Hey!I also have a buffet and a LeBlanc. Both of mine are wooden and I find that both of them are great. They are not the cheapest things in the world though but if you are looking for a good horn than I would reccomend those.

I am risk sounding really pretenious here, and say that the best clarinet company is the one which makes YOU sound the best. Whenever you buy a clarient, take along your exsisting mouthepiece - because you`ll ened up using if you buy the thing.
Selmar and Buffet both make excellent clarinets. There is toolittle to choose between them.

In case you`re wondeing about my loyalties: Buffet E11 clarinet, a Selmar mouthpiece, Rovner ligature and Vandoren 3 or 3.5 reeds.

Vito makes the best clarinets by far. Especially those colored ones. If you haven`t tried one then your missing out. They have the most beautiful tone, and the different colors are just amazing. Vito is even working on an endorsement deal with Richard Stoltzman. Buffets sound so bad, and they cost way too much. Trust me, take the better bargain and go vito.

Im not sure, I have an Artley!

A few months ago I purchased an R-13. The clarinet has a real rich tone to it. But... I have had a BUNCH of mechanical problems with it. My open tones were horribly flat. It wasn`t because of me either, my band director had the same problem with her R-13. I`ve had to take it back for repairs numerous times because of intonation and haven`t got it quite right even with a new barrel. Other than that I think its a pretty good instrument, except for the price tag.
Set up: Buffet R-13, Vandoren M30 13 series mouthpiece, Rovner Dark Ligature and Vandoren size 4 reeds.

Why do musicaian pay $1,000,000 for a Stad, instead of $5,000 for a cheap mass produced violin? THINK! Why pay $100, 000 for a 9 foor Steinway, instead of a cheap upright? THINK? Why pay $30,000 for a Heckle bassoon, instead of $1,500 plastic instrument? Do you think great musicians just want to spend alot of money, just so they can brag about their "expensive" instrument? (answer: projection and beauty of tone, etc.

Now you want to try out 25 to 100 Bufffets, Selmers, etc. just to find one in tune! What a joke! How stupid can a person get by even trying to answer such a stupid quesiton? What is even more of a joke is that people want to talk about purchasing a "great (i.e., Strad)" clarinets, on a "Wal-Mart" budget.

So you want to argue about instruments that take 9 hours to build and compare them to instruments that take 90-100 hours. NOTHING IN LIFE IF FREE, NEITHER ARE "GREAT" CLARINET.

SIMPLY, think before you ask this quesiton, and second, think before you attempt to answer this question.

Read the discussion below and them re-examine the question.

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THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN HAND-MADE AND INDUSTRY-MADE CLARINETS

Industry

1. The wood is machine-dried or only seasoned for a short time. Therefore, it needs special care to prevent cracking: mostly paraffin-oiled under vacuum, or linseed oiled under high temperature. Sounds like plastic, surface inside: polished and closed pores.

2. Toneholes mostly cylindrical, if under cut, symmetrical in all dimensions.

3. Mechanic (keywork) is made separate from the instrument`s body, the tolerances are now so small that nearly every key can be exchanged with another clarinet.

4. The difference between the models and types is very small, because every change requires a lot of other technical changes to the instrument.

5. If there is a problem in the construction of an instrument, you will have the same problem an all instruments of the series. Often, a "newly invented" model is only the improvement of a former mistake.

Time needed for one clarinet: nine hours, ca. 100 workers. (Time taken for tuning: two-three minutes)

Handmade Clarinets

1. Selected seasoned (at least eight years) wood with rests between every step of making the instrument`s Body.

2. Oiled with linseed oil, dried out naturally, as little as possible. The bore will not be polished, only abraded and then smoothed (fein geschliffen und ausgerieben).

3. The outside is not colored, only polished.

4. The tone holes are undercut by hand, unsymmetrical where necessary. Every sharp angle is cut.

5. The keywork is handmade an the instrument`s Body, especially for the clarinet. It can be made based an the customer`s special requests.

6. The tuning takes some hours with the final steps completed together with the owner of the Instrument.

Time needed for one clarinet: 80 to 100 hours.

