CLARINETS DIRECT

020 85811113 or 07787 770071

BUFFET R13 Bb CLARINET, £1095

A vintage Buffet R13, which is a commission sale for Clarinets Direct. This instrument is a commission sale for Clarinets Direct, and the current owner is a professional player in London's West End. At this period of manufacture Buffet stored their wood at their factory [in the roof spaces], and it was carefully nutured and aged for at least 7 years before manufacture. Many experts attribute the gradual drop in quality of the R13 to progressively less control and care in wood maturation. Initially in the 1960s, for tax and cost saving reasons, Buffet appointed a reputable supplier to source their wood. Now they source their wood cheaply with "modern" techniques of artificial maturation, and, as a consequence, many of the models of their range suffer from cracking and wood movement.
The German Silver key work is in good order throughout, with only a natural "patina" associated with the age of the clarinet. The wood is in good condition with no cracks or damage, only slight surface marks The instrument has been recently re-padded in Pisoni Premium Deluxe fish skin pads, and all are in good condition. The matching serial nos. are 42641 which dates to 1952. This is one of the first R13s made, and when one plays it and appreciates the excellent intonation, sound and response, it is easy to see why this model began to dominate the market, as the preferred choice of all serious clarinetists. Back then this was the finest professional instrument Buffet made, with unstained, matched wood. This was before the introduction of the ""Prestige" range, which effectively downgraded the standard R13 considerably. Buffet are currently attempting to recreate this Gold standard of manufacture in their current "Vintage R13" range please go to www.buffetcrampon.com for more details. There are two supplied barrels, the original of 66mm and a more modern R13 barrel of 64.5mm which has a tight surface crack. The supplied mouthpiece is a Vandoren M30 in excellent condition, NB not pictured. The case is a Boosey & Hawkes, in brown leather, which is supplied with the keys.