Matched pair of Vintage Buffet Full Boehm Clarinets
A rare Full Boehm single piece matched pair of early Buffet clarinets. This pair have been professionally owned and played most recently by a UK based professional active in period instrument orchestras. These instruments have a larger bore of 15.0 mm, and larger tone holes than the contemporary Buffet's. The result is a free and easy playing pair, with excellent intonation, and none of the third register problems inherent in the polycylindrical design. Note the extremely large tone hole sizes of low Eb low E and F, which is down to the much reduced lower bore flare compared to modern Buffet designs This pair feature all the Full Boehm "bells and whistles": low Eb, "doughnut" key fork Eb/Bb, articulated C#/G#, and LH Ab/Eb, and both clarinets also have a "wrap-around" register key.
The Bb has serial number M667 dating to 1899. The wood shows some surface scratches and marks, but for a clarinet of this age, it is in remarkable condition. Both instruments have lightly used tan leather pads. The excellent quality key work is mainly of German Silver, though some of the key barrels are actually solid silver. The stamps read "Buffet Brevette SGDG" LP. LP stands for Low Pitch i.e. A=440HZ. All pieces are matching and original. The bell also carries the stamp of "Carl Fischer New York" the USA distributor. The key regulation is excellent and there is no joint wobble.
A, S/N M346, dates to 1898. Is is in good condition throughout, with no cracks or repairs to the wood. The keywork is also in fine condition. There is only one supplied barrel with the pair. These instruments would make an excellent addition to a period players inventory, or possibly, might delight a collector of rare, historic clarinets. The case is the original Buffet, originally it held 4 clarinets, pitched in C, B, Bb and A, it is in fair condition, with some cracks to the wooden exterior