 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Bluesparkle
Date: 2009-08-27 01:18
I now believe the bass clarinet I rented is a Bundy. It plays terribly sharp. I pull out at the neck, and can't pull out far enough to get it in tune. At rehearsal tonight I pulled out my mouthpiece until half the cork was exposed and still had to lip down. There's no middle joint, so pulling out there won't work. The weight of the instruments keeps pulling out at the bell from working. What's the deal?
Also, since this rental horn apparently leaves something to be desired, I'm now on the lookout for a bass of my own, preferably one that plays in tune and doesn't cost a fortune. Don't need anything fancy. My Selmer/Bundy experience leaves something to be desired, even though I know this is a used student instrument that's not in tip-top condition.
Anything I should consider that costs less than $1,000 used?
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Author: William
Date: 2009-08-27 01:41
I've never known a Bundy that wasn't built "sharp", but could not be brought down to pitch by pulling the neck joint and/or the mouthpiece. Just a thought, if you are a strong soprano clarinetist, perhaps you are trying to use too firm an embouchure on your bass, resulting in some extra sharpness. Try playng with the mouthpiece in a more "straight out" position, take in a bit more mouthpiece and relax your "bite". In may help to think more like a tenor sax player than a classic clarinetist. Bundy's are very good bass clarinets for the money and should be able to be played in tune. Give it another try.........
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Author: Bobby McClellan
Date: 2009-08-27 02:02
I have a beuscher which is basically the same horn and have never had that problem. I agree with william it may be embouschure. I played Bb with a chamber orchestra not to long ago and then wen back to bass and had a hard time playing because I played so much soprano that wneh I went back to bass i was tightening up on the mouthpiece basically choking off the vibration.
Bobby M. McClellan
Flowood, MS
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Author: David Spiegelthal ★2017
Date: 2009-08-27 02:08
I wonder if your Bundy has the wrong neck, perhaps it was supplied with a Vito neck? A long shot, but figured I'd ask.
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Author: LarryBocaner ★2017
Date: 2009-08-27 04:19
Years ago I purchased a Bundy bass clarinet to use for outdoor concerts. The instrument tuned fairly well indoors at normal room temperature, but was totally unusable when the ambient temperature got above the mid 80's Fahrenheit. Apparently the ABS plastic body expanded so much from the heat that the enlarged bore drove the pitch up egregiously! Outdoor summer concerts in the Washington, DC area were usually in this instrument's can't-pull-out-the-neck-far-enough range.
I did play this instrument for an entire Arthur Fiedler concert tour while my low-C Leblanc was at the Brannens. Never had a complaint from the Maestro, even when he blindsided me with "On the Trail" at Avery Fisher Hall.
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Author: Bluesparkle
Date: 2009-08-27 12:12
Is there any way to tell if I have the original neck or a different brand? I don't see any markings.
It is quite possibly my embouchure, as Bb is my main instrument. I have fought with getting the angle right on the bass, and I tend to squeak if I move it straight out.
On a third space, tuning C, with everything pushed in, I'm 40 cents sharp. With everything pulled out as far as it will go, I'm 30 cents sharp. Really relaxing the embouchure and holding the horn straight out, I can get to 20 cents sharp. Middle C is about 10 cents sharp. Low F through A is right on the money.
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Author: Ed Palanker
Date: 2009-08-27 15:19
You might want to try a few different mouthpieces first to see if one doesn't play better in tune. A Bundy is certainly not a "Selmer" but should be able to be more reasonably in tune than yours when pulling the neck out some. It could be an instrument problem, or your voicing or extreme pinching but I'd try mouthpieces first. Way back when, thousands of years ago, I was told that the bass clarinetist of the NY ballet orchestra used a Bundy. I never heard him play that I remember. Also, when I had a clarinet choir at Towson University we had a Bundy and it "wasn't too bad", not as good as the Selmers that we had of course. The Bundy alto's were awful. Check my website for the bass clarinet page for some hints on playing the bass clarinet. ESP http://eddiesclarinet.com
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