Barbier Clarinet

[sa...@mindspring.com]

does anyone know anything about these, is it true that they are really
Selmer BT clarinets made under a stencil brand name for some reason and if
there is any truth to the Benny Goodman story about the clarinet.

[Dee D. Hays]

sa...@mindspring.com wrote in message
<7ka793$uv9$1...@nntp8.atl.mindspring.net>...

>does anyone know anything about these, is it true that they are really
>Selmer BT clarinets made under a stencil brand name for some reason and if
>there is any truth to the Benny Goodman story about the clarinet.
>

I believe that at one time the Barbier was Selmer's beginner or intermediate
line rather than being a "stencil" brand name.

Dee Hays
Canton, SD

[LeliaLoban]

Dee wrote,

>I believe that at one time the Barbier was Selmer's beginner or intermediate
>line rather than being a "stencil" brand name.
>

You're right. I have a 1932 Selmer catalog that lists the Barbier as the
least-expensive student model. It came in both wood and metal versions. I own
a metal Selmer Barbier from about that date. By the standards of metal student
clarinets, it's pretty good. It's a well-made, attractive, 5-piece instrument,
silver plate over nickel silver, with a nice tone and decent intonation. The
1932 Selmer catalog states that the Barbier and the Bundy (which at the time
was an intermediate model, more expensive than the Barbier but less expensive
than Selmer's pro model, then called the Master Model) were both made to the
same measurements as the professional model. The difference in cost came from
using less hand-finishing and less costly materials in the construction.

However, I think there may have been an earlier Barbier that wasn't a Selmer.
I know nothing about that one. Also, Selmer has a long history of downgrading
models, as happened with the Bundy (from intermediate to student) and the
Aristocrat (from Buescher's pro model to Selmer's student model after Selmer
bought out Buescher), so it's also possible that a pre-Depression Selmer
Barbier may have been intermediate or professional. I'd be interested to hear
from anyone who has a Selmer catalog from an earlier decade.

Lelia
Please delete NOSPAM from my address to reply by e-mail.

[David and Barbara]

LeliaLoban wrote:

> However, I think there may have been an earlier Barbier that wasn't a Selmer.
> I know nothing about that one. Also, Selmer has a long history of downgrading
> models

I had a Barbier Albert system, and when I researched it I found that
Selmer bought Barbier in the first part of the century and then
apparantely downgraded them.
The Albert was a fine horn with upper and lower rings, etc, but I just
didn't need the Albert after I got a large-bore 50's Selmer.