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Not in the proper forum, but...

SOTSDO

Old King Log
Staff member
CE/Moderator
...I don't see one specifically for this instrument so I made a wild guess and turned this one up.

For the bass clarinet player who has almost everything, I present the following, fresh from the pages of this month's INternational Musician:

Bass Clarinet – Selmer Professional model in the KEY OF A. Very rare and desirable for a professional Bass Clarinettist. Serial [HASHTAG]#D5490[/HASHTAG] Like new $8,250. Call Lou (440) 232-2053

Here is your opportunity to play professional opera pits without the hassle of transposition. Remove the low Eb key from your Bb bass in order to save weight! Play the bass clarinet line in "On The Trail" in Grofe's Grand Canyon Suite without a fumble.

No mention as to if it comes with a fitted double case...
 
I have played one in the past...

...at one of the conferences sponsored by the ICS, and it was nice to rip through ol' Ferd's impression of the burro's faltering footsteps in C major rather than in D (when transposed on the Bb horn) - no messy sliding when crossing the break and all of that.

(Oddly enough, the last two times that I've played the Grand Canyon Suite, I managed to ace the parts, all while more or less just playing the ink off of the page. Clear the old mind, rely on your ingrained basic technique, and there you go. And, that was when playing it on the Bb horn.)

I also noticed the same "A instrument = more 'mellow' than the Bb equivalent" phenomenon, just as most sense with the A/Bb soprano pairing of clarinets. It's the old "Hey, I've got everything down, yet the note I'm playing sounds more 'mellow' than I expect it to!" effect.

The extra length of the thing was considerably more hefty than a conventional Bb instrument, but quite light compared to the extended range horn that I've been playing since (sigh) 1971.

Still, $8,000-ish is a hell of a lot cheaper than list.
 
The key removal thing...

...was pointed at the traditional bass clarinetist, one who plays the "extended range to low Eb" instrument. I have a couple of horns (old Albert system ones) that only go down to low E, dating from the days when the operatic bass clarinetist was expected to have an A instrument.

As mentioned before, I learnt my clarinettin' on a Buffet Albert bass in A, in effect learning a reformed notation reading of the regular Bb parts. That bit of hard wiring hasn't left me yet, although it takes an hour or so before my Albert playing climbs to the level of my Klose/Boehm playing.

(The transposition thing still surfaces occasionally, even when playing a saxophone or bassoon. If I am distracted by some bit of band business (vocalist issues, usually), I have to be on guard to keep it from horning in while I am playing.)
 
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