On another subject, there are two types of basset horns. The Leblanc model, which seems to be the preferred version among the best players such as Dennis Smylie in NYC, has a large bore and is played with an alto clarinet mouthpiece.
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The situation is admittedly confusing, and is partly a matter of international differences. I had a long e-mail exchange about 5 years ago w. a French clarinettist who was a member of this list, and what we eventually figured out was that in France, the *cor de basset* is indeed a wide-bored instrument, while a *clarinet contralto* in F has the narrow bore! To make things even more confusing, the *Eb* alto clarinet is wide-bored there just as it is elsewhere. Since clarinet manufacture is dominated by French firms, basset horns of the French type have become widely disseminated in the American market. To further complicate matters, French F-alto clarinets (narrow bore, no basset keys) are also marketed here as basset horns. (This, BTW is the alto clarinet that Stravinsky wrote for in the original version of his _Symphonies of Wind Instruments_).
Older English and American sources (e.g. Forsyth 1914/24) are unanimous in describing the basset horn as narrow-bored, and a big deal is made of the interchangeability of the mouthpiece (facilitates doubling, doncha know; compare clarinet in A).
New Grove sez: "It is generally recognized that the particular timbre of the classical basset-horn was due to the fact that its bore was scarcely larger than that of the contemporary clarinet, whereas the alto clarinet in F, which was developed in the early part of the 19th century, had a substantially wider bore [!]. This has left modern makers in something of a quandary as to the ideal towards which they should aim, namely whether a basset-horn can be made to balance the forces of a modern orchestra without losing the special character that distinguishes it. Some modern examples are made with a clarinet bore, others with a slightly wider bore, and yet others with an alto clarinet bore."
A royal mess, in short.
-- Andrew Stiller Kallisti Music Press
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