 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: andsoitgoes
Date: 2022-02-28 12:04
Hello all in the clarinet world...
Buffet S1, R13s, plastic bundy, Selmer 33 bass in Rome, Italy back in '05...Navy Recruit Band...at 61 years of age, I'm reflecting on a life in music...specifically with the clarinet where it all began at the age of 9 in 1970...
Sax/Clarinetquest offered a refurbished late 50s centered tone for $800. I wanted an easier-blowing jazzy replacement for my 1974 R13 that I sold on the cheap to a local woodwind dealer thinking I was getting ready to travel. But I looked up the history of the centered tone, who played it (maybe some guy named Benny?) and the price was about what I could afford. I got my S1 from Sax/Clarinet Quest 3 years ago for about this price and it did me some good. But a bad marriage cost me the horn...so now I want an instrument I can solo on in my studio. If I play again in a group I want to double on clarinet/alto (don't have a sax at the moment 'cuz I may be moving...and bread is tight. OK, enough about my boring life. Anybody have experience with the CT-specifically the "R" series? Price right? Sax/Clarinetquest is gonna give it a complete overhaul. Heck, that's worth a lot of bread in itself.
Thanks,
Barney in Bakersfield
YouTube channel is my name \"Barnett Plisko\"...there\'s a clarinet solo or two on it...
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Author: super20dan
Date: 2022-02-28 18:19
also consider a conn 444n or 424n. awesume jazz horn and 1/3 the cost of a selmer
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Author: andsoitgoes
Date: 2022-02-28 20:43
Yes, I did find a 444n on Reverb offered by Sam Ash. Looks like a nice horn $599/obo. But for a few bucks more I'm getting a totally refurbished Selmer CT from a top-flight company who will accept a check lol.
Thanks,
Barney
YouTube channel is my name \"Barnett Plisko\"...there\'s a clarinet solo or two on it...
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2022-02-28 22:30
Attachment: r4430.jpg (330k)
I've got an R series full Boehm which is my favourite clarinet.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: super20dan
Date: 2022-02-28 22:34
scored my 424n for 100$ and its in mint condition. best jazz horn i have ever played and i own a selmer BT. cant go wrong with a CT anyway. enjoy it, what mpc you plan on using?
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Author: Steven Ocone
Date: 2022-02-28 23:13
I am selling off some instruments as I prepare to close my business,
Steve Ocone
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Author: andsoitgoes
Date: 2022-02-28 23:15
I'll probably get the vintage HS* that came with the clarinet back in the day. Right now I have a Van Doren M13 mpc I used with my '74 R13. It seemed pretty stuffy. I don't know if it was the mpc or the horn. I'm looking forward to trying a horn that is noted to be "freer blowing..."
YouTube channel is my name \"Barnett Plisko\"...there\'s a clarinet solo or two on it...
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Author: andsoitgoes
Date: 2022-02-28 23:19
That's a beauty...wish mine went to low Eb but I'll take what they sell me...
YouTube channel is my name \"Barnett Plisko\"...there\'s a clarinet solo or two on it...
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Author: ruben
Date: 2022-03-02 19:16
Chris: would you say this is a good clarinet for Classical music? I know some symphony players used this model.
rubengreenbergparisfrance@gmail.com
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2022-03-02 20:26
Selmer only made the one model at the time and it would be suicidal of them if they marketed their one and only pro level clarinet solely for the Jazz market. They may be favoured by Jazz musicians but they will suit any style of music demanded by the player.
They're perfectly at home in an orchestral setting as well as chamber and other Classical ensembles.
Here's a couple of large bore Selmers in a Classical setting:
https://youtu.be/GC2XYE3k9iY?t=886
https://youtu.be/wMsJA0GyZD4?t=1893
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
Post Edited (2022-03-15 19:01)
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Author: ruben
Date: 2022-03-03 01:24
Chris P: thank you for the information and I value your knowledge and opinion. I tried one out a hundred years ago and seem to recall that the tone-holes were very big, which was a problem for my then slender fingers. What influence-if any-doe big tone holes have on the tone of a clarinet?
rubengreenbergparisfrance@gmail.com
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2022-03-03 04:47
The toneholes are large on them and they're not undercut as you'd see on later Selmers with narrower bores (Series 9* and everything since). Some of them are slightly reverse tapered being wider at the bore than at the top, but definitely not fraised or undercut with a bowl-shaped or cone-shaped undercuts with a distinct margin where the undercutting meets the rest of the tonehole diameter. Large toneholes offer lower resistance compared to smaller diameter toneholes. Definitely not suitable for anyone with small hands or narrow fingers if they have trouble covering them.
