“I recently bought a Bb Sonoro SM-W (2024 version) clarinet from Leslie and Ash, and I’m delighted with it. It’s well made, the wood is very good, the keyword feels secure and robust under the fingers, it has a fantastic sound, a very even and smooth scale from bottom to the very top, and the tuning is excellent. Leslie and Ash were very forthcoming with advice and tips. For a clarinet of this quality, setup and fine adjusted by Les, supplied with 2 barrels, a hand finished mouthpiece, and a Silverstein ligature, it has an excellent case, is a superb deal. A great product, and great people to deal with. Many thanks.”

-Fenella Battenberg, Customer, November 2024

Details

The “Flagship” of the Bb clarinet range the SM-W, our wooden SM with the same free-blowing attributes but a more sonorous sound for those people who prefer a darker quality and more projection suited to Symphonic work.

Priced at a modest £1,475 this clarinet has a better build quality than many famous brand clarinets costing thousands more.

It has anchored posts in all the necessary areas to ensure a stable key mechanism that will not go out of regulation. This 18 key clarinet features an ergonomic low G#/clarion D# alternative key.

Quality Silver plating and adjusting screws on the middle joint and the crow’s foot. These small but ideally placed adjusters are not found on many clarinets and only then on clarinets costing much more. The sound is warm, dark, mellow and round like a fine wine. With the standard barrel and bell, the clarinet makes a beautiful sound but sounds even better with the custom barrel and bell offered at a special price if bought with a clarinet.

If enhanced with a custom barrel and bell (as pictured left) the clarinet rivals the sound of the most famous brands at a fraction of the cost but with easier sound emission owing to its unique design.