 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: thomas
Date: 2001-07-18 18:49
Hello together,
I need some advice from you all. I play Oehler clarinet (in Germany) and for 2 years I am playing Boehm system . On both clarinets I have mps with Zinner blank, the same (german, Viotto G3) facing and the same reeds (Vandoren White Master 3). My Boehm clarinet is a Buffet E13. It has a nice sound (of course totally different from my Oehler). I have the following problem: it starts with c2 and gets worse every tone to c3 (and more): If I play piano or pianissimo then my E13 in this register looses the volume and the sound quality, its body ( in contrast to my Oehler). The sound is then very thin. If i play fortissimo the sound tends to be metallic and shrill . This does not happen with my Oehler clarinet. I suppose this comes from the difference in the resistance. My Oehler has a lot of resistance in contrast to the E13 which has very low resistance ( but therefore is much more flexible for tone variations. Is it possible to overcome this problem by changing the barrel , or have I to buy a professional clarinet ? Or has for example a Festival the same problems ? Is this inherent to Boehm Instruments? If not Which barrel, which clarinet, sound like my Buffet, without these problems. Please give me some experiences and advice ( Boehm clarinets are not very common in Germany , the dealers have no stocks of them).
Thank you in advance!
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Author: Jerry McD.
Date: 2001-07-18 22:51
Thomas,
Without having played an Oehler system clarinet I believe your problem is in your choice of mouthpiece and reed setup. Both horns are probably good horns, but they blow VERY differently. Therefore, they require a different type of setup. Maybe just a different type of reed on your current mouthpiece would work, or maybe you need a different mouthpiece. Also, are you switching back and forth, or are you sticking to one system or the other. I believe you have to live (and practice) with any type of change for a period of time before you can really make a rational, detached assessment of whether the change was good. I believe the long answer to your short question is to try a different mouthpiece/reed combination before you change the horn.
Good Luck!
Jerry McD.
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Author: Ken Shaw
Date: 2001-07-19 13:54
Thomas -
Oehler and Boehm instruments have completely different bores and require completely different mouthpieces and reeds. You can't evaluate a Boehm instrument fairly using the same setup as you use on your Oehler. For one thing, it will be terribly out of tune.
Beyond, that, the instruments require different approaches. As you have found, if you blow in the "Oehler way" on a Boehm instrument, the sound gets forced and metallic when loud and wimpy when soft. It's hard to "force" the sound on an Oehler instrument, so you don't learn to avoid it. On a Boehm instrument, you need to learn to blow more gently and shape the sound to the way you want it.
Good luck.
Ken Shaw
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