 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Hurstfarm
Date: 2014-02-09 23:14
A familiar problem on a used but relatively new Selmer basset horn I bought a few months back. Generally I'm very happy with what is a lovely instrument. I have taken time to get used to it, getting it regulated correctly and finding the best mouthpiece/reed/ligature combination. However, the standard throat Bb remains painfully stuffy. The A and trill key Bb are both clear as a bell. The standard Bb improves slightly with RH resonance fingerings, but it's still weak. The speaker tube is clear, and venting appears to be as good as it gets. I've replaced the speaker key pad with chamfered cork, and the Bb now plays the same whether or not the key is removed. Any suggestions on what to do next would be very much appreciated!
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2014-02-10 02:44
Selmer basset horns have just a basic simple acting speaker key as seen on Bb/A clarinets (only much longer), so throat Bb isn't great on them. I shortened the speaker tube on mine and that was a total disaster for the upper register (but rebuilt it to the original length), so they do need the extra long length of speaker tube they have.
There isn't much you can do with these, short of surgery to have an automatic throat Bb and speaker mechanism built and fitted linked to either the thumb ring or the throat A key to determine when the speaker vent or throat Bb vent are open when you operate the speaker key.
What's the tuning like on the lowest notes below low E? Both my current old ring key Selmer basset horn and previous D series (1988) were hit and miss between low E and low C.
Which is why I bought a Buffet RC Prestige basset horn which is much better (but takes an alto clarinet mouthpiece instead of a Bb/A mouthpiece), but still has several issues that Buffet should've resolved long ago. Mainly the toneholes on the back of the top joint fill with water (so could do with having metal tubes fitted that protrude into the bore) and the D/A vent (doubled F/C key pad cups) sticks on the tonehole bedplace due to the shape it is.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: donald
Date: 2014-02-10 08:42
My friend Maurice Reviol worked for Daniel Bangham some years ago (only for 6 months or so, sorry if I have spelt Mr Bangham's name incorreclty) and I recall him saying one of his jobs there involved installing a B flat resonance mechanism on a Selmer Basset horn. This came up in discussion of the SK B flat mechanism (as illustrated in the Jack Brymer clarinet book, and reccently discussed here on this BB) dn
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Author: beejay
Date: 2014-02-10 15:16
Chris P -- You are so right about the water problem on the Buffer RC Prestige basset horn. Mine gets bunged up after 10 minutes of play. Someone advised me to put a track of oil around the register keys -- but the question is how? and with what oil? And how does one prevent swapping from causing the oil to disappear? Generally, I avoid using any kind of oil on my instruments, but the water problem on this particular instrument is really chronic.
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Author: Hurstfarm
Date: 2014-02-11 00:20
Thanks for the advice. Chris, you seem to have scuppered my hope that a better speaker tube might help! I imagine that the fact that the other throat notes are fine gives some confidence that the enhanced mechanism would work, but it's a costly solution for one note on an instrument that doesn't get daily use. That said, it might still be worth considering for my own sanity... You would think that with the price premium Selmer charges for basset horns over their own altos and even their low C bass, they could afford to address this weakness.
To answer your question on tuning below low E, it's tolerable: the notes are between 5 and 15 cents flat with the instrument warmed up. By contrast, the upper clarion range is sharp by about the same margin. The intervals for BH1 at the opening of the Gran Partita Adagio are a good exercise in intonation, as to say "on average I'm in tune" doesn't seem to cut it in most chamber groups!
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2014-02-10 22:18
My old ring key Selmer basset is a three figure serial number one with the eagle/globe/Buffet-style logo - it's in effect a Buffet copy basset horn anyway.
The most recent ones haven't exactly been blessed when it comes to research and development (which is where Buffet have the upper hand) as they're the same basic instrument as this old ring key one with the awkward layout of the RH pinky keys (notably the location of the low Eb touchpiece being situated directly above the low Db touchpiece which is next to the E/B touchpiece). The only real development is adding the thumb keys, the LH Ab/Eb lever where the LH low D lever once was, a low D lever below the LH F/C lever and the plateaux main action keys instead of rings. Considering it's a narrow bore basset horn, it outplays the DDR-era Boehm system Uebel basset horns by a massive margin.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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