 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: ruben
Date: 2014-05-06 14:53
When a basset horn is not available or affordable, what do our readers think of playing the former's part on the alto clarinet, which involves a very simple transposition? Is this an acceptable or too big a compromise? An alto-clarinet being a popular band instrument, I should think it would be quite easy to buy one second-hand for a very modest sum (a Noblet, for example).
rubengreenbergparisfrance@gmail.com
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Author: John Peacock
Date: 2014-05-06 16:17
I've never played an alto clarinet, but I've used Selmer and Leblanc basset horns. The former is narrow-bore, using a standard mouthpiece; the latter is large-bore and uses an alto clarinet mouthpiece. They certainly feel quite different, and I'd guess that the Leblanc is more similar to a standard alto clarinet than it is to the Selmer basset. If that's so, then no reason not to use an alto (unless you need the basset written bottom C). Certainly, I've played the Leblanc basset together with someone on a Selmer, and there wasn't a difficulty in matching sounds.
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Author: David Spiegelthal ★2017
Date: 2014-05-06 17:36
In my part of the world, I doubt anyone cares. And not to start a flame war or digress from the topic, but in my personal opinion anything that can be played on an alto clarinet or basset horn will sound better in the lower registers on bass clarinet and better in the high registers played on soprano clarinet.
I play in a pretty decent clarinet choir in which two players use basset horns (one plays a Leblanc and the other a Wurlitzer Reform Boehm) and until a couple of years ago when I switched to my preferred instrument (bass clarinet) I was in their section, but used a plain old alto clarinet (a 1950s-vintage hard rubber Kohlert). Had no problems blending with them.
Yes, alto clarinets can be had very cheaply over on this side of the pond. For the most part they have only been used in school concert bands and the occasional clarinet choir, and there seems to be a trend towards elimination of them from concert bands so the used market is full of ex-school alto clarinets. How many would you like? Buy a dozen and get a nice discount!
Post Edited (2014-05-07 18:33)
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Author: ebonite
Date: 2014-05-06 19:55
An instrument maker with experience in making keywork would be able to extend an alto clarinet down to low D (corresponding to the basset horn's low c) to get the full range of the basset horn. It would need one pad cup on the extension piece, connected to the Eb key, as well as a linkage to the bell key. This linkage would need to connect to a thumb key added to the lower joint. Not a trivial job, but simpler than a bass clarinet extension. I would guess that the total cost of the used alto clarinet, plus extension would be less than the cost of a used basset horn, if you managed to get a good alto clarinet for a good price.
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Author: David Spiegelthal ★2017
Date: 2014-05-06 21:59
That would be an easy job. Having made two complete low-C extensions for bass clarinets in the past year, I could probably build a one-note alto clarinet extension in my sleep, if there were any compelling reason to do so 
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Author: Simon Aldrich
Date: 2014-05-07 08:57
A few years ago, I asked the bboard if anyone had added a low D to an alto clarinet. Morrie Backun replied that he had done such an operation, with a cocobolo bell in addition to the low D mechanism.
http://test.woodwind.org/clarinet/BBoard/read.html?f=1&i=311869&t=311869
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