 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2010-05-12 11:20
Strange concept with the crook/mouthpiece being like a sax configuration - will it take a tenor sax mouthpiece? The forward facing bell is unique as well.
Love to see footage of one being played in a top orchestra, eg. in a performance of 'Alpensinfonie' - along with a Contraforte and Lupophone (although the space-age look of these will give Holst's 'The Planets' something extra visually).
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
Post Edited (2010-05-12 11:22)
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Author: fruitbat
Date: 2010-05-12 12:42
The mouthpiece is very special (as anything on this clarinet). Neither bcl nor sax mouthpiece fits. The crook is not conical (like sax) but has cylindrical shape. The clarinet came without working mouthpiece. It was a lot of fun to find one that works and get it modified...
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2010-05-12 13:56
Maybe you could have a socket made to fit a German bass mouthpiece with a telescopic section to go over the cork to make it act like a tuning bit.
Just realised what it reminds me of - an ear trumpet or Alp-horn.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
Post Edited (2010-05-12 13:58)
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Author: David Spiegelthal ★2017
Date: 2010-05-12 14:24
It's exactly like my F. Arthur Uebel bass clarinet, but completely different.
![[grin]](http://test.woodwind.org/clarinet/BBoard/smileys/smilie5.gif)
Differences:
Made by another member of the Uebel family
Aluminum body vs. grenadilla (top joint)/rosewood (lower joint) on mine
Boehm system vs. Oehler system
Forward-facing vs. upward-facing bell
Other than those minor differences.....there seem to be a few similarities in some of the keywork details, and I'm wondering if yours has a narrow German-type bore (about 19mm) as does mine? I've made up some modified alto clarinet mouthpieces (with the bores enlarged) for use on my instrument, I was wondering if your solution was similar?
Finally, given the relatively high coefficient of thermal expansion of aluminum, have you noticed significant average pitch change as the instrument warms up? I recall Larry Bocaner writing about large pitch changes in the ABS plastic Bundy bass clarinet he has used on some outdoor gigs -- I might expect the same phenomenon to occur with your AluminUebel.
Anyway, Herr fruitbat, that is one extremely cool bass clarinet you have!
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Author: fruitbat
Date: 2010-05-12 14:30
Chris:
The mouthpiece is the tuning section itself and can be moved about 30mm for tuning. That's quite a lot. I need only 5mm.
An extra socket would not fit because the cork section is 50mm long and 45mm of it are inside the mouthpiece. I hope you understand. It's not easy for me to explain in English. But I used such a socket to find the right mp but tuning was terrible.
The design is absolutely crazy! Anybody says Alphorn...
Post Edited (2010-05-12 14:34)
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Author: fruitbat
Date: 2010-05-12 14:53
The clarinet has 17mm bore diameter like a basset horn. I use a modified german bass clarinet mp (Zinner 4M, modification as descibed above). The mp has "no bore" because the crook inside defines the bore.
There is nearly no pitch change at all. I play summer and winter in same tuning position (+/- 5mm). The instrument needs only short warm up time and is always in tune. Besides of the really smooth basset horn sound this is the best point on it.
Yes it is really cool. Anyway I'm thinking I should sell it because it is my backup and not often played. But it would be a pity to give it away. Don't know...
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Author: yanno
Date: 2011-01-16 21:45
Ive never seen an Uebel bass made from Aluminium!
I've seen an original flute of similar design- brushed aluminium body with plated keys.
I love the look and it must sound superb! I'm always looking for an Uebel Bass! they just look out of this world!
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Author: Bob Phillips
Date: 2011-01-17 16:12
Interesting tuning issue.
When it warms up, the aluminum instrument gets bigger and goes flat.
When the air inside warms up, its speed of sound increases, causing the pitch to rise.
Maybe the two effects (partially) cancel each other out.
Gorgeous instrument.
Bob Phillips
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Author: Klarnetisto
Date: 2011-01-21 22:45
What is the range? I only see right fifth-finger keys to low E, but the instrument is so long it looks like it extends to low C.
Klarnetisto
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Author: Ken Shaw ★2017
Date: 2011-01-21 22:59
It has enough tone holes and length to go chromatically to low C. There's at least one key for the right thumb, and probably all four low-range keys are there.
Ken Shaw
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2011-01-22 11:33
Just counting the pad cups on the lower joint suggests it goes to low D.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
Post Edited (2011-01-22 16:23)
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Author: Klarnetisto
Date: 2011-01-22 12:46
That would be a surprise! There are plenty of contrabasses that go to low D, but I've never encountered a plain bass that did. They seem always to go to E, Eb or C.
But then. a lot about this clarinet is surprising!
