[ekim4]

What is the length of a standard Barrel for a Serie 9 Selmer clarinet?
I had a 65.5mm barrel come with my clarinet and it plays flat as hell. I'm thinking a standard barrel that plays 440 must be around 63-64mm or so.... anybody know?

 

[Meatballfoot]

Hate to say it, but I think 66 is the norm. Clarinet is just a beast to get into tune. Best to just make sure you are keeping your head up, your chin firm, and the bell close to your body. Im not sure if this is bad technique, but I usually think of pushing the clarinet into my mouth with my right thumb.

 

[bandmommy]

I don't know what came 'standard' with the Series 9, but I can tell you that the 2 barrels that came with my Signature are 64.5 and 62.5mm. The 65 is probably the correct one for your instrument.
Playing 'flat as hell' is pretty normal for sax players going to clarinet. You don't quite have enough 'firmness' in your embouchure to bring the little beast up to pitch. I can tell you the 'proper classical' embouchure and horn position for referance.

First the chin needs to be pulled flat and firm. Corners of the mouth pulled slightly outwards similar to a flat smile.
Horn angle is a little 'subjective' but the bell of the clarinet should be in the area of mid thigh to knee when sitting up straight.
Of course the head should be up.
Thinking of pushing the clarinet into the mouth with the thumb isn't good. If your embouchure is correct you only need your thumb to support the angle of the instrument and not so much to keep it in your face.

You don't say what you are using for reeds. It's very possible that you are using one that is too soft and in an attempt to keep it from closing up you are too loose in the chops.
I can try to 'walk' you through this, but it's probably best that you get a teacher to see what you are doing. If you already have one..... well... you may need to find a slightly shorter barrel.
Be careful that you don't go too short though. It really messes up the intonation of the throat notes and sometimes the lower register as well.

 

[clarnut]

I don't know what the stock barrel was on the 9, so hopefully someone who deals in the vintage market knows. Perhaps a search on the clarinet bb http://test.woodwind.org/clarinet/BBoard/list.html?f=1 will offer some info.

You should make sure that you are using a set up which provides enough resistance so the reed can keep up to pitch. Tom Ridenour has some good videos on embouchure

. While he specifically discusses double-lip, much of what he says applies to single as well. He does discuss using enough thumb support. Try playing the mouthpiece alone or the mouthpiece with the barrel. The mouthpiece should play a high concert c 2 octaves above middle C. With the barrel, you are aiming for an F#. This will give you an idea if you are firm enough.

I would have a clarinetist play the instrument to be sure what the issue is. There is always the possibility that the bore has changed somewhat and is causing issues. There are folks out there such as Allan Segal http://www.clarinetconcepts.com/ who do a great job with custom barrels.

Keep posted on what you find. Send me a PM if you have specific issues that I may be able to answer.

 

[dexdex]

What is the length of a standard Barrel for a Serie 9 Selmer clarinet?
I had a 65.5mm barrel come with my clarinet and it plays flat as hell. I'm thinking a standard barrel that plays 440 must be around 63-64mm or so.... anybody know?

Same for me. Mine came with a 66.5 mm barrel. It probably sounds fine with a 5RVL type of mouthpiece. With the 5JB, no way to get it right. I found a used 62.5 mm barrel on the market, and I need to pull it out by 1-2mm to be fine. The problem is the horn is very unevenly tuned over the range, so you have to find the right compromise. On mine, the chalumeau D is very high, and the lowest notes (F and E) are very low. Not an easy horn.

 

[lomaserena]

Small bore horns (eg, Buffet R13) usually come with a 65 mm barrel for A clarinet, 66 mm for B flat. Big bore horns like the Series 9 typically need shorter barrels. Some people naturally play flat (or sharp, as I do), and mouthpieces affect intonation, too. With all that said, start with a 64 and see how it tunes. Keep in mind that big bore horns have inherent intonation issues, so whatever you do, you're not likely to get every note to tune up without adjustments.