Uriah, that is a very nice discussion. It also is nice to know that others can see the light regarding clarinet making and playing. Many on this board will jump to conclusions regarding factory made brands without having a clue what to look for in a clarinet. You come to this board and make a wonderful point no doubt. I have seen this discussion in an article I read on a German website. I am a lover for that style of playing. It is too bad more conductors do not see the light(god bless Barenboim for something!). I do not know if the conductors are the ones to blame or the clarinetists themselves are to blame. It is a shame though that clarinets are not made as well as they used to be. After all, let us remember that Marcellus, Bonade, and all of the greats DID play on factory made Buffets! However, the point that I have made to others(on other forums as well)is that those guys didn`t go to a mass warehouse to buy their clarinets. The mastermind was Moennig, yes? I too find it amusing that students will justify playing a certain instrument because it "feels" right. Thats why Bonade used to smuggle in Buffets for his students right? For them to tell him that they wanted to play something else? Too bad that style of teaching is gone. Maybe that is what bastardized the clarinetistry of today.

Also, is it really the student`s fault if the teacher doesn`t know good from bad? The concept of true artistry has been lost in the clarinet community in the United States.

Robert Marcellus "never" picked out his own clarinet. Moennig (Philadelphia, PA) hand picked, adjusted and tuned it, and then gave it to Marcellus.

How I know? First, I was a student of Marcellus during the 60s. Second, if your read the article written by the clarinetist at Memphis (1st clar.), this particular article confirms that Marcellus never picked out his own instrument.

Regards

Uriah...I must not have worded cleary this statement:

"After all, let us remember that Marcellus, Bonade, and all of the greats DID play on factory made Buffets! However, the point that I have made to others(on other forums as well)is that those guys didn`t go to a mass warehouse to buy their clarinets. The mastermind was Moennig, yes?"

I probably did not word it well, but I was implying that indeed Marcellus and perhaps many others took their instruments(or were just given in your wording) their orchestral horns. Basically, these players did not play on an instrument that in todays time would have come from a warehouse that caters to amateurs.

My entire argument surrounds the selection of clarinets. Yes, many clarinetists are told to play brand x, and go out and buy from these large warehouses. But, they are not told WHY they should select brand x, or even how to choose the best brand x. To comapre a handmade Wurlitzer to a mass produced Amati German system would be like apples and oranges. Yes, they are both fruits, but have VERY different makeups. IE, its just not far to compare. Or perhaps a ten dollar bottle of California wine to fine imported French beverages. Or, perhaps Buffet v. Dietz. Still no comparision. BUT here`s the kicker. If you don`t know the taste of a great wine, what is your point of comaparison? Back to clarinet. If you have never played a handmade clarinet, how would you know it is better? Back to what I said in the first post: who`s fault is that?!?! If the teacher does not know what a good sound is, how would the student? Since you were a student of Marcellus in the 60s, I am sure you have taught students your method of selection. How many teachers have the Marcellus sound in their head? Very few. How many teachers can even teach the Marcellsu sound? Even fewer.

In short, to come to this board and post what you are saying, you jumped several steps. The players on this board need to know what that sound is, before committing to talking about brands or makes. How many can go out and hear great players who play great handmade clarinets? How many people on this board even have the knowledge to know which orchestras to listen to? How many can identify that not a SINGLE US ORCHESTRA would fit in that category(I am generalizing of course). Perhaps an English orchestra? Or perhaps go to the Berlin orchestras or the Vienna Philharmonic to hear Wurlitzers and Hammerschmits, respectively. Uriah, I applaud your efforts, but think they are too advanced for most readers on this board. There is no point of comparision.

Here is something I posted years ago. I thought you (of all people) would understand. Dmitri  --you are the one with a great deal of insight. My complements to you !!

Regards,
Uriahgadfly


(What professional musicians intuitively know, but what music educators reject, scorn or characterize as mean-hearted!)
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No one can arrive from being talented alone. God gives talent; work transforms talent into genius.
Anna Pavlova (Russian ballerina, 1881-1931)
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By Dr. Gordon (Gordo) C. Bobbett

Please mail any comments to: gbobbett@charter.net
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Instrumental "skills" are often mistakenly identified as "talent". All aspects of instrumental musicianship can be communicated by the teacher to the student through a disciplined yet caring mentoring process that passes on timeless musical values and skills from one generation to another.

Incompetent instrumental instructors often turn the teaching process into an excruciatingly convoluted, artistically perverted and insidiously complicated experience. Such teachers use vague, ambiguous or capricious comments during a lesson, such as "make this note louder, take a breath here, tongue this note shorter, crescendo here, play with feeling," etc. After teaching a piece of music in this manner (i.e., the random micro-management of details rather than a clear expression of the overall form through the tasteful application of inviolable musical principles), the next piece is assigned and the "spoon-feeding" process begins again.

