Clarinet roundup
Clarinet: A Complete Buyer's Guide
Buying a clarinet starts with matching the instrument level to the player — a quality student plastic model serves most learners better than a cheap grenadilla alternative.
Student, Intermediate or Professional?
The clarinet market divides into three broad levels: student instruments aimed at beginners and learners, intermediate step-up designs for advancing players, and professional models for those performing at a high level. Most people buying for the first time should look at the student range — instruments designed for durability, straightforward key action and ease of maintenance, with a tone that is good enough to develop on but not so refined as to be wasted on a beginner's embouchure.
Intermediate instruments offer improved key materials, better bore finishing and superior pads, which reduces the frequency of servicing and improves the response across registers. They suit players who have committed to the clarinet and have been playing for a year or two. Professional instruments use premium woods, hand-finished bore and keys, and are aimed at conservatoire and professional players for whom precise intonation and tonal refinement are essential.
Body Material: Plastic or Wood?
A plastic-body clarinet is the correct choice for almost every beginner. Plastic (ABS resin or similar) is durable, unaffected by temperature and humidity swings, easy to clean and significantly less expensive than wood. A student clarinet in quality plastic from Yamaha, Jupiter or Buffet Crampon will last years without the cracks or swelling that affect wood in the hands of players who do not consistently apply bore oil or observe humidity precautions.
Grenadilla (African blackwood) is the standard body material for professional and most intermediate instruments. It produces a richer, darker tone than plastic and responds more dynamically to the player's technique — but it requires careful acclimatisation when new (playing in sessions gradually increasing in length) and ongoing maintenance. A cheap grenadilla clarinet is often a worse choice than a quality plastic one because the wood quality and bore finishing may be inferior to a well-made plastic instrument at the same price.
Key Systems and Action
All modern Bb clarinets use the Boehm key system — there is no meaningful variation here at any price level. What does vary is the quality of the key mechanism: plated keys resist tarnish and corrosion better than unlacquered nickel; silver or silver-plate is common on professional instruments. Pad quality (cork, leather or synthetic) affects how consistently tone holes seal. Spring tension — how much resistance the keys offer — affects response speed and player fatigue in long sessions.
Good key action on a student clarinet means consistent response across all registers, no sticking, and springs that return immediately. This is the area most affected by poor manufacturing on budget instruments — keys that are slightly out of alignment or springs that are inconsistently set make technical passages harder to execute cleanly.
Mouthpiece, Ligature and Case
Most student clarinets ship with a plastic mouthpiece and a metal ligature. The plastic mouthpiece is adequate to start but worth replacing within a year as playing develops. A quality mouthpiece from Vandoren — the B45 and 5RV Lyre are widely recommended for students — is one of the best investments available for an advancing player and makes the instrument play and sound noticeably better without replacing the whole instrument.
A hard case provides much better protection than a soft bag. The case that ships with most student instruments is typically adequate but worth inspecting — the clarinet should be held securely without movement when the case is closed. A soft bag is acceptable for short distances but offers no protection against impact.
Budget Guide
Entry-level plastic student clarinets from Yamaha, Jupiter or Buffet's student range start from around £200–£350. This price buys a clarinet that will serve through the early years of learning without mechanical problems. Intermediate wood or grenadilla instruments from reputable makers run from £500–£1,000. Professional instruments — Buffet R13, Selmer Privilege, Yamaha Custom — begin at £1,500 and rise significantly. Secondhand instruments at the student and intermediate level are worth considering from a reputable music shop or woodwind specialist with a service guarantee.
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