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?buying a new clarinet from Howarth of London

Author: little red hood
Date: 2013-09-03 11:00

Is there anybody with experience of buying a clarinet from Howarth of London?

I come from Hong Kong and I will be travelling to UK alone next month. I have been learning the clarinet for 1.5 year and I have just started with Rose 32 etudes. I have been using Yamaha YCL250 all along. Judging from the ex-VAT price shown on the web of Howarth, it seems buying Buffet clarinet there is far much cheaper than in HK. It becomes very tempting to change my clarinet by buying from Howarth.

I don't have any experience on how to choose a good clarinet. I have been ruminating on which model of clarinet I should try on... From a few sample clips on YouTube, I like the Buffet Festival most, but then even my teacher is just using Buffet R13. Maybe I don't deserve such an expensive clarinet like Festival and can just go for R13? Quite a number of people said the quality of Buffet clarinets varies a lot so that a good R13 can sound better than other more expensive models... and perhaps I have been accustomed to use Yamaha so that Yamaha is better than Buffet to me? Yet Yamaha is cheaper in HK than in Howarth... So how many clarinets can I try in Howarth when I am even so indecisive on which model to choose? And what if in the end I find Yamaha to be better after so much trying? Just walk out from the shop after giving them so much trouble?

I play the clarinet as a hobby only. Therefore I plan to own one good clarinet only. It makes me happy to think it is time to get a better clarinet, but it also makes me anxious whether I can get the right one or not... Is there anybody who can give me some suggestions? Many thanks!

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