Penzel Mueller, Artist, B Flat Clarinet
Penzel & Mueller were a German/American manufacturer of clarinets in Long Island N.Y. with the firm being active from 1899 through to the 1950s. Their clarinets were considered among the finest quality professional models made in the USA. This top of the range clarinet stamped "Artist" is in very good condition for an instrument which probably dates to the 1940's, and is a commission sale for Clarinets Direct. There is no damage to the wood which is fine, dense grained, Grenadilla. The German Silver keywork shows a natural patina commensurate with the age of the clarinet. The matching serial numbers are 16835. The bore is an extremely large 15.2mm with a reversed flare in the upper joint, as the start of the upper joint is 15.4mm +. In common with most traditional German designs there is very little bore flare at the bottom, which results in a typical German robustness and focus to the sound. These clarinets were much favoured by American Jazz players, apparently Woody Herman played an Artist model prior to WW2. The instrument has used tan leather pads throughout, all are sealing well. The clarinet comes with 2 barrels, an original of 66.5mm and one of 64mm. The case is the original in much used condition, with a broken handle and interior wear to the case lining. The supplied m'piece is a student model provided for play testing. This clarinet plays and tunes very well with a standard French bore m'piece, i.e. Vandoren.