A Guide On How To Buy a Bassoon For Your Child Part One

A Guide on How to Buy a Bassoon for Your Child is a short series to address some of the questions we are frequently asked by parents who have decided to (or have been told they need to!) buy a bassoon for their child. For a parent who is not a bassoon player, as most aren't, this can be daunting. Bassoons are high value instruments and it is a decision you will want to get right.

The first thing to say is that you're not alone. Here are some scenarios we often hear:

Vance Lee is late! Hong Kong Philharmonic

• My son has been using a county-owned bassoon but they have asked for it back
• My daughter has been borrowing a bassoon from the school but this instrument is in such poor condition that it stops her from progressing
• Our son has been playing on a mini-bassoon but has now outgrown it so we need to find a full-sized bassoon
• My daughter wishes to learn the bassoon but the school do not have an instrument they can lend her.

So you need to buy a bassoon. At Double Reed Ltd. we have a wide range of makes and types of bassoon for sale. But where do you start when it all seems so complicated?

Part two of this blog will discuss what type and size of bassoon you need. The options are mini bassoon, short reach bassoon, or full size bassoon. Read on to see what we have to say - Part Two coming soon!

If you have a specific question you would like us to answer then please ask and we will include it in our follow up posts on this series.


www.DoubleReed.co.uk

Amati ABN41 / Lafleur Bassoon - Brilliant Value Second Hand Bassoon

On a budget? Want a used bassoon that packs a punch? High spec key work and a good sound? Then check out this second hand Amati ABN41 / Lafleur bassoon - beautifully overhauled, ready for you to fall in love with.

RH Thumb Rollers 

Helpful Info - This second hand Amati ABN41 / Lafleur bassoon (stamped Lafleur) was made by Amati in the Czech Republic and imported by Boosey and Hawkes in the UK. It is Amati's flagship model bassoon and has for some decades been one of the number 1 best selling bassoons in the UK.

Why so popular?

These instruments can be excellent value for money. At £1450 this is one of the lowest cost instruments we sell, and we can assure you, they don't come much cheaper without significantly less key work or compromising on quality (which we will never do).

The Amati ABN41 bassoon sounds nice. Whilst this bassoon is clearly placed in the lower end of the student bassoon range in terms of quality of sound, this instrument does sound nice. It is not quite as even as a more expensive counterpart, such as an Adler Sonora, but with a little more effort this bassoon performs remarkably well, with a nice rich tone, and is the perfect instrument for a bassoonist on a budget.

High D and Whisper Lock

High spec key work - this bassoon has some really great key work, including nine rollers! Right hand thumb rollers are usually only seen on professional bassoons in the top price band, but this bassoon has them. It's true - some of us have slow thumbs (myself included), and these rollers can make life easier if this is an issue for you. Other impressive key work also includes high D key, left hand thumb whisper key lock and two trill keys.

Technical Stuff - This Amati ABN41 / Lafleur second hand bassoon is also mechanically well designed and has been built to last. The key work is very comfortable to hold. It also has rubber lined tone holes on the wing and butt joint open finger holes to protect against water damage to the wood. These linings also extend past the inside edge of the bore so that water runs past them, rather than into them, which stops bubbling.






If you are interested in this second hand bassoon you can have a look at it on our website here: http://www.doublereed.co.uk/Bassoon_Lafleur_28033_For_Sale.htm

Alternatively we sell this instrument new on our website here:
http://www.doublereed.co.uk/Bassoon_New_Amati_ABN_41.htm

If this particular used bassoon is sold (as these blogs are written on an historical basis), and you don't see anything similar on our website, then do get in touch as we often have bassoons not yet advertised i.e.  undergoing a pre-sale overhaul and ready for you to try soon.

www.doublereed.co.uk

Second Hand Amati ABN41 / Lafleur Bassoon