The principles below should be considered analogous to the architectural principles of a building: the stronger the foundation, the more stable the structure becomes as it rises in height and character.
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MUSICAL



To play any instrument, one must learn the musical skills it takes to play that instrument. "Musical skills" are the things one does "technically" with the instrument in order to make the music beautiful.

1. Air. One of the most important aspects of playing a wind instrument is air. The proper amount of air must be used efficiently at all times. Metaphorically, this concept can be learned by turning on a faucet and listening to the fast and steady flow of the water. Now turn the faucet off and on several times, slowly and/or quickly. This inconsistency in the water flow is the way in which amateur musicians blow into their instruments.


2. Evenness. During "fast" passages with 16th and 32nd notes, all the notes must be even, precise and audible. The evenness in a passage is visually comparable to the white notes on a piano keyboard: each white key is exactly the same length and width. Unevenness is not the result of sloppy fingers or lack of talent. Unevenness is a reflection of poor training by the teacher and/or undisciplined preparation by the student. Metronomic discipline produces evenness.


3. Every Note Is Important. The clarity and detail of every note is important whether it is a fast or slow note. During fast passages or ornamentation (trills, grace notes, etc.), the listener should be able to hear every single note. The notes should never be so fast that every note is not clearly heard. Simply, a blur of notes or a "smear" is an offensive, amateurish gesture.


4. "Roller Coaster". Never surprise the listener; prepare the listener for a change. The ear should be prepared for the change to every note by the note preceding it. In a fast passage, especially during an orchestral solo or a cadenza, start the passage ever-so-slightly slower and then subtly accelerate within the tempo. Likewise, at the end of the passage gradually slow down before playing the final (and usually) long note. The mastery of this concept is conditional upon mastery of the previous three skills.


5. Phrase. The basic unit of composition is the four- and eight-measure phrase and not the measure, and certainly not the beat. Two basic methods by which to build a phrase are: (a) increasing tension of the dynamics to the cadence, and (b) rhythmically stretching the leading tone(s) prior to the cadence (the Dominant/V or Tonic/I chord at the end of the 4th and 8th measure). Avoid extreme subtleties; even untrained listeners should easily and comfortably recognize the musical statement as they would recognize a period at the end of a sentence. Equally, avoid grotesque exaggerations. Remember, the first syllable of "classical" music is "class!"


6. Direction (Musical Curve). A musical phrase is like the plot of a book: there is an introduction, the actual story, the climax, and then the resolution. It is always interesting to hear a musical phrase that tells a story.


7. Diversity. No two measures should ever be played exactly the same, especially if they have exactly the same notes. In some music, an "echo" effect is employed; in other genres, there should be a continuous organic growth in every note that builds every phrase that builds every movement that builds every opus. Popular music is rather boring for it thrives on repetition and similarity. Classical music promotes subtleties, differences and unity through diversity.


8. "Bell" Effect. After a bell or gong has been struck, the tone naturally grows, changes, and diminishes in texture, sonority and timbre. Instrumental musicianship should never sound like an electronically-generated tone that has no warmth, feeling or direction.


9. Connection. A musical line should have direction without interruption. For example, think about how annoying it is to listen to a person who rambles, or, in the middle of a sentence, becomes silent or pauses for several seconds. Never let this same "stutter" appear in a musical statement. Professional musicians have a passion for smooth, beautiful transitions from note to note, phrase to phrase.


10. "Rosebud" (Growth). This is the nickname for the growth of a long tone. Long tones should never be played as an unvarying, colorless monotone. Those who lack imagination, artistry or a passion for beauty often ponderously squat on a boring, dead tone. As in timed-lapse photography, visualize a rosebud opening and maturing into a full, beautiful rose. This is one of the most difficult skills to master.


11. "Cheesecake" (Closure). Dessert is the final taste in your mouth after a meal. Imagine eating a delicious dinner and then finishing it with a plate of sawdust! Likewise, never forget to make the last note of a phrase beautiful. This holds true even if you are tired, out of breath or as you mentally prepare for the next phrase.


12. Don`t Be a Sneak. Other than some rare instances in contemporary music, the listener should never have to guess when the instrumentalist`s sound begins or ends. Relax the listeners by never making them strain to hear what is performed.



