Jazz Clarinet Gear Review: 'Golden Era' 1966 Buffet R13 (possibly owned by Bud Shank)

It's not often that a newly refurbished, high quality mid century instrument falls into your lap for a test-drive, but that's precisely what happened to me this week. Local Clevelander Patrick Price, who purchased this vintage 1966 Buffet R13 for his daughter, wanted to know what he had, and what I felt of it's value as clarinet. After talking with Patrick for just a few minutes, it was clear that he had done his research and knew the market value of the horn -- what he wanted to know was more of how good an instrument it was, and what this clarinet could accomplish in terms of expressive range. 

Anyone who knows me as a clarinetist knows that I'm a bit of a partisan -- I am devoted to the old Selmer large bore sound and concept, and lament this era of clarinet manufacturing, considering it a kind of Babylonian captivity for those of us who resist the polycylindrical bores that took over the Parisian scene in the 1950s and '60s. If you know me a little better than that, you also know I played R13s for about a decade, and was frustrated by them. 

With all of that squarely in mind, I can tell you unreservedly that this instrument is an absolute gem. It has everything you'd want from the Buffet concept: a big, rich tone from the chalumeau and clarion. The altissimo isn't as strong as you'll get on a Selmer or Boosey & Hawkes, but the Buffet concept is different: it tends to become finer and less broad as it reaches the pinnacle of the natural range. This one's sound had a fairly perfect, Buffet-style taper as it got to double C. Most importantly, the timbre didn't drastically change between registers - it held very nicely. 

I've often been critical of polycylindrical bores for clumsiness over the "break" of the clarinet -- pointing out that often the player's voicing has to change to maintain pitch and timbre, making technical passages more difficult to phrase musically. This clarinet presented no such problem. 

   

1966 Buffet R13 

I played quite a bit of jazz on this instrument today, and then some orchestral excerpts. It can certainly be used as a jazz horn, if that's what the player wants. It has good volume, power, and flexibility. It's growling potential isn't as pronounced as one can get on a Selmer, and it doesn't have as wide a timbral range as my 1955 Selmer Centered Tone, but then again, not much does. I can imagine a player being very successful using it for modern jazz, which tends to have a more classical approach and more restrained sound palette.   

1966 Buffet R13

Where this horn excelled, though, was in the orchestral repertoire. The Buffet R13 was, after all, the instrument of choice for classical masters such as Franklin Cohen, Robert Marcellus, Harold Wright, Stanley Drucker, and so many others. I couldn't help playing some Brahms and Beethoven on it, and when I did this horn really showed it's strengths. The sound had a halo of warmth; a buoyancy and hovering ability that (much as I love them) my Selmers just don't have.  

This clarinet was newly refurbished and therefore needs to be played for a few weeks before the sound will truly blossom--the pads need to set properly and wear in a bit. When it does, it will be even more gorgeous than it is now.  

What are we to make of the story that Bud Shank owned this at one time? From what Patrick Price told me about it, I believe it was. It's impossible to prove without actual papers, etc., to that effect, but the story seems credible to me. Regardless, his daughter has at her disposal a mid-century beauty, the likes of which they just don't make anymore, in my opinion. May it take her to the heights of musical expression. 

1966 Buffet R13

  

Jazz Clarinet Gear Review: 1990 Buffet R13

The only Bb soprano Buffet R13 I've owned was purchased in January of 1991 in New York City, selected from nearly twenty R13s then in stock at Weiner's. My intent was to use it for classical playing, and it served that purpose for a decade, accompanying my journey through undergrad, grad school, and my first professional orchestra jobs.

Over the course of those years, I did my best to become a true "Buffet player", holding the instrument in a more tucked position and adjusting my embouchure and breathing accordingly. Because it was so different from the Selmer 10S jazz playing of my youth, switching back and forth was increasingly difficult. So the R13 became my all-purpose horn, including jazz, which is why this review is included here.

The chalumeau was a complete shift for me. Vintage Selmers, by and large, tend to cradle the sound in a different manner, so the player can hold the horn out more and blow in a more relaxed manner, letting the horn "catch" it. By contrast, my R13 tended to spread and be poorly focused with that approach. The well known "high tongue" position, pointed chin, and slightly pulled lips of American classical playing became very important to me for achieving a focused classical sound. This, by the way, seems to me the main reason Buffet players consider Selmers to be inferior and vice versa: the playing styles are very different and tend to interfere with each other (or at least they did--as of this writing, the most recent Selmer I've played was a 1999 Recital). At the height of my Buffet playing, I couldn't switch back to Selmers and get good results; the same was true the other way around.

The clarion was a good, solid R13 clarion, ideally used for blending in American orchestral sections, and useful for most situations, whether it was Prokofiev or Pops concerts. The timbral shift between the chalumeau and clarion was pronounced, though, compared to my Selmer 10S.

The altissimo was the weakest register for me. There wasn't one timbre, but many, almost shifting with each note. Flexibility was there, to a degree, but with a tone quality quite thin and shrill. The ultimate problem, possibly, was that I'd developed my altissimo approach on a Selmer, and kept trying to get that same quality.

That Buffets can and do make great jazz instruments is evidenced by some legendary recordings made by Artie Shaw in the 1950s, and Eddie Daniels in the late '80s and early '90s. Artie Shaw's final Gramercy 5 recordings were made on a Buffet, and these are, for me and many others, among the greatest jazz clarinet recordings ever made.

As for Eddie Daniels, albums like To Bird, with Love and Memos from Paradise helped listeners reapproach jazz clarinet after the instrument had endured quite a bit of obscurity. Eddie's Buffet altissimo, especially on the title suite from Memos, is breathtakingly beautiful and consistent.
Equipment and results ultimately depend on who is playing.

Bottom line: My natural playing style was at odds with the R13, which is why I sold my set and returned to Selmers. I would recommend recordings like the Shaw's 1954 Gramcery 5 sessions and Eddie Daniels' Memos from Paradise for examples of how they can sound at their best.