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Serial #none Batch marks don’t match. The clarinet is unmarked except for the hard rubber bell, but the keyed joints and bell clearly seem to belong together. The barrel is an H. Selmer. I would guess that the Couesnon parts were made in the late 1920s. The top of the LH joint is stamped LP (low pitch). Usually I say that makers stopped doing that around 1920, but I din’t think that hard rubber bell started appearing that early. Because of the hard rubber bell and the lack of stamping on the keyed joints, this was definitely made as a student clarinet.
Barrel: 62.4mm
Bore LH joint top: 14.4mm
Bore LH joint at bottom: 14.2mm narrow bore
Intonation results taken when playing loud and not lipping. See how to interpret these results on the Model Comparison Page.
For this test, I pulled 0 at the barrel and 1.4mm in the center for this horn.
OVERVIEW
Pitch: Bb
Key System: Boehm System
Maker: Cousenon
Brand Name: none
Place of Manufacture: France
Approximate Date: late 1920s
Body Material: Laminated "propeller" wood
Bore Type: reverse polycylinder, 14.4mm/14.2mm
Key Metal: unknown
Keywork Quality: good quality
Serial Number: none
Recommended For: beginners
Value: up to $350
Intonation summary: This instrument is not all that bad for a narrow bore horn. And I am testing it with my Prime mouthpiece, which has an exit bore of 14.9mm. So some notes might be improved with a period mouthpiece and the original barrel. The Chalemeau D and the high register A are both sharp by a lot, but this could be fixed a bit by filling in that tone hole a bit. Whoever plays this should learn to use the throat tone Bb with the right hand third trill key.
Key work quality: Typical Couesnon key quality. They are sturdy enough for the player who is careful in assembling and disassembling.
This clarinet is most appropriate for: Beginners, or adults interested in the sweet tone of a narrow bore instrument.
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