 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: janlynn
Date: 2010-02-18 20:31
I hope I dont stir up too much contoversy but this is really bothering me and I want to know what you guys think...
At my last lesson, my teacher suggested I get a new(or used) clarinet - Brand X.
I went to the place I thought would have one (used) but they did not, so I inquired when they would. I was then offered Brand Y and Brand Z saying they were superior to Brand X.
I talked it over with my teacher and she said she really would like to see me with Brand X. So I told the seller/dealer this and he said my teacher doesnt know what she is talking about and does not want to do business with me now.
I thought that was quite unfair to me. I was willing to give him my business for Brand X when he got one, and he wont take it because of my teacher? When I posed that same question to him, he said it was because I rejected his advice and went with my teachers. Well, isnt that what one does when selecting a new clarinet? I dont understand. I am very disappointed and feel his emails to me were very unprofessional. Just because I didnt want the brand(s)he was trying to sell me. Wow.
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Author: chris moffatt
Date: 2010-02-18 20:40
the dealer sounds rather like Basil Fawlty......I assume he doesn't actually deal with the brand your teacher wants for you so he wants to sell you Y or Z which he does have. I guess you need to find another dealer who'll sell you what you want without making a personal issue out of it. Of course you may also want to delve a little deeper to find out why your teacher wants you to have brand X in the first place.
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Author: janlynn
Date: 2010-02-18 20:43
I should add - he has the brand I wanted but not the model.
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Author: Paul Aviles
Date: 2010-02-18 21:18
It's nothing personal...... just business.
Find another dealer.
...............Paul Aviles
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Author: JJAlbrecht
Date: 2010-02-18 21:34
In this abysmal economy, if I were a retailer, I would bend over backwards to give my customer the product desired, if I can at all get it. I would never have handled it the way this vendor did. You don't win customers by calling them idiots and telling them to take their business elsewhere. Find another store to shop at. Not just for the clarinet, but everything else you might ever consider buying from that store.
When I was a store manager, my District Manager told me something I'll never forget:
Make a customer happy, and he'll tell a few friends about you.
Make a customer angry, and he'll tell everyone he knows not to shop at your store.
Jeff
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Author: Clarimeister
Date: 2010-02-19 00:38
JJAlbrecht - EXCELLENT quote at the end of your message. I'll definitely keep that one in mind to tell others for "words of wisdom" :P
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Author: rossbu
Date: 2010-02-19 01:24
My 2 cents worth - this dealer is poison. I'd predict this person will take your money and give you nothing but heartache in return. There are loads of good, honest people to work with - life is too short to waste it on a fool!
Burt
bross141@comcast.net
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Author: Nessie1
Date: 2010-02-19 12:41
Apart from the dealer's foolishness in turning away a keen customer, as others have said, I think this is one of those situations which boils down to a matter of trust - which I think I may have said in other threads. If you trust your teacher (which I hope you do if you are going to be learning with this person for some time) then you need to trust that he/she is giving you good advice with the benefit of a lot of experience of different instruments and a lot of students at a similar stage to the one you are at. Your teacher might well also lose a certain amount of trust in you if you went out and got a different instrument to the one recommended. You clearly don't have much trust left in this dealer any longer, in terms of whether you can get the right instrument from him and, possibly more important, the best after sales service.
I think you need to find a dealer you trust! You don't say whether there are other options available in your area or whether you might try ordering on-line etc but I hope you sort something out.
Good luck
Vanessa.
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Author: Lelia Loban ★2017
Date: 2010-02-19 12:45
Though it looks to me as if this dealer did behave unreasonably (and manipulatively), maybe it's worth mentioning here that the customer isn't always right and that some customers can't be pleased. We don't know what brands of clarinets we're talking about here.
Please understand, I'm not criticizing the person who originally asked the question, because I think her question is completely valid. But, let's get hypothetical here. Let's not assume that the teacher recommended a good clarinet. It's a reasonable speculation, because it seems so bizarrely counter-productive for the store to refuse to carry something generally regarded as excellent.
So let's suppose, for the sake of argument, that the teacher recommended that the student forget about Buffet, Leblanc, Yamaha and the other reputable, major brands, and buy one of those oddball, off-brand instruments that people on this forum regularly denounce as CSOs (clarinet-shaped objects). It could be that the retailer would fear that his/her shop's reputation would suffer from selling a lousy instrument and then having everybody find out whence it came. In that case, the retailer's attitude might make sense.
Lelia
http://www.scoreexchange.com/profiles/Lelia_Loban
To hear the audio, click on the "Scorch Plug-In" box above the score.
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Author: JJAlbrecht
Date: 2010-02-19 13:07
While you do make an interesting point. Lelia, if I recall correctly, Janlynn was looking for an R13 just a couple of weeks ago, so I am willing to wager at least a couple of pennies (all I can spare based on my meager earnings here from the college!) that the recommendation was for a decent clarinet, rather than a CSO.
