 The Clarinet BBoard
|
Author: corgireg
Date: 2015-08-23 12:36
I have been offered a Besson Academy bb Clarinet but I cant find any information on this particular make or model.
Can anybody help please
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Chris P
Date: 2015-08-23 13:31
Do you have any photos or know the serial number? Besson clarinets were mostly B&H stencils and carry B&H serial numbers. It should also say 'Made in England' on the back of the lower joint just beneath the socket ring. If you know the body material and key plating, then it will be the same instrument as one of the following:
If it's plastic with nickel plated keys, then it's the same as a B&H Regent.
If it's wood with nickel plated keys, then it's the same as a B&H Edgware.
If it's wood with silver plated keys, then it's the same as a B&H Emperor.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: corgireg
Date: 2015-08-23 17:01
Thanks for reply Chris, The Clarinet is made of wood with keys that have numbers stamped in them, I dont know if thats nickel plated or Nickel ? The inscpiption says Besson London 800 on the top and on the bell it says ACADEMY Besson & Co Ltd Makers London 800
serial numbers says made in England 178690
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Chris P
Date: 2015-08-23 17:22
That's a very late '50s one going by the serial number (from a reliable source and not from some sites that claim their B&H serial number lists as being gospel). It sounds like it has the earlier style keywork and setting out of the joints - if it has two (or one and a half) trill key guides, a smooth LH F/C touchpiece and a short leaf-shaped symmetrical C#/G# key, then it has the earlier style keywork.
Nickel plate is either very smooth and shiny (almost like chrome) or has a dull grey look that won't shine up using a polishing cloth whereas silver will tarnish black and can be brought back to shiny easily with a polishing cloth. If the plating has tarnished, then please don't use any liquid polish (Brasso, Silvo, etc.) on it as that will only make a mess. Either use a polishing cloth (for silver plate) or nothing as you can't do any harm that way.
Now, are the numbers in a block of four (2x2) actually stamped into the metal or in a single line and raised above the surface of the undersides of the keys?
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Chris P
Date: 2015-08-23 18:36
That looks to be in excellent condition. It's the equivalent of an Edgware as it appears to have nickel plated keywork and is a transitional instrument as it has mostly older style keywork but the newer layout of the joints with the single trill key guide.
The socket rings are unusual for their time as they're like those seen on Leblanc Concertos which weren't launched until the '90s, so B&H may have got in there first with this style of socket ring on a production model clarinet (unless you count some 19th Century or earlier non-Boehm system clarinets).
The metal bell ring was often fitted to export model B&H clarinets and also the earlier Besson "35" (plastic) and "55" (wood) clarinets from the '50s/early '60s.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: corgireg
Date: 2015-08-23 23:00
Hi Chris I really appreciate your help on this, could I trouble you a little further and ask what price would you put on it
Cheers
Jim
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Chris P
Date: 2015-08-23 23:45
That's a difficult one as they don't command much of a price to buy - anything from around the £50 mark in poor/neglected condition to maybe pushing £350-400 tops in fully overhauled condition.
But for insurance purposes you should insure it for the full retail price of either a Buffet E11/E12 or a Yamaha YCL-450 as they're in a similar price banding being an entry level wooden clarinet.
They have the same bore and tonehole layout as the Imperial 926 which was the mainstay clarinet of UK military bands until the mid '80s when B&H shut shop and they switched to Buffet R13s which B&H imported from then up until the early 2000s.
Make sure the barrel is 67mm and they're best played with it pulled out by around 1mm. Shorter barrels can be found on eBay if you do need one and it would be better to buy an extra shorter barrel instead of having the existing one shortened as B&H barrels are increasingly harder to come by in their full 67mm length (likewise with Selmer CT barrels).
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: modernicus
Date: 2015-08-24 01:49
From what I've seen, the smooth socket rings are more common in the UK than anywhere else on older clarinets. I have a ca. 1880 J.T.L. Boehm high pitch sold in England originally and it has them. I've seen an old Buffet Boehm C for auction in the UK and it had the same-IIRC it was 20th c. even.
Post Edited (2015-08-24 01:52)
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Chris P
Date: 2015-08-24 14:27
duplicate post
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
Post Edited (2015-08-24 14:30)
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Chris P
Date: 2015-08-24 14:29
Smooth, flat-sided socket rings were commonplace on British clarinets (and then Artleys had them too) as they were seen on old Boosey&Co or Hawkes&Son simple/Albert, Clinton and Boehm systems as well as the Imperial 926 and 1010s, but the domed ones as fitted on this clarinet weren't generally seen on other clarinets since this one was made until the launch of the Leblanc Concerto.
The only B&H clarinets I've seen stencilled as Besson were the "35" (B&H Regent), the "55" (Edgware) and the Westminster (Edgware) - some had metal bell rings and others didn't.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
The Clarinet Pages
|
 |
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
