 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Jason Moffat
Date: 2001-10-19 09:19
Does anybody know anything about the Malerne clarinet, who its made by, are they sttill made etc, many thanks
Jason
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Author: Jason Moffat
Date: 2001-10-19 13:22
Thanks for the reply, I found some stuff, but I still cannot find out anything on different models etc, any ideas?
Jason
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Author: David Spiegelthal
Date: 2001-10-19 13:30
In Bb clarinets, the Malerne "Standard" was a student/intermediate model, made of wood mostly but the later ones (post 1960 or so) were plastic. Very good instruments, more than a match for their competition. The Malerne "Professional" was (as you might guess) the top-of-the-line. I'm not sure if there was another model in the middle of these two, if so, I've never had one in my hands. Your search here on Sneezy should turn up what little we know about the company!
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Author: Bob Arney
Date: 2001-10-19 15:08
If you are not mezmerized by the "Big Four", and not conditoned by the "R-13" clan with their peer pressure, you will find them very satisfactory instruments. At least I do---But what do I know, I'm not a professional and I didn't sleep at a "Holiday Inn" last night. I have a Bb "Standard" and a Bb Bass (Conn Stencil) both reconditioned by Dave S...As the old ad said "Try It--You'll Like It."
Bob A
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Author: Anthony Greenwood
Date: 2001-10-19 15:20
Malerne also made a 'Artiste' clarinet, I saw one at Johnny Roadhouses in Manchester, UK. Since seeing this I have wondered if the Jean Cartier clarinets which pop up frequently on ebay 4star pro, artist and standard were made by Malerne
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Author: Jack Kissinger
Date: 2001-10-19 15:28
I think I may have posted some information about Malerne to the Klarinet list so, if you searched there, you may have found most of what I know but I don't think I've ever posted that info to the bulletin board.
My first wooden clarinet was a Malerne Paris Professional. My parents surprised me with it for Christmas when I was in 5th grade, around 1956. Up till then, I had been playing on an old metal instrument. I think my folks bought the Malerne from the Sears catalog. I still have it and, for many years it was my backup instrument but I haven't played it for quite awhile. When my daughter started taking lessons (from a clarinetist who was peforming as a temporary replacement with the St. Louis Symphony) she used it for awhile and her teacher was amazed at its quality.
Funny thing is that while my daughter could play it well in tune and I had no trouble with intonation when I was playing it regularly, I have a devil of a time with it now. Evidence to me that we do adjust to our instruments. I also own an eefer made by Malerne around 1972. It carries the Linton label. When Linton was manufacturing clarinets, they made their own plastic sopranos but contracted with Malerne to make all their wooden harmony clarinets. Malerne also apparently made resonite or ebonite (not sure which) bass clarinets. (There is a post somewhere in the Klarinet archives discussing some problems characteristic of Malerne basses. If you are interested in Malerne, it's worth searching out.)
Over the years, I've learned a few things about the company that might be helpful
to you. Their factory was located in the "woodwind district" outside Paris close
to the Buffet and Selmer factories. In addition to manufacturing instruments
under their own label, they also manufactured "stencils" for Olds, Conn and Linton
(and probably others). According to Jack Linton, current president of Linton, moonlighting was common in that era and district so the company likely had more than a little work done by the same craftsmen who were turning out Buffet and Selmer instruments. Malerne had hopes that one of his children would carry on with the business after him but apparently none were interested so the factory closed and was sold to SML (Strasser, Marigaux and Lemaire) in the 70's or 80's. (I forget the exact date. One can find it on the net if one searches rigorously under Marigaux -- now known for making oboes and especially English horns among the finest in the world.) I suspect (but don't know for sure) that Marigaux clarinets are now made there.
Malerne lasted much longer than most of the other "independent" clarinet
manufacturers -- far past WWII which is when some Klarinet listers seem to think
it met its demise.
Malernes probably never achieved the quality of Buffets or Selmers but they are,
IMHO, well-built instruments. Nowadays, I would classify my Paris Professional as comparable to a decent intermediate instrument. The "Standard," alas, is probably at best a
student model. The "Professional" has four stars in the label. The "Standard" has none. There was also a 3-star model, termed the "Intermediate."
One last story. If you search the Klarinet archives on "Drucker and Malerne," you will find a
couple of interesting posts, both of which mention that Stanley Drucker has an old
Malerne stock mouthpiece that he thinks very highly of. When I originally read
these, I went looking for my old Malerne mouthpieces. (I had two for my Bb. The
first one they sent was slightly chipped so they sent another.) Alas, they were
apparently lost many years ago when my parents moved from the house I grew up in.
A Malerne mouthpiece with the characteristic Chedeville blank markings (one ligature line up, three down, "France" to the left of the table) sold on eBay awhile back. Perhaps Stanley Drucker has/had one of these. I don't think that mine were of this type but, if you have an old Malerne with an original mouthpiece, it might be worth cleaning up, sterilizing and giving a try.
Best regards,
jnk
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Author: Wes
Date: 2001-10-20 07:45
Malerne also made a Boehm system oboe with ring keys like a clarinet. While it made a lot of sense from fingering and manufacturing points of view, it's acoustics seemed to be French style from a century back and the sound probably would not fit into the American orchestra of today.
