 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: hammerclarinet
Date: 2016-03-27 08:01
Has anyone here switched from Buffet instruments to Selmer instruments? If you have, which specific instruments were they and how have your experiences changed after switching? Why did you make the switch?
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Author: gwie
Date: 2016-03-27 10:41
One of my private students switched from Buffet to a Selmer Recital. He felt that the manner in which the new instrument responded to his input gave him more of what he felt was important to him in his sound.
I honestly did not find that his sound changed dramatically...rather it was the instrument fit him so much better that the increase in his playing confidence did wonders for his musicianship.
Count me in the category of teachers that is extremely ambivalent about the specific brand of instrument that anyone plays...as long as it is a high quality instrument from a competent manufacturer, as long as it works for you in the kinds of playing situations you find yourself in, then that is all that really matters.
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Author: Clarineteer
Date: 2016-03-27 15:30
There is a long time Buffet performing artist that played Toscas and switched to become a Selmer performing artist when they introduced the Privilege.
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Author: MarlboroughMan
Date: 2016-03-28 00:28
I grew up emulating the Selmer-era sounds of Benny Goodman and Artie Shaw, bought a Selmer 10S in my teens, and used it as my regular Bb until college (my A was a 1951 Fritz Wurlitzer Reform Boehm).
In college, I switched to the Buffet R13, as it was still considered in some circles to be a professional necessity for anyone auditioning for American orchestras. I played both jazz and classical, and wanted to keep my options open.
After graduating and playing professionally for a while, frustrated by the tone of Buffets, I switched back to Selmers. At first I simply returned to my 10S Bb, paired with a Recital A, but was increasingly dissatisfied. I felt there was a better instrument out there for my sound concept, so switched to vintage Fritz Wurlitzers for a couple of years. Eventually I returned, though, this time to Selmer Centered Tones.
The CT is a large bore like the old Fritz Wurlitzer, and responds similarly; as such they are physically a better fit for me than Buffets or smaller bore Selmers like the 10S. But the CT is also freer blowing, with a larger sound than the Wurlitzers. So for me it was the best of all possible worlds. About four or five years ago, I decided to focus entirely on jazz performance, so any need to blend with orchestral sections was no longer a consideration, and I could follow my tone concept single-mindedly.
I'm glad that the American clarinet world has opened more, and that players are now using a greater diversity of clarinets. That diversity of use was always there, of course, but now it's better known. My favorite classical sounds are general produced these day by Selmer and Wurlitzer players. My favorite jazz sounds remain the old players like Artie, Benny, Pete, Jimmie, Edmond, et al., and that's the tradition I aim to contribute most to, soundwise.
Eric
******************************
The Jazz Clarinet
http://thejazzclarinet.blogspot.com/
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Author: Ed Palanker
Date: 2016-03-28 16:50
I switched from my Bb Buffet to a Bb Selmer Signature about ten years ago. I still play my Buffet A because I've never found one I liked better. I've played a Selmer bass my entire career. The reason I switched because I had been looking for a new Buffet Bb for a great many years and just never found one I liked more than my old one until out of curiosty I tried several Selmers while at my then clarinet shop helping a student choose a Buffet and simply fell in love with the tone,response and intonation of the Selmer. The only adjustment I had to make, and still have to, is making a few adjustments to intonation on some notes in the altissimo register.
ESP eddiesclarinet.com
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Author: David Spiegelthal ★2017
Date: 2016-03-29 00:38
Anyone contemplating switching away from Buffets should be aware that the Buffet Mafia knows all, and does not take lightly the abandonment of their Precious Brand. If you switch, it is strongly recommended that you retain a full-time Security Staff to protect you, including bomb-sniffing dogs. Also, keep a Buffet clarinet visible on stage (perhaps on an extra floor peg) as a decoy should there be Buffet Mafiosi in the audience looking to rub out performers such as yourself who have become unfaithful to the Big B Brand.
This is a serious matter. You have been warned.
Post Edited (2016-03-29 19:17)
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