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My 24 year old Buffet E11 clarinet

Author: Nomenclature
Date: 2019-02-15 01:08

I've had a Buffet E11 since I was a music student and it's now 24 years old. It's been very well played and I use it to teach with rather than my nice new Buffet RC. Recently I've been having issues with the E11 and have noticed, in general, it sounds pretty flat despite me using a shorter barrel. I get a lot of water in the keys (A and Bb); more than I've ever done in the past. It just no longer sounds good.

I'm not sure if it's it or me to be honest. I practise most days and feel my embouchure isn't as it was. Not sure if it's due to getting older; I certainly haven't had any dental work done or major health changes.

For a while I used Fibracell reeds but they don't last very long before the see-through backing floats away from the reed so I've gone back to Vandoren ones, which I've used for years. I'm finding them really difficult to play now though. I've always used strength 3 but can hardly blow them and am getting a sore bottom jaw. I guess perhaps using synthetic reeds have made me a bit lazy.

I've never had the clarinet serviced (strange, I know) but it's always been ok and I was advised by a local repairer that if there's nothing wrong with it, just to leave it. I'm not sure if I should get it overhauled/serviced or if it's past its best.

Is 24 years good for a Buffet E11, or should I expect to get longer from it? It was brand new when I bought it. It's always been treated with care and never dropped etc. Should I just sell it as it is without a service?

I'm feeling a little deflated as I type this as it just sounds nowhere near as good as it used to. Could it be me? I'm in my 40s so not 'old' but does your embouchure change with age? My RC is in storage at the moment so unfortunately I can't use it to compare.

Any advice would be great thanks!

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