Has to be said the largest pad cups on this 1958 R series CT full Boehm are the largest I've seen on any soprano clarinet and definitely much larger than those on all other CTs and other Selmer full Boehms I've seen as well as the Series 9/9* clarinets that replaced the CT. I think I used 17mm leather pads when most clarinets tend to use 16mm leather pads in those same pad cups (and a 14mm leather pad in the Ab/Eb pad cup). That would mean if you were to use skin pads or other stepped pads, they'd probably have to be either 18mm or maybe 18.5mm depending which fits best.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: Fred
Date: 2022-03-10 02:40
I have too many clarinets … but my CT is the most fun to play. It would not be my choice if I were playing in a clarinet section, but it is an absolute blast to play solo!
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Author: Bill
Date: 2022-03-15 00:27
I have one of each of the "marked" Selmers from Winged Globe (early 1900s) up through a late P-series CT. Hard to choose which one I like best, but there is something about my K series. Also, the M-series (including "55s") are great. Gino Cioffi played Selmer 55s. Although I do like it, I would not say the CT is my favorite Selmer. I had a Series 9 I bought for $50 and had beautifully restored by Steve Fowler, but sold it. I guess I prefer the big-bore Selmers. Intonation is not as bad as they claim when played with period Selmer mpcs ("bottom logo" and "oval" on table, respectively). I've been fortunate to have a period mpc for each of the Selmers, including the Winged Globe. Old Selmers are wonderful, wonderful clarinets. I applaud that you are purchasing one!!!
Bill Fogle
Ellsworth, Maine
(formerly Washington, DC)
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Author: LFabian
Date: 2022-03-15 01:18
I found a Selmer center tone Q that had been pinned and sitting on the back shelf of a music store in Pennsylvania. The price went down because of that but technician did an excellent job of overhauling and refinishing. The clarinet came in a case that had a rain cover. The leather case was amazing for a 50 year old clarinet case. The mouthpiece that I found exploited it’s responsiveness and dynamics. Perfect for future Oktoberfests. A Langenus duckbill mpc (1.14). Yes it stands out.
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Author: super20dan
Date: 2022-03-15 06:37
that mpc is so good it should make most clarinets stand out if it plays like the one i have
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Author: Djudy
Date: 2022-03-20 21:38
Bill, what about serial numbers on your wing&globe Selmers? Mine is a 3xx; any idea what year that would be?
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Author: Bill
Date: 2022-03-22 02:12
Djudy,
Before 1927.
Bill.
Bill Fogle
Ellsworth, Maine
(formerly Washington, DC)
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Author: andsoitgoes
Date: 2022-03-30 08:11
...it's on its way...I think...
Great reading, thanks to all who responded. I was particularly interested in reading about the CT's large tone holes and its unsuitability to play in modern clarinet sections. I'll just have to see if the intonation and my hand size prove to be problematic. But I read some great feedback about my $847 horn being a "blast" to play and favored over other clarinets.
I've moved to a senior housing living project in Oregon USA and recently recorded a solo with a resident's 1972 R13. It had a gorgeous sound, even though it hadn't been played much recently. Sadly, the lady seems to have suffered a mild stroke recently or has early onset dementia. I tried to encourage her to play but I think I scared her away. Anyway, I'll record a solo on my "Barnett Plisko" YouTube channel with the CT when it arrives and see how it compares with the R13.
All my best,
Barney P.
YouTube channel is my name \"Barnett Plisko\"...there\'s a clarinet solo or two on it...
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2022-03-30 14:14
"I was particularly interested in reading about the CT's large tone holes and its unsuitability to play in modern clarinet sections."
They CAN be played in "modern" clarinet sections - the only thing that makes any clarinet unsuitable for any section is the player if they don't have the tone, technique or style that fits in with the section. There are Buffet players out there who sound like a chainsaw, so don't write large bore Selmers off just because of a preconceived idea they're only suitable for playing Jazz.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: andsoitgoes
Date: 2022-03-31 07:37
thanks, Chris!
YouTube channel is my name \"Barnett Plisko\"...there\'s a clarinet solo or two on it...
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