Chabot / Andre Chabot

Picture notes:There is an E stamped under the right pinkie cluster. I think this is a batch mark, which is typical of Malerne instruments also. However this is the first time I have seen just a letter and not a number also.

The upward curve of the key above the first finger on the right hand is typical of Malerne. Perhaps other makers used keys from the same maker.

The left pinkie keys are pin-in-hole type.

I wonder if the keys were Czech-made because of the shape of the register key.

This one does NOT have stamped pinkie keys. But the finish on the keys has been worn off a lot.

The key work is tarnished, but the metal does not seem to be dangerously soft.

It is softer than a Noblet, and I suspect the wear is because the plating was not good quality.

Intonation: The low B-flat throat tone (far right) is disappointing. The keys are open enough. But bear in mind I was playing loud, as I do in all my tests.

In upper register: I did not play an E-flat. That is a blip. The upper register is sharp in a normal way.

Key work: sturdy enough, but poor appearance. These are the same flat-interior keys as the Brittany (also by Malerne).

Today Andre Chabot clarinets would be appropriate for beginning students. When they were originally marketed, they would have been sold as intermediate instruments.

From Mark Charette at the Clarinet BBoard:

«According to "The New Langwill Index", Andre Chabot was a name used for generic clarinets imported into the US and then resold by dealers.

Most of these types of clarinets are student level, and may have cheap pot metal keys. Make sure you know what you're getting.»

From Lelia at the Clarinet BBoard:

«One way to check on those keys is to turn the clarinet so you can see the undersides of the touches for the "pinkie keys." If they have numbers stamped into them, they're probably mass-produced, cast-metal keys, the kind of pot-metal keys that break easily. I have to say "probably" because a few companies that used power-forged keys stamped numbers into them. Holton Collegiate clarinets from the 1930s, for instance, have good-quality, power- forged keys of solid brass under the plating, even though they're stamped. But Holtons are exceptions. Usually a stamped number on the underside of a key is not good news.»

The woodwind.org page “Has anyone heard of” has this incorrectly spelled as “Andre Cobot,” with no dates given, and this:

«US Governement Export from France»

From a recent question at this site:

Serial # A20337, was purchased new for $150 in 1955. The instrument is stamped “Made in France.”