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MENTAL



The right mental perspective or frame of mind is essential in developing musicianship. This philosophy can be applied to all of life`s endeavors.

1. Food`s Good. By this principle all other principles are understood. We all enjoy eating a delicious meal with our friends that has been affectionately prepared and attractively served in a beautiful environment. Hearing music should be as wonderful an experience.


2. Discipline. Discipline is one of the most important cornerstones in the development of great musicianship. Precision and "inner rhythm" are established by using a metronome faithfully and correctly in the practice of scales, thirds, arpeggios, etc. Professionals, who are always flexibly prepared for any contingency, work with the metronome every day. Amateurs leave their success up to luck, chance, talent or astrology.


3. High Expectations. You will only obtain 50 to 70 percent of what you expect to obtain. If professionals need to consistently "lift 100 pounds" of music, they practice lifting 150 to 200 pounds. Amateurs practice lifting 20 to 50 pounds and then hope, by some miracle, to lift the 100 pounds during a performance.


4. Consistency. Any amateur, by accident, can play a passage correctly. As a professional instrumentalist, you must prepare yourself to play a passage 10 times in a row correctly in the rehearsal hall if you expect to play it correctly the first and only time on stage. Amateurs are happy to perform the passage correctly every now and then. If their performance goes poorly, they hide behind a variety of excuses such as: "I do not have the talent" or "my instrument is broken," or "I do not have a good reed" or "I didn`t have time to practice" or "the judge/conductor/teacher didn`t like me" or "I did not have a good teacher." It is time to grow up and take responsibility for your actions.


5. Magic Dust. Amateurs believe that some people are born with talent (magic dust at birth) and others are not. Professionals know that success is built on hard work, adequate preparation, and valuing the right things. Simply, there are no short cuts to success.


6. If you are dumb, you have to be tough. If you choose the wrong people to listen to, do not practice adequately, or practice the wrong things, you have to be tough enough to experience the pains of failure!


7. 50% to 99% Rule. Generally, in all aspects of education and "music education" in particular, 50 to 99 percent of what one hears, reads or listens to is disinformation. Learn to discriminate; wise people know how to listen to the right things and ignore the remainder.



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A True Story



Some high school instrumentalists never won solo-chair at the local or regional band festival, but always won solo-chair at the state level. These judges at the regional level later heard that these students won full scholarships at top conservatories and universities, went on to play in major orchestras, gave recitals in the world`s major concert halls (Carnegie, Kennedy Center, etc.) and made solo compact disc recordings. Yet these judges never contacted these musicians or their teachers to ask "How?" or "Why?" Why do things never seem to change from year to year?

Musical IQ Test: Answer the questions below:

1. Has the above scenario happened to you or someone you know? How and why does this happen?
2. Are local standards of musical judgement different from professional standards of excellence?
3. Is the mastering of musicianship a white-collar or blue-collar activity? Can musicianship be actually developed by practicing one to two hours a day? Who is fooling whom?
4. Who should be held accountable or responsible for the results in the story? The student? The judges? The instrumental teacher?
5. Do you know music educators like this?

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Article (Discussion) used for a clarinet master class and later converted into an article by Dr. G. C. Bobbett, gbobbett@charter.net

Dr. Bobbett...thank you for posting this. It is certainly a simplistic approach to tweaching. Many teachers will often struggle for words to explain the very things you just posted. There is certainly nothing that I could disagree with, albeit I am not really in a place to do so! Luckily, I have had great teachers in the past, and all of these principles have been addressed in the past. Some do not of course!

What are you smoking, buying a 49$ clarinet!!!!!!!!!I spend more on two reeds! My piezoelectric thumb cushion cost me 300 bucks!More than 6 times that. Will somebody talk about something interesting!Like the upper altissimo registor fingerings

I just bought a First Act clarinet at Sam`s for $166. I`ve heard so much terrible things about these CSO things, but I was surprised that it is well-built, looks nice with nickle-plated keys and doesn`t sound too bad. Open notes are a bit soggy and the Chalumeau C# is very dull but all this can be corrected with a little effort. I don`t play professionally so I don`t need any 5000 dollar setup. I`ve never played on anything but student-type horns, so I really can`t see much difference here. I just play with my children for the fun of it and this clarinet isn`t as bad I as had heard, considering its price.

-johanus

Jim, you are a moron. Only an idiot would buy a 300 dollar thumb rest.