hi peoples. right now i play on a plastic Selmer CL300 and was interested in buying a new, wooden clarinet. i was looking at the Buffet E11, but the Yamaha YCL450 looks kinda good also. another thing is, i was planning or starting bassoon and playing that in concerts, so my plastic clarinet is perfect for marching band, so is it even necessary to buy a new clarinet at all? if anyone has any suggestions, ideas, or whatever, i'd appreciate it. thanks!

I don't really understand your situation, but I'd suggest first asking your band director what he/she thinks.

If you want a clarinet that's way better than your plastic one, the E11 is not the place to go. It's better, but not really a big step up. Yamaha makes nice horns. I personally have not played anything better than a regular Buffet R13. Good luck to you,

BH

is it ok to buy a "professional" clarinet even if you're not professional, but you plan to keep playing all your life and at this point, you need something wood?

"Profesional" instruments aren't only allowed to be played by professionals, it just means that the quality level of the horn is something that might be used by a professional, as opposed to a beginner or intermediate level clarinet.
The E11 is a student level clarinet, according to the buffet website.

i know, i just mean would it be a waste of money, because it would be less money to buy a student level now, then later eventually buy an advanced or professional. it would be more money now, but it might be worth it.

If you plan on playing after high school I would invest in a better instrument. If you are wanting higher quality wood instruments...you might want to give a price range as they vary from around 8 or 900 to about 7,000 dollars. The good thing about upgrading to a pro horn is that they tend to last a bit longer. More care was used in making it, and therefore they tend to not need as much adjusting before they sound good. They also don't lose the adjustments quickly as with more student line horns.

Buying a clarinet all depends on the sound you like. You also (in addition to getting a new clarinet) might want to think about changing to a more pro level Mouthpiece. All in all, not something I would suggest if you're going to stop playing after high school. Although, if you are wanting to audition for colleges for clarinet...a pro horn would be better to get now rather than later so that you can have time to break it in before audition season comes around (whenever that is for you). If you think you might stick with playing Bassoon...start saving your money, and you will need bassoon lessons definitely if you plan on auditioning for college on bassoon. Bassoons are QUITE espensive for conservatory models most people tend to use in auditions. Hope this helps a bit.

-Dennis
http://www.putfile.com/thebluflame

Hmmmm...I don't know. Depending on how my bassoon situation goes...even if i don't play clarinet in college, i still want to play after high school and get the best possible sound i can, but if playing bassoon is going to be my thing, i might invest money into clarinet later. considering i need clarinet lessons now...i don't know.