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Author: Tom Henson
Date: 2008-05-25 16:22
Dear Liquorice,
I have to completely agree with your comments about the Wurlitzer C clarinet being excellent. I have played on a C as well as an Eb and they were both outstanding. Definitely better than any Buffet or Selmer C or Eb I have played in recent years. Their Basset A clarinet is also to die for, but cost the equivalent of a small car.
I don't know why it is that Wurlitzer Bb clarinets seem to be the most problematic regarding intonation. You would think if they can make a C, Eb, and A pretty much in tune they would be able to figure out the Bb. Perhaps the formula that they are using to manufacture the Bb is flawed to some small degree, who knows.
I do know that for those with intonation problems that this can be corrected. My only advice is that you first have to understand how to blow on them in order to find the right mouthpiece and reed combination. Only then will you have a baseline of what needs to be fixed and how much.
If you send you clarinet back to them, not having done this, I have a feeling that the person working on it will know how to properly blow them and they will not find the same tuning problems that you thought you had. This make explain, in part, why some have had very mixed results when asking them to work on the tuning. Robert seemed to be very pleased with the work that they did on his Bb and I am about 90% pleased as I do see an improvement. I do still struggle with sharpness in the clarion like everyone else, but using the right mouthpiece and reed allows me to get close enough I can find work arounds.
One work around for the high B and C that works for me is to simply release the register key and close it. I know this sounds radical, but when playing these two notes there is no danger of releasing it and falling back down to the sub-tone. I find that by doing this, I can play these two notes and peg the tuner on the green. If I had to sustain a long B or C I could do this and play them perfectly in tune, no problem. It would be a little more difficult to use this method during a fast passage, but tuning is not as much a problem when you are playing fast scales, unless it is in unison.
Now, to compare my L&K clarinets to the Wurlitzer's would indeed be worth another discussion thread. This make of clarinets do not suffer the same tuning sharpness that the Wurlitzer's do. They play very well in tune out of the box. I am confident that anyone that can make a clarinet this close to being in tune can also fix any tuning issues I may later discover as the clarinet breaks in.
The one area where the L&K do have some consistent tuning issues is in the throat tones. Depending on the mouthpiece, they can be flat. This may be an indication that the way L&K approached the inherit problems with the RB bore is to lower the tuning a little toward the top of the upper body for the lower register, knowing this would also lower the tuning in the Clarion. I also note that all of the tone hole chimneys on the upper body of my L&K clarinets have a smaller opening than on the Wurlitzer's, which would lower the tuning. Smaller hole, lower; bigger hole, higher.
I also asked that L&K make me 6 barrels instead of the usual 4 (for the set). It turns out that I did not realize that with the L&K clarinets there are no separate Bb and A barrels. You use the same barrels for both clarinets, so I ended up getting 6 barrels that I can use on both. I have to say that I was a little skeptical at first, but in practice they do work just fine on both.
I also want to say that I do not hate French clarinets. If there was any way that I could play on both (well), I would be the first to do it. Sometimes a French clarinet is just right for the music that you are playing or the ensemble you are in. I cannot imagine playing the Rhapsody in Blue glissando on my Wurlitzer's, although I can do it. I also think that the RB clarinets blend better with strings and piano because of the unique sound quality. I don't see any advantage to play these instruments in a wind band though.
I have mentioned some of the reasons that I decided to go the route of playing on a RB clarinet. Each system has it good points and bad.
By the way, how many French clarinets does a professional test play before finding just the "right" one. The many manufacturing inconsistencies and inconsistent quality was another reason I looked at a German hand made clarinet. In spite of the problems that I have had, I have never had a problem with the quality of the keywork, the wood used, or anything of a purely material nature. By the way, the wood that Wurlitzer uses is part of their secret. Very heavy and dense. If only Buffet still used wood like this.
This brings up another point, Wurlitzer clarinets are quite a bit heavier than any French system. If you suffer from any wrist or hand problems do not consider buying them unless you plan to use a neck strap. They are just too heavy with the very dense wood and the heavy duty hand made keywork. They will last several lifetimes though, I must admit.
Tom Henson
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Re: Problems with intonation in Wurlitzer Reform Boehm new |
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The Clarinet BBoard
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