My New Mollenhauer Denner Tenor- most expensive recorder I own! 

Guitars are great. Recorders are great as well. :)

@@BurningtunaDC I prefer baroque guitars to classical ones.

The Early Music Shop will, apparently, send you up to 3 (I think) instruments to try in your own home before buying.

I play electric guitar and have recently begun to play recorders. They sound nice together, even if there is distortion in the guitar sound. (Yeah, I have a mystical ability to play a guitar and a recorder at the same time... it is called Garageband.) About the prices. That tenor recorder costs approximately as much as a decent guitar of any kind. I know you can buy a guitar for far less, but it is then another question how it sounds, how stable it is and what is left of it after (a) few years of active playing. Recorders aren't just tubes with holes, either. High quality wood does not grow in every forest. The wood must be seasoned, selected and whatnot. And finally, you just don't take your Makita drill and make a hole through the stick and some through the walls. Even if you have a CNC router, these things are not made en masses just like that.

Well yeah. £1150vs £300for a guitar. You cant shred on a recorder. You cant headbang while playing a recorder. Having a fat one in their mouth... It is self evident why

And me, I was starting to get second-hand embarrassment.

Thank you! I think we’ll be very happy together, haha.

You might want a new bass in Baroque fingering since altissimo registers can be extremely out of tune in German fingering

I've not found it out of tune so far. German fingering on basses can be very good for blues and jazz bending. I've just got the Aulos; had to fix it first, so I'll be comparing them shortly. I'm still working out the blues and jazz bends on the keyed Aulos. Baroque is usually best for baroque and classical material (surprise, surprise 😁)

I think it’s so important to get the chance to ‘try before you buy’ if possible. We’re all different and what is comfortable for one isn’t for someone else! That’s why I love the early music shop, they let me play for ages before I chose. I’m glad it wasn’t just me- I thought the cherry wood smelt strange too! I couldn’t believe how little it weighed!

Thank you- I’m very happy with it 😊

I got there eventually, haha! I tried the Canta out too- it seemed a good option at a reasonable price. A much softer sound than my Denner, which i would say is quite crisp and bright. Canta would be good for anyone wanting to blend well in an ensemble, I think. Wish I could have filmed all the recorders I tried out in the shop, but it would have taken far too long!! (And might have distracted me from decision making, ha!)

That’s good to know because that’s about the upper end of my price range… I’ll wait for a chance to test-play it though because I need to figure out if I have the reach, I’m somewhat prejudiced against keys too. Huber has keyless comfort tenors. I’d love to at least have a look at them, though they cost quite a bit more… for a side hobby, that’d be too much.

I used to do quite a lot of wood turning. Box was a joy to work with and could get a lovely finish on it- but pretty expensive to buy- I suppose because of the slow-growing nature. I like it for the recorder because it manages to feel reassuringly dense but yet doesn’t weigh too much. Good thought about gun cleaning rods- I’ll see if my Dad has any laying about 🙂

Thank you! I reckon this is the priciest recorder I’m every likely to own (outside of dreamland, of course, where the sub-contra basses live…)

Haha, thanks! It is definitely good fun getting to know it.

Very good summary!!

Thank you, I’m sure we’ll be very happy together, haha.

In one of her former videos I immediately spotted this lovely recorder, and she told me it was a present from her family. I assume you have contributed as well. Isn't it brilliant, when a wonderful present is appreciated? And it is appreciated, as I see. Her progress is amazing and makes me jealous. You should be very proud of your daughter

And I live too far away for you to have to listen to the years of me practicing it. Cushty.

@@hampurista yes, it was from parents and husband and is very much appreciated ☺️ and thank you for the kind words!

I like to think so haha 😅

More than once a music teacher would not believe me when I'd tell them: the alto and tenor recorders play where they're written on the staff. The soprano and sopranino recorders play an octave above where they're written (to avoid have a kabillion ledger lines). The bass and great bass also play an octave above where they're written. The lowest note on the standard F bass (an octave below the alto) is 4th line F in the bass clef, in actual pitch. The lowest note on a great bass recorder is actually an octave below middle C, the same as the bottom note on a viola. The ear accepts the recorder notes as 'lower' because of the lack of upper partials of overtones (the same as the very high recorders). The range of a tenor recorder is basically the same as that of a soprano singer..in theory classes we'd be told to not write lower than middle C for the soprano voice. Try this one: It's amazingly wonderful to take the 6 Telemann 'sonatas sans bass' and play them on 2 basses...wow, what a sound. Happy playing

Thank you! I tried a Küng Signor in cherry (if I remember rightly)- couldn’t believe how lightweight it was!

I love Mollenhauer’s Denner range, I have a pearwood soprano, which I’m very happy with. Whenever I get a wooden alto it will most probably be a Denner too. I do remember stumbling across a website of a recorder repair chap, who offered a custom key fitting service. I’ve been racking my brain but can’t remember the name, or find the site! If it comes back to me, I’ll let you know. I seem to remember prices started at around £80 per key… I think your best bet would be to email the instrument technician at The Early Music Shop (his contact details are on their website). He may be able to help, or point you to someone that can! Hope you can find a solution!

@@ClaythorpeMusic Thank you; very much appreciated!

I didn’t think I’d be able to actually play or touch any of the instruments when I got to the shop, but it turns out they’ve got themselves a magical cabinet… (ok, it’s a scientific cabinet!) Pop any recorders into it and they come out minutes later sanitised and ready to go! It was on the shop counter, so customers could see it in action. I got put in a side room on my own so I wasn’t breathing over anyone as I played too- was really impressed with how they had thought it all out. A rosewood tenor 😍 I tried a rosewood, it sounded (and looked!) sublime. I would have been very happy to have taken that one home… but I could only have one 🙄😆

My first recorder was an Aulos Robin soprano, I think that’s the same line as their tenor. I was playing it yesterday and thinking how nice it sounds, bet their tenor is lovely too!

