 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: gingertonic
Date: 2016-02-26 20:41
Hi all,
I am about to start a contract with a touring tent show. I've done this before and the damage and service fees afterwards (sawdust, horse poo...) were quite horrific. This one will be more sawdust, more poo, plus extreme weather conditions (rain, cold, freezing to hot, humid, sweaty)
Last time I just needed the eefer and my E11 survived okay but I need Bb this time and no way I'm take Eatons. I have the option of purchasing a B12 or this Excella instrument (both adjusted to perfection by a lovely tech I had the fortune of meeting this week). I like the Excella but it's not the best thing ever. It's certainly more flexible and round than the B12 but then the B12 is a workhorse, it's consistent, payoff is a bit of tone warmth. And of course, made of plastic so it's not going to moan about getting a bit moist or poo-ey... (Ya, I know)
My little conservatoire-brain is saying 'what will they think of you playing a B12, SCANDAL!" but my real world brain is saying it's 90% the player and frankly, we're not playing symphonies here! The B12 is easy to get around, it's half the price...
Any thoughts?
Ran away to circus. Bakson.
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Author: Paul Aviles
Date: 2016-02-26 21:34
Yeah, buy a Vito or Bundy for $400. Really decent sounding, in tune horns...... nothing like the piece of crap B12.
..............Paul Aviles
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Author: sfalexi
Date: 2016-02-26 21:55
Most common answer I've see in these boards is "Vito resotone".
My personal thoughts are that your sound (tone) is less affected the further down the clarinet you go. Your mouthpiece setup and barel contribute the most to tone, body of the clarinet very little. I consider the body and bell to focus on tuning and resistance from note to note rather than tone. And the Vito resotone seems to be regarded on this board as pretty good in that aspect, and the go to choice for good enough tuning in a wood-threatening environment.
Alexi
US Army Japan Band
Post Edited (2016-02-26 21:55)
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Author: Ursa
Date: 2016-02-26 22:16
What Paul said.
The Selmer (USA) 1400B is the familiar old Bundy 1400, but updated with a woodgrain finish and a metal bell ring. It won't be so obvious that you're on a non-wooden horn.
The Bundy 1400 was also sold by Boosey & Hawkes as the Model 78.
The Bundy 1400/Selmer 1400B/B&H 78 are built with rust-resistant stainless steel springs and screws, adding a extra degree of weatherproofing that the B12 and most Vitos lack.
To be totally honest, after purchasing my Bundy 1400 from a Las Vegas pawn shop, I later gave it a quick test play in my hotel room--and didn't want to put it down. The richness and depth of the 1400's voicing really impressed me. No wonder they sold over a million of them...
You could also have your tech install weather-resistant pads on a 1400, making it even more rebust against the elements.
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Author: Ken Shaw ★2017
Date: 2016-02-26 22:27
When you look at a Bundy, make sure it's one of the relatively early ones with a flat spring for the throat A key. They switched to a needle spring along the way, which had to be very short to fit. If it was thin enough for easy technique, it frequently snapped.
Ken Shaw
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Author: Merlin_Williams
Date: 2016-02-27 01:05
My go to horn for any kind of variable weather is a Ridenour Lyrique. I've played it in extreme heat, both dry and humid - after taking it out of an air conditioned cabin. Salty sea air as well.
Jupiter Canada Artist/Clinician
Stratford Shakespeare Festival musician
Woodwind Doubling Channel Creator on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/c/WoodwindDoubling
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Author: gingertonic
Date: 2016-02-27 05:27
Thank you very much for the thoughts guys, I've bought the B12 as a sure thing interim to start the season and will keep my eye out for one of your suggestions.
I did try a Vito the other day but first impressions were awful. It wasn't a Resotone though so I'll keep extra eye out for those.
Ran away to circus. Bakson.
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Author: sfalexi
Date: 2016-02-27 06:12
Give the b12 a good trial. It may end up being fine. Enjoy the addition to your clarinet family!
Alexi
US Army Japan Band
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2016-02-27 11:05
If you want an all-weather clarinet, then this is the criteria - it has to be either plastic, resin or ebonite bodied. Although ebonite can turn green and smell of sulphur with prolonged exposure to sunlight.
It will also have to have stainless steel screws and springs throughout or with stainless steel needle springs and phosphor bronze flat springs so they shouldn't rust.
Also synthetic pads that are hard wearing, won't absorb moisture, won't become sticky nor dry out, so it's a case of getting a decent non-wooden clarinet and making it battle ready for whatever conditions it has to endure.
But with all that in place, still maintain it as you would with your concert instrument, so always dry it out after playing, blot the wet pads and regularly grease the tenon corks and add a drop of oil periodically to the mechanism.
B&H Regents also make good all-weather clarinets.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: Roxann
Date: 2016-02-27 19:44
I use my Bundy plastic clarinet my folks bought for me in about 1959 when there's no way I'd bring out my B12. It still serves me well! I had it re-padded and it gets me through everything. Every summer I play outdoor concerts and parades (Shrine Circus...complete with clowns in little cars:) and out comes my handy Bundy. It never fails me:)
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Author: Lelia Loban ★2017
Date: 2016-02-27 19:55
I'd strongly recommend staying away from hard rubber, no matter how cheap, if there's any chance the clarinet will get exposed to sunlight or extremes of hot and cold. Hard rubber isn't suitable for outdoor use. The hard rubber clarinets I see at outdoor flea markets (or for sale indoors by dealers I recognize from outdoor markets) are nearly always in atrocious condition, from being exposed for a few hours per week. I'm not just talking about the cosmetic deterioration from sun that turns the rubber green on the side that's exposed while the clarinet lies in the case. Worse than that happens: these clarinets warp. Some of them have metal sleeves up the insides of one or both stacks. These hold up somewhat better, but the tone holes themselves warp, especially where they're in contact with keys that stay closed unless the clarinet player opens them. I've seen those keys sunken right down into the rubber.
Lelia
http://www.scoreexchange.com/profiles/Lelia_Loban
To hear the audio, click on the "Scorch Plug-In" box above the score.
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Author: TomS
Date: 2016-02-28 03:13
I vote "yes" for the Ridenour Lyrique 576BC ... but I have a couple of old Bundy's and they "don't have any flies on them" ... if you know what I mean.
Owned Vito's too ... very good ... don't have one now, but if memory serves ...
A new Lyrique 576BC is amazingly under a grand. You can find Bundy's and Vito's and overhaul them for about 1/2 to 2/3 of that amount ... but the 576 plays much better in tune and has more uniform blowing/timbre/resistance than the Bundy or Vito.
Hats off to Selmer and Leblanc for making such really good student instruments in their day.
Tom
Post Edited (2016-02-28 03:18)
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2016-02-28 04:02
Attachment: buescher-aristocrat 001.JPG (165k)
If not a Bundy, then a Buescher Aristocrat is the same thing - as is the B&H "78" and Cavendish, King among many others.
I fully overhauled a forty (or thereabouts) year old Buescher Aristocrat the other month and it played like a dream. That's including cork and leather pads as I'd do on any full overhaul on a pro instrument - if the customer wants it done and is willing to pay for it, then maintain the same standard as you'd set when overhauling a pro level clarinet.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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