Jeff
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Author: janlynn
Date: 2010-02-19 13:10
To make things a little more clear -
my teacher reccommended I get a Professional Buffet Model
the seller did not have one, but had 2 other Buffet models that he said were better than the Pro model. I asked my teacher if it was worth trying out if the seller thinks they are good. My teacher said I already have a nice student model clarinet and if im going to spend the money, I might as well go all the way and told me to call a reputable tech in my area (Michael Leonard) and get his opinion on the 2 models offered to me as she believed them to be student models.
Since I am buying used and Michael does not sell used, there was no reason he would have to tell me that the models offered dont even come close to the model I wanted. I felt like he backed up my teachers opinion.
So we arent talking about my teacher recommending a Jinyen or First Act opposed to a Yamaha, Leblanc or Buffet.
Besides, he said he rejected me because I didnt take his advice over my teachers. I didnt ask for his advice. I asked for a pro horn and when I didnt want what he offered he flew off the handle.
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Author: crsbryan
Date: 2010-02-19 14:00
Be done with that seller, then.
Ask your teacher for recommendations for dealers, and check with other technicians in your area. If they don't sell instruments, they may know someone with an instrument for sale privately.
Unsolicited endorsement to follow:
I see your ISP is in Fitchburg, MA. I'd recommend giving a call to Rayburn music, in Boston. It may be well worth the trip. I spent a summer in Boston, and loved visiting their shop, and I stop in every time I'm in Boston. I spent a lot of time trying out instruments back when I had no money to spend. Even though I spent very little money (reeds, etc.) at the time, it paid off for them in the long run, as I recently bought a very nice vintage saxophone from them.
If they have some used instruments that fit your needs, see if your teacher is willing to make the trip with you. Expect to pay for her time, at least the cost of a lesson, possibly more. That will be up to her. The advantages of having an advocate are well worth the price of a lesson, and possibly much more.
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Author: clarinetwife
Date: 2010-02-19 15:11
David Blumberg wrote:
"Unloading excess stock......
Dealers are rarely performers nor teachers, they are a front door sign difference from Furniture salesmen."
I agree with the comment about excess stock. Excess stock is not janlynn's problem. and if the dealer is acting this way about it janlynn should work with someone else.
Regarding the rest of David's post: It is true that dealers, being business owners, wouldn't often have much time for teaching or performing even if they have that background. I'm sure most of them are musicians at some point, though, or they wouldn't choose to get into the business.
However, if the dealer is smart he will hire people who are teachers and performers. A music store SHOULD be different than a furniture store.
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Author: DavidBlumberg
Date: 2010-02-19 15:24
My favorite local salesperson who's shop got sold to Music and Arts (he worked for a privately owned shop that got scooped up like they are notorious for doing) - now he does actually sell furniture for Ramour and Flannigan.
http://www.SkypeClarinetLessons.com
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Author: clarinetwife
Date: 2010-02-19 15:31
Sorry to hear that, David, it is nice to know that when you go to your music store there is someone you can deal with personally. Fortunately, music stores in my area are not targets for being snapped up by the big operators who don't care. If they don't have that local feel and the local people they have NO service advantage over the Internet and probably still have to charge more.
Post Edited (2010-02-19 15:33)
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Author: Anon
Date: 2010-02-19 15:55
Buy what you and your teacher decide is best for you and what you can afford.
Be done with the guy who tries to bully a customer into buying something simply because he has it in stock.
There are plenty of good dealers out there who will see that you are happy with your purchase. They may offer you some options in case you are not aware of them, but they won't force it upon you!
I don't know this guy but I know one like him - he always bullies parents into getting what he has in stock with a line of BS about why the teacher is wrong. He leaves behind a trail of PO'd teachers, let me tell you. He no longer has my business or that of my students.
Good Luck!!
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Author: janlynn
Date: 2010-02-19 16:31
Thank you
I have contacted both Kessler and Rayburn to see what they have.
anyone have good/bad experiences with them?
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Author: Philcoman
Date: 2010-02-19 20:03
Rayburn is Boston is a bit expensive, but they're knowledgable, they care about music, and they've been serving the Boston music community for many decades. And last time I was there they had top of the line repair people as well.
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Author: Lelia Loban ★2017
Date: 2010-02-20 12:29
janlynn, thanks for the additional explanation of what happened. It's good to have the specific information in the thread because it makes clear that you and your teacher were asking for something reasonable, and that the dealer (as David Blumberg and others have said) is probably trying to bully customers into taking his overstock. Evidently he misjudged you and figured he could succeed in pressuring you. Maybe he learned a lesson!
Lelia
http://www.scoreexchange.com/profiles/Lelia_Loban
To hear the audio, click on the "Scorch Plug-In" box above the score.
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Author: BobD
Date: 2010-02-20 12:51
Aha, a new Seinfeld character, "The Clarinet Nazi"......
Bob Draznik
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Author: davetrow
Date: 2010-02-21 00:16
Also reminds me of the John Belushi Billy Goat Tavern character from SNL:
Buffet, no Selmer! Vandoren, no Rico!
Dave Trowbridge
Boulder Creek, CA
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