@@ClaythorpeMusic have you ever considered... getting a baroque flute?;) it will be a pretty interesting addition to your collection :D

Thank you! Glad to hear you’re getting on well with your playing! I love practicing scales, they come in so handy for so many pieces! With the keys, I reckon this tenor is an easier reach than alto, just about. It’s more getting used to hole and key placement, rather than having to worry about stretching your fingers. I’m pretty sure I started playing on the last day of September 2020. Time has flown!

Thank you! And yes, that would be Rupert the chihuahua x jack russell x warthog… you are not alone! He’s flat on his back snoring right now.

Hi David, so glad you're enjoying the videos, thanks! I sometimes use the Acapella app on my iPad to film multi-parts. It's quick and easy but the sound capture and editing capabilities aren't the best. So mostly I record sound into Garageband at the same time as filming the video. I edit both separately and then put them back together in iMovie. Nothing complicated at all as i'm technologically inept! Have a look in the video description- I think I left a link to the sheet music there :)

I was so nervous when I got my first wooden soprano, I didn’t want to do anything to damage it, but that meant I wasn’t taking full advantage of the instrument, I suppose! I just tell myself there’s no point in having the wooden instruments if I’m not going to try to make the most of them, and that’s how I get round the fear of damaging them! I’m never likely to own another recorder on the same level of this tenor, though, so I do get very protective over it, haha. Box is slow growing, so more expensive, but I loved the bright, clear top notes that I couldn’t not choose it. There are definitely other cheaper woods available, that are just as good ‘quality’. I suppose it comes down to personal choice of what sort of sound the instrument makes. I don’t think this model comes in maple but I’m sure there must be a maple tenor out there! Yes, the keys aren’t as good for precise control, I agree. But they make general playing much more agreeable to me, so I’m all for the keys, haha.

@@ClaythorpeMusic Totally understand!

Hey, thank you- sorry it’s taken me a while to reply to you! My husband agrees with me that the tenor sounds quieter than the soprano (and he has to listen to them both a lot, ha!). I think that even though the tenor is a larger instrument, it appears to make less noise because it is lower to listen too… if that makes sense? My wooden tenor sounds quieter than my plastic one, though, so maybe a lot depends on the individual instrument.

Hi Robin, I did indeed try the Flauto Rondo. It felt comfortable and lightweight. For me, I thought the sound wasn’t as defined as some of the others I tried. That’s not to say it sounded muffled, and I’m not saying it’s a bad thing either- it just wasn’t the sound I was looking for. And of course it’ll respond a little differently depending on who’s playing! Liked the keys. I thought it felt well made- a good all rounder would be my summary! Happy tenor-hunting :)

@@ClaythorpeMusic Thanks its really helpful to hear another players opinion. I loved the sound of your tenor but the £1000+ is a bit too far out of my price range. Thanks again.

Thank you! I really babied my first wooden soprano recorder… but over time you kind of relax and realise that you don’t need to pamper them too much, haha. I remember seeing a video ages ago on RU-vid somewhere of a pro recorder player who keeps all of the parts of his many wooden recorders thrown randomly into a drawer… never cleans or oils them and he reckons they still play fine 😅 (can’t remember who it was, but if I can find the video again I’ll drop a link)

Haha, luckily for me, this was a very lovely combined birthday/Christmas gift from my combined family/husband! The snoring cat is a snoring dog- though he is smaller than an average cat; and the hair was just having a good curl day, for once- I can’t take any credit 😆

That's very true! And mine are clumsy enough without keys, haha!

Sorry, it takes me a while to work through the comments! Have I answered the one you mean yet, or have I missed it? I don’t get notifications about all comments, for some reason!

@@ClaythorpeMusic I easily understand that a lot of people write to you so I will paste my message: maybe you have some nice websites or apps with flute lessons. .i used to have a nice application where the lessons were organized in a great coherence from the easiest ones, but I don't have it anymore and without the lessons arranged right, I don't know what to do, you will advise something mam I mean that, for example, there are many lessons for the guitar and the movies have ..titles Lesson One, Two etc. at the beginning of the course, there are basics on how to hold the guitar, and in the last lesson, every aspect is explained here. with the flutes you show your progress. The ,, team recorder ,, explains various issues but does not lead by the hand as in these films for .beginner guitarists. in Tin whistle Jet yet another way because the movies entitled "your first lesson" look like the flute blows here these holes are clogged, and then there is no second lesson where there is a mega simple song only odrsxu you enter the world of a thousand songs and no you know which is .for someone who wants to play the first song in advance thanks for the reply

Haha, I know- I’ve owned cars that cost less! I think it is by far the priciest recorder I’m ever likely to own- I’d better look after it! 😅

Her dog

Ha, that's my dog snoring like a warthog.

I agree! And it really is well made, for that money.

Thank you! I don’t really use Facebook, but may have to come on over to check out the group 🙂

I’m glad I’m not the only one who thinks it was worth it! And next time I’m teetering on the brink of adding yet another recorder to my collection, I’ll think about all of your stringed-things and go for it! One can never have too many instruments.

@@ClaythorpeMusic No. No, indeed.

@@ClaythorpeMusic I have a T-shirt: 'It's Not Hoarding If It's Guitars'