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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