a musician's best friend."
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Author: Wicked Good ★2017
Date: 2009-07-02 14:49
"Lime green produces a great tone and perfect intonation, buy it. It's a green world. "
There's a very bizarre YouTube video about a green clarinet ...
---------------------------------------------------------------------
There are only 10 kinds of people in the world:
Those who understand binary math, and those who don't.
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Author: Claire Annette
Date: 2009-07-02 19:37
"So, is there something wrong with me?"
You're probably charging too much for lessons. My mother used to tell me "You spend money like a drunken sailor."
Bob Draznik
No. I actually don't charge enough. Also, I don't even have enough money to shell out for a new horn up front. I'd definitely have to go on a financing plan or sell my children.
I have a Ridenour horn I purchased on the auction site. It's my "other" clarinet. I bought it when my Buffet was being overhauled. I wonder if Ridenour would take a trade in for a nicer model of his? Or, for an A clarinet!
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Author: clariniano
Date: 2009-07-02 22:18
I tried the overhaul thing on a older professional clarinet, but ended up selling the old instrument and getting almost enough money to buy a new entry-level professional Yamaha horn (it was on sle, plus I was offered a cash deal), which I absolutely love 2 years later.
Meri
Please check out my website at: http://donmillsmusicstudio.weebly.com and my blog at: http://clariniano.wordpress.com
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Author: bmcgar ★2017
Date: 2009-07-03 20:24
Do those lime green clarinets protect against scurvy, also?
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Author: BobD
Date: 2009-07-03 22:08
Claire, sometimes just going on eBay and viewing all that is available will get you over the urge.
Bob Draznik
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Author: leporellina
Date: 2009-07-05 10:10
tictactux wrote:
> Author: tictactux (---.dclient.hispeed.ch - ISP in Z�rich, 25 Switzerland)
Date: 2009-07-01 16:30
Problem is, most people indiscriminately start collecting soprano clarinets until one day it dawns unto them that what they really really want is a bass clarinet...
Oh yes!!! That could be the solution!
;)) leporellina
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Author: eskil
Date: 2009-07-05 18:12
"Lime green produces a great tone and perfect intonation, buy it. It's a green world. "
Yeah! Life is so much better On The Greener Side:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J1NyTN3FG9s
Whatever you do - do NOT sell your old clarinet! Just remember that the new one might try to take charge when you leave them alone together, and the old one is not likely to give up her position just like that! Still, there is no reason to sell the old one just over a little pecking order dispute, they will sort it out themselves eventually. :-)
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Author: Bluesparkle
Date: 2009-07-05 18:15
"Do those lime green clarinets protect against scurvy, also?"
bmcgar-don't think they protect against scurvy, but I hear they have a lemon-lime taste.
Speaking of that...wasn't there some sort of reed that was supposed to taste good...or did I just make that up?
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Author: weberfan
Date: 2009-07-05 19:11
Bluesparkle,
http://www.flavoreeds.com/
Orange and cherry don't appeal to me. Gin, maybe?
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Author: lrooff
Date: 2009-07-07 13:32
As some of the other folks here suggested, go to your favorite music store and try out a few new clarinets, then see if there's a difference in how they play from yours and if it makes enough difference that the replacement would be worthwhile. I did that last year and discovered that it wasn't just the clarinetists that was making my horn sound weak; it was the instrument itself. It was a nice old Selmer N-series, and the wood itself had changed just enough over the years (wood shrinks and dries out despite everything we do for it) that it just didn't want to stay on pitch and the sound had changed ever so slightly. On the other hand, you may discover that your present clarinet works just fine and it's just a psychological or emotional thing.
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Author: MichaelR
Date: 2009-07-07 22:06
I'd suggest making your own chocolate and eating that.
http://www.chocolatealchemy.com/
Then ride a bike to take your mind off the new clarinet.
--
Michael of Portland, OR
Be Appropriate and Follow Your Curiosity
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Author: marcia
Date: 2009-07-09 01:49
>Then ride a bike to take your mind off the new clarinet.
But would that be a mountain bike, full suspension, front suspension only, or a light weight road bike, what kind of pedals would you use, which saddle would you choose and.........??
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Author: 78s2CD
Date: 2009-07-09 04:09
Not sick at all! After seven clarinets ranging from eefer to bass, I bought a French horn.
Jim Lockwood
Rio Rico AZ
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Author: MichaelR
Date: 2009-07-09 05:10
marcia -
Which type of road bike?
full fendered and racked year round commute mobile
folder
cruiser
fixie
xtracycle
Your bike doesn't mind if you ride other bikes
And they're all so different
--
Michael of Portland, OR
Be Appropriate and Follow Your Curiosity
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Author: graham
Date: 2009-07-09 06:55
There's two possible causes:
1. You want to inject some sparkle into your life by buying something new (this is known not to work and is a slippery slope)
2. You have come to doubt that your existing clarinet is doing you full justice.
Addressing point 2:- whilst trying new instruments could tell you if this is true, what you may hear is "difference" rather than "improvement", and since you are not specific about what is nagging you concerning the existing instrument, I suspect that the difference will appear to you as though it were an improvement when it might not be. The thing to do is ask a player you trust and admire to take your clarinet and play it to you in a good acoustic. If you end up thinking "that doesn't sound as good as that player usually sounds", then you have a point. If (as I suspect) you think "that sounds really good", then keep the instrument.
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Author: yearsofwisdom
Date: 2009-07-10 03:33
Its 100 percent true that most new instruments are not as good as a good old counterpart. Much better keywork, and especially wood. The materials are now from factories in china and germany and no longer france in the case of buffet in cases
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Author: tictactux ★2017
Date: 2009-07-13 08:50
Bassie wrote:
> Heck, I just bought an alto... :-D
Yeah! That's the spirit!
--
Ben
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