Okay, I may sound dumb but I have no idea what a contrabass clarinet is. This is sorta sad since I play the bass clarinet but hopefully I'm not the only one. If you know what this intsrument is, how it looks, and how its sounds please tell. I love trying new instruments and this may be the next one. :D thanx

The contrabass clarinet is in the key of B flat, one octave below the bass.

The straight model is about six feet tall and goes to low E flat. Leblanc has a professional model made of metal and a plastic student model. There is also a coiled model that reaches low C.

Pictures and a sound file of the contrabass clarinet:
http://www.jayeaston.com/galleries/clarinet_family/clarinet_p_low_clarinets.html

Leblanc coiled model:
http://www.jayeaston.com/galleries/clarinet_family/clarinet_p_contras.html

Selmer low C model made of rosewood:
http://www.selmer.fr/html/english/claribas/claris/cla15/cla15.htm

A redesigned contrabass by Benedikt Eppelsheim:
http://www.eppelsheim.com/kontrabass_klarinette.php?lang=en

OMG!! Thank you so much. I love how kool that instrument looks. Its alot bigger then I thought it would be but oh well. Since its alot taller then me though, I might not play it for awhile =P lol. I like the sound of it too. Once again thanks so much.

I play contrabass clarinet in clarinet choir. It's REALLY fun. The thing that bothers me the most is that it doesn't hvae as many keys. For instance, the four side keys on teh right, opperated by the pointer finger? It has one long one, which plays Eb.

Are you referring to the plastic Vito contrabass? The only one I've seen in live perfomances was the straight metal Leblanc, I think it had all the keys.

Have any of you contrabass players tried playing Rose/Klosé/Baermann etudes on it?

yes!

So I'm pretty much in love with the contrabass after recently switching to it.
The uber low sound is great!
I play the coiled version, so it's not much taller than me.
But it is VERY heavy to haul around.
And the reed is like huge.
It's awesome.

talking about monsters straight bari sax
http://forum.saxontheweb.net/showthread.php?t=66303&highlight=straight+bari


<Added>


heres a picture of a contra alto clarinet(Eeb) - one octave lower than an alto clarinet
http://www.ultrainspections.com/Clarinet_Contra_Alto_Selmer_Bundy.html