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Author: Tim Kelley
Date: 2001-10-21 14:47
I played a Malerne Standard in the 50s and 60s. It was a perfectly acceptable, durable clarinet, but definitely a student model. A couple of months ago found a Malerne Professional on ebay and grabbed it. It has a small bore by modern standards--a Selmer cotton swab won't pass through the top joint. Using a Selmer HS* mpc it has a beautiful, sweet sound, but of course not a lot of volume. The intonation seems good, given the far out of shape condition of my embouchure. As I understand it, the Marlene factory was taken over by SML about 1975 or so. Given the low prices they now sell for, a well cared for Malerne Professional is the best buy in quality clarinets.
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Author: Gordon (NZ)
Date: 2001-10-22 11:30
Personally I was disappointed with the several Malernes I used to work on. I don't think they are even being played now. I've forgotten the details.
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Author: Theophilus
Date: 2015-11-04 03:52
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Hi i don't know if there's any activity for this subject, but i'm gonna try:)
So i've got a Robert Malerne Clarinet and i've got no solid info about it, hope some one can shed some light on my darkness of the subject!
What i know for sure is that RM built his own clarinets from 1929 to 1975, when he died, his children didn't continue the firm and the factory was bought by SML. I also read that the professional models have metal rings at the ends of the upper body. Knowing this gives me a large spectrum of years for my clarinet. i read somewhere that after 50' RM clarinets had Standard, 3 stars or 4 stars for beginner, intermediate and professional stamped on them together with his name and Paris, and they had serial numbers.
My clarinet has no serial number and no star or standard markings. It has two numbers stamped on it one i think a 65 under the left hand F ring and from what i remember a 31 stamped on the lower E key (the part that has the pad underneath) (i'm going to look for the exact numbers), it also has the normal markings: first row: R M; second row: Malerne; third row: Paris; My clarinet has the metal rings at the ends of the upper body, the parts that go one in the barrel and the other in the lower body.
Any kind of information on this would be much appreciated:) Year, and level would be perfect!
Theophilus
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Author: Bengt Sareld
Date: 2017-02-24 21:23
I was so thrilled to find information about Malerne. I was pretty much inte playing as a young boy, but with age it has decreased.
I bought a Marlene Professional *** (three stars) around 1958, for SEK 475 (equivalent to appr 50 dollars today), and I have always liked it.
Reading about the Malerne factory was a thrill, thank you!
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Author: Wes
Date: 2017-02-25 05:41
Did Malerne manufacture the Barklee wood clarinet as a stencil? I tried one this week that had excellent intonation, easy playing on a M13 Lyre, and a big sound.
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Author: GLHopkins
Date: 2017-02-25 06:44
I've worked on many of these during my career at the bench. They've played well when in good repair, but intonation has been iffy on most of the lower models, and not too bad on the "professional" models. Malerne made clarinets for other companies, and many thought that their "Evette Schaeffer" model that they stenciled for Buffet was a very decent clarinet. I don't think it is the equivalent of the Buffet made Evette Schaeffer, but it was a very playable instrument. The keywork on their instruments is too soft in my opinion.
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Author: alanporter
Date: 2017-02-25 08:54
What do you think about the one they made for Dallas ,London ? I have one labelled F. Buisson. Paris. The keywork is obviously Malerne ?
tiaroa@shaw.ca
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Author: Loc Do
Date: 2020-08-07 12:01
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Hello,
I am looking for some information about Marlene Francais Artiste Clarinet. Does anyone have information about this
Thank you
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Author: super20dan
Date: 2021-12-22 05:10
just won a marlerne conn stencil alto clarinet on the internet and what sold me was the left hand eb/ab lever. only seen these on the upper class clarinets and never on a stencil . i look foward to its arrival
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Author: Chris Sereque
Date: 2021-12-22 20:43
My very first clarinet was a Malerne student clarinet, my father bought it from a big catalogue supply place in 1955. It was made of ebonite, with a steel liner in the upper joint.Eventually the steel became very pitted! I remember the instrument having a clear sound, but ultra-sharp throat tones. Surprisingly, when I moved to NYC in the late 60s, some of the music stores near Times Square had Malernes.
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2021-12-22 23:24
The top joints in the ebonite bodied ones had a nickel silver bore liner. I once saw a Buisson version where the top tenon had been broken off and the nickel silver tubing had bent, but it was easy to repair by straightening out the metal sleeve and refitting and epoxying the tenon back on.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: super20dan
Date: 2022-01-15 03:13
well after a lot of repair work -i have it playing well at last. previous tech did a deplorable job of regulation and setting key heights. keywork is of medium quality and you can tell this isnt a pro instrument. all this aside its a decent player . better than my bundy but below my noblet for sure. very unusual for a student horn to have the left hand ab/eb lever which is why i bought it. of course my band has shut down due to covid again so real playtesting will have to come later. its VERY mpc sensative and only likes my glotin of paris and cheap yamaha mpcs it seems. worth the 125$ i paid for it at any rate .
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Author: JaniR
Date: 2023-08-29 08:59
I found a clarinet that has normal Malerne stamping but not standard or professional markings. It has an additional E P -logo which I think stands for Eric Petterson. I found from google that this Swedish manufactrurer sold his company to Malerne in 1970's and assumably this piece is manufactured somewhere after this by Malerne. I have another Malerne without standard or professional markings but this E P instrument seems better quality.
Does anyone have have any more information about these?
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Author: super20dan
Date: 2023-08-29 15:14
my malerne hard rubber alto clarinet is an absolute dog! i only bought it as i thought it would be handy to have a left hand eb/B/b key. why add this usefull key to such a low quality horn?
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