Klarnetisto
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Author: David Spiegelthal ★2017
Date: 2011-01-22 13:29
My wood Oehler-system F. Arthur Uebel bass clarinet, acquired a couple of years ago from our most eminent Swiss BB-member, arrived with a 'from-the-factory range to low written D. Upon noting that the lowest note vented from a mushroom-shaped tonehole on the body rather than the bell, I covered that mushroom and discovered that a perfect low written C# was produced, so a made a mechanism to allow that note to be played by a r.h. thumb key. Later on I made a removable one-note extension and additional thumb key to give me the full range to low written C.
My point is, it seems to have been fairly common among German bass clarinet manufacturers to provide range to written low D for their bass clarinets as appears to be the case with the aluminum G.R. Uebel in question. The instruments look (and are) very long because of their much narrower bore than the Boehm-system bass clarinets we're used to seeing.
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Author: Ken Shaw ★2017
Date: 2011-01-22 13:47
I've played an old Conn bass clarinet that went down to D. I assumed that the extra key was added to produce concert C, which would let you play cello parts.
Chris -
The photos show 7 holes below the right little finger stack:
G# (hidden)
F# (opposite the three holes in line)
F (the top hole of the three in line)
E (middle of 3)
Eb (bottom of 3, operated by the right thumb,
since the usual key for the right little finger is absent)
D (thumb)
Db (thumb)
C (thumb)
Ken Shaw
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2011-01-22 13:56
Scroll down a bit...
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
Post Edited (2011-01-22 16:24)
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2011-01-22 14:12
I worked on a Moennig Los Angeles bass years ago which was Boehm system to low Eb, having the low Eb issue from a mushroom-shaped vent on the front of the lower joint. This could be closed off to give a good low D.
The shape of this bass was very German having a very tight S-bend to the crook (the upper speaker vent went through the top socket and lined up with an elongated hole in the crook tenon), so I assume this was a German bass built with Boehm system keywork for the US market. Had it been German/Oehler system, it would probably descend to low D having a key to cover a tonehole where the mushroom vent was.
A lot of older German basses went to low D (concert C) - we only really have basses built to low Eb to cover the range of an A bass clarinet (so a Bb bass can reach the low E on an A bass), but now we're on equal footing with full Oehler basses in that our Boehm system pro level basses also descend to low C.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: David Spiegelthal ★2017
Date: 2011-01-22 15:32
Chris P, you are correct about the Gebruder Moennig bass clarinets, they were indeed made in Germany and imported by Baxter-Northrup in Los Angeles (some were marked accordingly). They had the mushroom vent and range to low Eb, which could be closed off to give low written D. I've worked on two of these (one metal and one wood) and seen a third one on That Auction Site.
BTW, although a really cool-looking design, the two Moennig Bros. bass clarinets I worked on were not good players.
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2011-01-22 16:06
Yeah - the keywork would bend up just by looking at them.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2011-01-22 16:24
Attachment: uebelbass.jpg (246k)
It is built to low D - the F/C key has doubled pad cups. See the attachment where I've labelled the toneholes (low D issues from the bell).
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: HANGARDUDE
Date: 2013-01-22 15:33
Herr Fruitbat, your horn is the most exotic thing I saw since Dennis Smylie's "Sickle" bass. I may not have any interest in metal horns, but your horn's other features are too terrific to look away from. I have been desperate to get a Low D2 on my horn, a student Low Eb Yamaha. I also love the German sound. And I'm in love with the L-bell. Straight bells sound more powerful than ordinary U-bells, but I think the former looks rather crude. The L-bell is a balance between both, as well as its own exotic appearance. It is my dream bell. Boehm system means I don't need to change fingerings as I don't have time to learn the Oehler(I'd like to try though). This baby is something I would have hoped for.
Even though I'm not quite sure if I'm gonna ever snatch this baby, I'm definitely putting an L-bell on my future horn! Better sound while standing out from everything else!
Josh
Post Edited (2013-01-31 09:11)
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Author: Wes
Date: 2013-01-22 20:46
On my Lefebre bass to low Eb, most likely imported by Baxter Northrup also, I have a removeable D extension. The extension could have been made by the late Glen Johnston, a teacher of mine, but if used, the Eb is not available. This instrument has very large tonehole undercutting in the lower area, needed because it has a single octave key, a design tradeoff.
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Author: David Spiegelthal ★2017
Date: 2013-01-22 21:13
Is it a coincidence that HANGARDUDE's post comes exactly 2 years after Chris P's post (the post directly preceding in the thread)?
Happy double anniversary, G.R. Uebel bass clarinet thread!
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2013-01-22 21:35
Two years and fifty-one minutes!
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: Lelia Loban ★2017
Date: 2013-01-23 12:47
Somehow I doubt that anything like that gorgeous Uebel bass will ever turn up at a flea market around here. Oh well. But thank you (belatedly) for posting the pictures, because that's not just a musical instrument, it's a work of art.
Lelia
http://www.scoreexchange.com/profiles/Lelia_Loban
To hear the audio, click on the "Scorch Plug-In" box above the score.
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