 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: ww.player
Date: 2013-04-15 14:15
I have a very advanced student. Actually, she's the first student in my 25 years of teaching that I'm recommending consider a career in performance, she's that good. We bought her a 1974 R13 A clarinet about a year ago that had been overhauled/voiced by a well known specialty shop. It was simply a fantastic instrument and lined pretty up well with her 1973 R13 Bb, even though the A played better (better in tune, more consistency between notes and registers, less resistance, etc....).
We recently got a custom barrel for her A and it is twice as amazing. With the new barrel, the sound is huge, dark, effortless, and projects beautifully. The intonation is spot on. In fact, it's the best clarinet I have ever played, and I've played thousands. I can't even think of anything that's a close second.
The issue now, of course, is that it sounds and plays significantly different than her Bb. The tone is much bigger and richer. The response is less resistant in a good way. It's almost like the A plays itself.
So, here's the $1,000,000 question: should she go back to the old barrel which better lines the A up with her Bb or should she go for the glorious A sound and perhaps try to make the Bb match closer by having it voiced or even getting another instrument? Her Bb is already a really fine instrument but, IMO, would benefit from being voiced. Still, I can't imagine a Bb that would ever be able to compete with this A's sound. Of course, another option with the A is to use the stock barrel for section work and the custom barrel for solos.
I usually fall on the side of subjugating the A and just making it as close to the Bb as possible, but her A is simply so good that I really feel like it would be a major loss to "dumb" it down to her Bb. And, BTW, she is working on the Mozart Concerto right now.
Thoughts, anyone?
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Author: Tobin
Date: 2013-04-15 14:41
Reducing the A to the quality of the Bb is a poor choice. Let the quest be on for improving the Bb or finding a new one, whether that can be accomplished in a short amount of time or over 10 years.
It's inevitable that one of her horns will be better than the other. Why diminish such a fine instrument simply because the Bb isn't it's equal?
James
Gnothi Seauton
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Author: William
Date: 2013-04-15 14:44
Just a thought, try using the new A barrel of the Bb. Many clarinetist's do this to facilitate mouthpiece changes and help smooth tuning issues when going from a warmed up instrument to the other one that has been cooling on the stand.
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Author: kdk
Date: 2013-04-15 14:49
My knee-jerk reaction is that if the Bb instrument "is already a really fine instrument," I would absolutely try to bring it up to its potential. I wouldn't personally change anything about the A to make it more like the Bb. The ideal would be for both clarinets to play as well as they can be made to play. At that point your student needs to learn to make any adjustment that's needed between the two when she moves from one to the other. I would personally never "dumb down" one instrument to match another one.
I don't really see that it matters if they aren't identical in sound and response (which would be unusual, IMO). The important thing if the student is a serious player is that all of her equipment be in the best playing condition possible.
Karl
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Author: Tony Pay ★2017
Date: 2013-04-15 18:05
There is no such thing as 'a wonderful sound' independent of the context in which you use it. 'Huge, dark, effortless and projects beautifully' certainly sounds good -- unless you need to be expressing 'lonely, tiny, sad and intimate', or 'unobtrusive yet contributory'.
The crucial thing is, does the instrument allow her to express the whole range? If so, then it's a great instrument, and she should learn to control it. If she can't do so, then for her the A is a failure for a different reason.
What the Bb will do is really irrelevant to the issue.
Indeed, she might realise from her experience of her wonderful A -- if indeed it is wonderful -- that she really wants to find out how to make the Bb behave better when she has to play it.
She'd then be more likely to find out what it might take to do that.
Tony
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Author: tims
Date: 2013-04-21 08:12
I agree with Karl that it doesn't really matter if they aren't identical in sound and response. What does matter is intonation. Because the Bb will be played more than the A, your student will learn to automatically adjust the pitch around the tendencies of the Bb which will carry over to the A, potentially causing difficulty playing the A in ensemble or against a piano.
There are many good technicians capable of tuning the Bb to match (within reason) the tendencies of the A, so I would go that route. You may simply begin with trying barrels and see if any bring the Bb in line with the A.
Tim Sites
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Author: Ed Palanker
Date: 2013-04-22 01:10
Never ever have a clarinet "voiced" unless there's something wrong with it in the first place. Anytime you change something with the bore of a clarinet something else will be effected and possibly for the worse. I think the solution is obvious to me. Get a new barrel for the Bb. There are so many good costum barrels being made today it's just a matter of trying as many as possible. First look for the tone quality and eveness of the tone and then make sure it tunes well using a tuner, at least as good as it does now. If your student can go to one of the clarinet festivals where many barrel makers are present she can try out dozens. I use Backun barrels on my Buffets and I tried at least a dozen for each clarinet before finding the right fit. I use a Segal on my Selmer Bb custom made for that clarinet. There are many other good makers too. By the way, the A clarinet will always sound richer and warmer then a Bb but you could get them closer. A costume bell can make a difference too. I use Backun bells of all my clarinets.
PS. don't suggest your student become a performance major unless she can be a double major, there are no jobs out there for the hundreds of students graduating every year already. 98% never get a playing job that they can make a living from. Even less for a clarinet major for a symphony job anyway.
ESP eddiesclarinet.com
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