 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: travelingclarinetist
Date: 2011-09-18 03:16
Ok, question folks-One of my teachers has advised me to stay away from Patricola Clarinets because of "not being able to blend" with the rest of the studio in ensembles.....is this true or a biased opinion (he plays Buffet). I want to play a great horn, and don't want to judge a book by its cover. Muncy Winds is about 4hrs from me, and I really am interested in them (not for beauty, but because of the sound!).
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Author: DAVE
Date: 2011-09-18 05:03
I played a Patricola Eb on a few concerts and a recording with the Naahville Symphony. I blended just fine. The only horn I ever had any trouble with was a yamaha CSG. I loved the horn but could not fit it with the other clarinet players.
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Author: gwie
Date: 2011-09-18 08:41
I don't think I've ever had any problem blending on any clarinet I've played in ensembles. It's a software (player) issue, not a hardware (clarinet) one.
Go figure...I play a Yamaha CSG these days, works just fine for me!
G.
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Author: cigleris
Date: 2011-09-18 09:44
Sounds like your teacher is rather narrow minded. Gwie put it perfectly I think
Peter Cigleris
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Author: sonicbang
Date: 2011-09-18 10:02
Good clarinets can be blended. Bad ones not. Buffet and Patricola are fine brands this problem is a non-existing one.
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Author: Ken Shaw ★2017
Date: 2011-09-18 15:13
I studied flute with a teacher who had a wonderful Powell. She got it from *her* teacher, who was in the Cleveland Orchestra. Maurice Sharp played a (gold) Haynes, and the other players were required to switch.
At any level below that, I think it doesn't matter.
And anyway, you need to be able to change your tone color enough to merge your clarinet with, say, a flute, creating a "flarinet." Matching two brands of clarinets is simple stuff. See http://test.woodwind.org/clarinet/BBoard/read.html?f=1&i=94788&t=94788.
Ken Shaw
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Author: Paul Aviles
Date: 2011-09-18 20:52
Specifically speaking of Patricolas and specifically speaking of blending there should be no pitch or tone issues of any significance. HOWEVER, I had noticed on the rosewood versions that they are somewhat (not huge mind you) limited dynamically compared with Buffets or even Yamahas. So if you are counting being able to match one for one with loud players in a section, that may be worth considering (at least with the rosewood from my experience).
Now, there are other issues to consider with various brands as far as pitch tendencies and timbre issues that are REAL and SERIOUS differences. True, a fine player can make allowances for most if not all of these, but whenever you give yourself more hurdles to jump, you disadvantage yourself with each.
......................Paul Aviles
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2011-09-19 14:01
It's the player that makes and shapes their tone, not the clarinet.
If you give a player a lineup of different clarinets (makes and models), they will still play in the same manner and still make pretty much the same tone from one instrument to another as they would normally do.
You can also give a beginner or a very weak player several different clarinets to try and they'll still make the same sound on all of them.
It's up to the player to blend, not down to the instrument they play. I just had someone ask me if a certain clarinet will be fine for playing in a band - any clarinet is fine for playing in a band. She also wondered why some players of certain makes have such a dreadful sound and others don't - again it's the player that makes the sound and not the instrument.
A clarinet is a tool that will allow you to express your self musically, so finding the one that works best for you and allows you to shape your sound to suit any given situation is solely down to you, not down to the prejudice of others to dictate what make you should or shouldn't be playing.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: MarlboroughMan
Date: 2011-09-19 14:26
In my experience, only certain very narrowminded Buffet players ever say or teach that other makes "can't blend" with their Buffets. Every other player I've ever been involved with, whether they play a Wurlitzer, Leblanc, Selmer, Yamaha, or whatever else, has been able to get along just fine.
I'd point out that several top orchetras play with mixed sections, and they do just fine.
I've heard Buffet players who coudn't blend with each other, but then I've also heard German system players blend with Buffets and Selmers in the same section. Go figure. In my opinion, music school should be about finding your best voice, not preparing yourself to play only in a certain clarinet ensemble for the next semester or two. By the end of those semesters, you'll find yourself stuck with an instrument you didn't want, and more lost in your concept of playing.
Play your thing.
Eric
******************************
The Jazz Clarinet
http://thejazzclarinet.blogspot.com/
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2011-09-19 14:35
The same player I saw earlier on was told to go for a Buffet R13 over an RC by her teacher - in fact, she was told specifically to avoid the RC altogether.
I told her to go and try as many clarinets as possible to see which one she liked best and not to be badgered into getting just the one she was told to as it's down to personal choice. But if after trying them all out she happens to like how an R13 plays over all the others on offer, then that's her choice.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: JJAlbrecht
Date: 2011-09-19 17:05
Our band has clarinets from:
Buffet
Leblanc
Selmer
Ridenour
B&H
We blend just fine, thank you.
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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