[Dixielandjazz] clarinet question

[loerchen2 at aol.com]

Armies -- French or not -- had little to do with the availability of instruments in New Orleans.? Music has always been?a very important part of life here, what with all of the marching bands, dance bands, opera, theater, and symphony.? And many of the musicians brought their instruments from the old country, so naturally there would have been a lot of French-made clarinets in use.? Used instruments were readily available in pawnshops or handed down from musicians who upgraded.? The "leftover instruments from the army" myth is one that historians here have disproven in recent years.

And there are quite a few of us who still play Albert system!

Sue







Up until the l930's most clarinettists would have used the simple system  
clarinet, even though the Boehm system was invented many years earlier. This was  

because jazz as we know it was developed in New Orleans and the French Army  
would have left behind the band instruments.  Lot of the endemic population  
picked these up and started to play blues and jazz. 



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A small caveat:

The French army left Louisiana in 1803. It would have been old U. S. army 
surplus instruments left over from the War between the States and the 
subsequent occupation (1862 or '63 to 1876) which would have been available 
to those with little cash money.

I have often fantasized about a jazz band playing those old army band 
"backfire" instruments at a modern venue.

Even today, some reed players seek out "Albert System" clarinets for jazz.
I do know that a well played Albert clarinet has a mellower tone than a 
Boehm to me. Whether it is because they usually have wider bores (if they 
do), or because the Boehms have that little standpipe on the speaker key 
hole sticking up into the air column, or what, I don't know. I play tenor 
banjo, not clarinet.

PHIL WILKING



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