Author: Ralph Katz
Date: 2022-03-04 07:04
OK – here are my thoughts.
Nobody makes a case for an alto clarinet to which Stephen Fox has added a low D and adapted to use a standard soprano clarinet bell. Jason Alder is the only other person I know who has a similar instrument; Jared De Leon did his mods, starting with a higher-end instrument. I don't know what he does for a case.
There are cheaper cases to start with, and lighter. But they lose the opportunity factor here. An enterprising business performed all the tasks required to make it for me. The people there were friendly. They were not particularly quick about things, but this is what Covid is doing to businesses. All-in-all, I think the techies who made it for me are awesome.
These photos were also posted on the Facebook "Clarinetists" group, where David Blumberg asked about humidity control, a completely valid concern. To that end, while the more open design of Marcus Bona cases gives the instruments less support, it also offers better air migration for humidity control. These two instruments don't get played every day; there will be less moisture in the case to contend with than if I played them every day. This is a concern I will have to address, which may involve cutting away some of the foam, adding humidification or desiccation. The most important thing for me is that I have a utilitarian case now, and didn't have to spend days running around looking for supplies.
My other homebrew, a 20-year-old triple case for A/Bb/C, cost under $120 to put together then. It uses a more open-cell foam, so humidity control has not been an issue. I looked into doing this now, but the case style used for the first project is not available in the right size, and the local supplier who sold me the foam is out of business.
I spent a few hours traveling to have this thing made for me for $308. It holds $6000 worth of instruments. So I don't think it is at all expensive.
Post Edited (2022-03-04 07:15)
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The Clarinet BBoard
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