[Dixielandjazz] Kenny Davern's rubber clarinet

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In a message dated 1/25/2009 1:30:48 P.M. Mountain Standard Time,  
dixielandjazz-request at ml.islandnet.com writes:

All of  us clarinet players who play outdoors knew you were right. We  
may  not be physicists, but we know we go flat when the temperature   
drops.

For non-musicians, many of us clarinet players have short  barrels, or  
adjustables for outdoor gigs. They shorten the length  the air has to  
travel before it reaches the tone holes raising the  pitch. I have a  
short barrel 2mm shorter in length than the regular  barrel and use it  
for outdoor temperatures below 70 degrees  fahrenheit. I don't take any  
gigs outdoors anymore when the weather  is likely to be below 60 degrees.

Humidity also plays a role in the  tuning problems with wooden  
instruments. That's why some of us will  use plastic or hard rubber  
clarinets on humid outdoor gigs. Kenny  Davern had a beautiful hard  
rubber (or some such material) Conn  Clarinet circa 1930 or so, that he  
sometimes used outdoors to avoid  these tuning problems. It didn't suck  
up the humidity like wood  does.

Cheers,
Steve Barbone
KD played his wood clarinet for something like 30 years before it gave it  
gave
out in the 80s   (don't quote me on these dates    --   I'd have to listen to 
the radio
shows we did together to get the Facts)(his biographer Ed Meyer has all of  
these
dates I'm sure) --   and then he switched to the  Zyloid
clarinet and swore by it and had several of them and people kept sending  him
them, too!   He'd find them cheap for like $150 and give them  away to 
youngsters
just finding their way.
 
--Mark Weber
KUNM Thursday jazz
Albuquerque New Mexico





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