 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: SteveG_CT
Date: 2011-09-01 14:34
Does anyone know whether H. Bettoney / Cundy-Bettoney made their own wood clarinets or if they were stencils made by another company? I mostly seen Bettoney associated with metal clarinets (I own a couple of them) but have never really read anything about their wood offerings.
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Author: David Spiegelthal ★2017
Date: 2011-09-01 18:03
I sent a very attractive rosewood (NOT grenadilla) H. Bettoney clarinet to another frequent BB poster, maybe a year ago. I have no reason to believe it was a stencil made by someone else, but have no way to check that.
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Author: The Doctor ★2017
Date: 2011-09-02 00:19
Dave, I adore you - just kidding but anything covered in a layer of dust that has a name that does not start with B,S,L,or Y you always describe in such glowing terms that it almost convinces me (as you have in the past) !!
L. Omar Henderson
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Author: tictactux ★2017
Date: 2011-09-02 06:50
Y'know, these B,S,L and Ys are the Fords, Toyotas, Chevrolets, Volkswagens that keep the world spinning.
But sometimes, for the sheer fun of it, it must be a Spitfire, or a Karmann, an Alfa Spider even... ;-)
--
Ben
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Author: David Spiegelthal ★2017
Date: 2011-09-02 12:58
Love ya too, Dr. Omar, but please note I didn't pass any judgement on the Bettoney clarinet I had worked on (other than commenting on its attractive appearance from being made of rosewood), I only mentioned its existence and lack of any indication that it was a 'stencil' instrument.
But I must plead guilty to playing (and driving) somewhat off the beaten path. I have four cars, all of which I drive frequently, and three of them are Italian cars from the 1970s (two Fiats and a Lancia). So my judgement on musical instruments is highly suspect!
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Author: Buster
Date: 2011-09-03 00:43
These automotive comparisons bring to light a very crucial question, with all due respect to the Brits:
What is the clarinet equivalent of Lucas Electrics, or better named, The Prince of Darkness? .....(aside from the obvious answer- the reed)
???
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Author: David Spiegelthal ★2017
Date: 2011-09-03 00:53
Why do the English drink their beer warm?
Because they have Lucas refrigerators.
The clarinet equivalent of Lucas electrics would have to be the bass clarinet's automatic double register vent mechanism.
The English car fans would say that the Marelli electrics in some of my cars, or the Bosch electrics in most German cars (and those of many other nationalities, including Italian) are just as unreliable as Lucas.
And yet there do exist well-designed bass clarinet register mechanisms that are reasonably sturdy and reliable.
As for reeds......it could be worse, we could be oboists.......
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Author: Buster
Date: 2011-09-03 01:49
ahhhh..... good call Mr. Spiegelthal, the double-register mechanism completely slipped my mind but fits the bill quite well.
I do think our younger readers will have to look this reference up to have any idea about what we speak.
(Lucas Co., which still is around I believe?, actually pre-dates me by several decades; I am only lucky enough to have experienced the wrath of The Prince of Darkness first hand in my short 33 years. -Mainly, having the headlights "turn themselves off" on Mulholland in my friends Austin Healy. Thankfully it was only dusk. ......and some of the most fun I've had was whipping around an old MG (with a Lucas sourced clock permanently reading 2:46) on a curvy road; double-clutching on the downshifts only to hear the gears still grind.)
but when all is said and done I'll still take old American-V8 muscle. (Bundy?)
- 0 to 60? under 4 seconds
- 60 to 0? 14 seconds
- dB? 120
- curves? well I can't say as we welded the diff
- pollution? ummmmmm.....
- gas? the purple stuff
- mileage? whats that?
- the experience? Priceless
now back to the clarinet
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Author: Ken Shaw ★2017
Date: 2011-09-03 14:45
Many years ago (when mastotons roamed the earth and VWs had 6-volt electrical systems), I got tired of my Bug's dim headlights, which wouldn't flash bright enough to remind oncoming drivers to turn off their brights. I installed a Lucas "Flame Thrower" driving light, which threw a pencil-thin beam for over a mile.
NOBODY ignored that little reminder to be courteous, and I got a wonderful infantile thrill of power from using it. I still have it, waiting for 6-volt systems to come back.
If I could only find a way to mount it on my clarinet, for when the brassholes start rooting around and blasting.
Ken Shaw
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