 

[patmiller]

My Series 9 always had a problem with flatness unless the instrument was thoroughly warm - I mean like you've been warming up solidly for about 5-10 minutes. That's one of the reasons I went to plastic and now metal clarinets - they stay more in tune when you pick them up cold to play the odd passage or tune. I'm also having a lot of success with a more sax-like mouthpiece (Lakey 5*) which has the added benefit of being LOUD as well as a bit sharp allowing for a slacker (relaxed) embouchure.

A shorter barrel may well help if you can't or don't want to persevere with the "correct" clarinet embouchure. A more open mouthpiece may also be a revelation.

 

[Radjammin]

There was a good posting on here, I can't find it now. User posted pretty confidently that a Centered Tone and 9 (not the later 9*) had the same diameter. He also stated the CT came with a 67mm barrel. You could get a 62.5 and a 64 as alt. barrels for it. I was reading all of this because it seemed impossible at gigs to get "the sound" on clarinet when picking it up cold while doubling. I had already switched to legere which I recommend for big band doubling. I needed a realistic way to be able to pick up my clarinet and not sound like I needed to warm up for 10 mins. So just a few days ago I bought a 62.5mm barrell on Ebay and it came today. It's quite a treat to see the tuner report me as sharp on clarinet. It seemed impossible to do without a consistent 10 minutes of blowing. Now this does mean I have to relearn my own pitch in relation to 440 on clarinet, but for me it was worth it. I dealt with the hand pains with a neck strap that I was able to give up, I dealt with the switching embrasure by going with a more open mouthpiece and playing looser, now I feel like I dealt with the last big hurtle of playing flat. I will try to pick up a 64 as well, if I get the money, but at least I can pull the 62 out.
I just don't play everyday, if I was a full time musician I would practice enough to use the 67, but that's not going to happen anytime soon. I play the stock HS*, I used to play the 5JB, but prefer the HS*.

 

[Chris Peryagh]

I use a 67mm barrel with all my clarinets as well as my Series 9 full Boehms and if anything, I do have to pull out by around 1mm after warming up so the instrument is in tune with itself - my 1978 Series 9 Bb came with the original 67mm barrel and this is the best length for tuning - the 1962 A came with a 64.5mm Series 10 barrel but I found a 68mm barrel that I use on both in warm weather which saves having to pull out. Similarly I use the stock 67mm barrels with my CTs as well as they're the best suited for me and the instrument. I find anything shorter than 66mm throws the intonation out considerably.

Before having the barrel shortened, find out what else could be causing you to play flat. If you use a Vandoren "13 Series" mouthpiece, that will play flat in comparison to the standard Vandoren mouthpieces, plus using a very soft reed on a wide tip opening with a slack embouchure (as some players do to match their sax set-up) can make the instrument play flat and shortening the barrel will help to some degree but won't cure this as the scale will be out. Developing a good clarinet embouchure and using the correct strength reed for you and a mouthpiece with a more closed facing (such as a Vandoren 5RV Lyre) will be more beneficial.

To the original poster ekim4, I don't know anything about your playing background so just want to know how long have you been playing clarinet for and are you going from sax to clarinet? Are you studying clarinet with a clarinet specialist or are you self taught?

 

[ekim4]

Thanks for the interesting comments. I started studying clarinet when I was 9 along with saxophone and flute and have played it on an off through the years including 6 years with the National Guard band in Boston during the 70's. My interest now is just to double in a big band that I play lead alto in. I actually prefer to play flute and while trying to maintain a decent level of proficiency with sax and flute I may rethink the time commitment to get the clarinet up to speed.

 

[BadAx Cases]

FWIW, the Series 9 I just purchased (circa 1961) has what appears to be the stock barrel, and it measures 66.5mm.

Russ

 

[shmuelyosef]

Just weighing in on an old thread because I came across it. I have two Centered Tones and a Series 9, and all have what appear to be the original barrels. Lengths range from 66.7mm (on the 7-ring CT) to 67mm on both the 6-ring CT and the Series 9...and just for reference, after they warm up, I have to pull the barrel out about 1 mm with a Fobes 4L or Portnoy BP3