Author: HANGARDUDE
Date: 2020-11-06 18:04
Tim,
Even though ebonite & Chris P already answered the main part of your question re: Why settle on Low Eb instead of D on the shorter model basses, I'd like to add that not all clarinet makers settle on Eb. AFAIK the Boehm French system/bore horns(Buffet, Selmer, Yamaha, etc.) ascend to Low Eb, while a number of German/Oehler system horns actually descend down to Low D, including an old Uebel German bore bass that David Speigelthal made his own Low C extension for, and also several older Fritz Wurlitzer basses that also descend down to the same note, and you can request most German makers to make a Low D horn(cost-effectiveness aside). That said, there at least one old Conn model that went down to Low C, and much more recently the short version of the Buffet Tosca Bass aka the 1185 model also descends down to Low D.
I'm personally strongly for the having the Low D the lowest note on both alto clarinets & short model bass clarinets. For the latter I often come across concert band parts that call for the Low D, and it's also handy when playing untransposed cello parts/works. Sure a Low C horn would be more ideal in many cases(and I'm fortunate enough to play and own a Selmer Low C myself), but aside from the reason of simply covering the low written E of the bass clarinet A(Low Eb on the Bb bass) I feel it makes a lot more sense to have the Low D as the lowest note rather than the Low Eb on the shorter models of the low clarinets for many reasons, though I ain't on the board of any of the clarinet maker firms... But I digress.
Back to the Low C tone hole topic: I personally play and own a Selmer Privilege Low C bass, and concur that the Low C on the Selmer is indeed a bit less 'boomy' than on the Buffet Prestige(which I've tried on several occasions), but have gotten used to it and now my Low C on the Selmer is much more powerful than I first got the instrument albeit I don't have a Buffet to compare it with.
A note on the intonation: I find the Low C to relatively in tune on the Selmer Privilege, but the Low C# was pretty flat, though AFAIK the intonation of lowest notes has been a problem that plagues many bass clarinets(Boehm horns at least!)
Josh
|
|
The Clarinet BBoard
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
