My father passed away a few years ago, and I am going through the old stuff. He played a clarinet in the 1940's in a band in New York. The clarinet is black or very dark brown with a wood grain finish, although I am not sure it is wood. It has silver metal keys. It has four sections. Total length is 26 inches. Width of the bell is 3 inches. The information on the Bell is F. Buisson, Paris , B , Low Pitch, Made In France. One of the middle sections has a serial number of that looks like 1011. Up near the mouthpiece, it has an oval engraved area where it says, I think, PENZEL, Miller & CO. New York. I am thinking about selling it, so I need to know how to describe it. Is this an alto clarinet? Any other information you can tell me would be appreciated. Thanks.
F. Buisson, Paris, is a stencil name of a clarinet probably actually made by Kholert and Sohne, to be retailed exclusively by one dealer, Penzel, Miller and Co. I have a F. Buisson made as a stencil for the Dallas Company of London. They are reasonably good clarinets, but probably not worth much in today,s market. Perhaps $100.
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