Devon & Burgani
The Boutique Experience
As many of you close to me know, I’ve been on a quiet quest for new clarinets, specifically a matching set that would replace my mismatched Selmer Signature Bb and Buffet R13 A clarinets. After my master’s where I switched from Buffet to Selmer I felt inclined to continue playing on Selmers, always enjoying their depth of sound and fullness, how they hold the air and produce the warmest, most supple of legatos and tones from which a full palette of colors is possible, though never found an A to match the Signature Bb I had acquired. Mentally I had settled on acquiring a set of Selmer Recitals that offered what felt like the best setup for me, warmth, depth, color, choice and as I gave they gave more. That all changed. Through what I can only describe as a serendipitous series of events I discovered or was lead to a brand of instruments unknown to me prior that have indeed exceeded my expectations and offer me a chance to redefine, curate, and hone my musical voice. They are Devon & Burgani.
Before I get into the horns themselves let me share the story of how I came across them and the events that seem to have colluded in my choosing this brand. Over the summer I had begun researching funding to tour an Irish and Music of the Americas program in Brazil. My pursuit for such placed me in contact with a woman in Brazil who had suggested I get in contact with one of their celebrated clarinetists, principal clarinet of Sao Paolo Symphony. Up until that point I had never heard of really any clarinetists in South America besides Luis Rossi, a celebrated instrument maker in his own right, so when she offered me the man’s name it didn’t immediately stick -- my ignorance of the clarinetists in South America is my own fault and not at all indicative of their caliber and international prestige. I’ve spent the early part of my clarinet studies learning and familiarizing myself with the great clarinetist of the US, past and present, and the respective wind sections of our major orchestras. I was only superficially aware of clarinetists outside of the US as at that time, a life or career outside of the US wasn’t on my radar, certainly not something I ever fully considered. Funny how things change -- I watched the YouTube video of him and his clarinet quartet performing a pretty impressive and fun piece and thought, this is amazing.
Fast forward a few months and I’m scrolling through my Facebook, prepping for an upcoming audition/trip in/to Wales and an ad for the Devon & Burgani Fluency clarinets comes up in my feed. What struck me most about them was the keywork. It was unique with what appeared to be an offset throat A key and beautifully sculpted left and right hand pinky keys. To say the aesthetic properties of the horn caught my eye would be an understatement and having recently met a woodwind instrument dealer in Dublin I went to his shop the next day to talk to him about this clarinet find. He hadn’t heard of them but encouraged me to get in contact to see if they had a distributor in Ireland or the UK as they were a Brazil-based company. I did and as luck would have it they did but not in one of the major centers like Dublin or London where I would expect but in Bristol and Wales, Cardiff to be exact which was uncanny. I was in the throws of audition prep for Welsh National Opera and would be there just long enough to try the horns and do my audition and since I had never been to Wales before, this seemed pretty ordained. I setup a time to try the horns and sleep easy. When I get to Cardiff I was greeted by a beautiful set of clarinets, the Devon & Burgani OSII and a series of Fluency clarinets in both grenadilla and their beautiful, red conduru wood. The Fluency model felt like everything I was looking for. They held the air like the Selmer while allowing me to shape and craft my own sound, offering flexibility and excellent intonation and responsive mechanism. The conduru fluency was especially remarkable. So much so that my friend commented that I sounded “expensive,” luxurious. Who doesn’t want to sound lux? I told the distributor I’d be in touch and continued on with my trip.
I couldn’t stop thinking about the horns though and when I returned to Dublin I was pleased to receive a message from the distributor encouraging me to give the horns a further look. So I did a bit more research. I was smitten not only by their magnificent looking keywork/mechanism/body but by the quality of the sound they produce and I wanted to see who else played on them. I wanted to see if I recognized any of the names of the other players. A few stood out to me but I wanted to know a bit more so on a whim I went back to the email from earlier this summer to find the name of the Brazilian clarinetist, principal of Sao Paulo Symphony, that I was encouraged to contact. When I saw his name which had long since been lost in my mind with all the things flying around my head since I received the email I was floored -- Sergio Burgani -- this name, this man is the progenitor of these stellar horns. They are his namesake and that felt very serendipitous. I hadn’t heard of him but a few months prior, unrelated to these clarinets, in search of something altogether different and here he was, a sort of beacon indicating what I felt, what I feel is something very meaningful. I immediately contacted the distributor to see if I could trial a set on the European tour I was going on with Chineke! Orchestra. They were so helpful in setting something up and I was not disappointed. I wanted to see how they felt in the orchestra, how my colleagues and friends responded to them, and how they felt in the great concert halls of Europe from London’s Queen Elizabeth Hall to Amsterdam’s Concertgebouw and Cologne’s Philharmonie. This was a chance to hear them in action and see if they could best facilitate my voice. I was not disappointed.
It took a minute to get used to the design and layout of the keys as there are a few extra mechanisms that serve the instrument in balancing the registers and correcting typical intonation issues. I had to adjust how I blew through them as they commanded a considerably greater amount of air, ensuring the horns ring brilliantly at every dynamic level, never losing the core and depth of sound. I had to adjust to the weight of the keys as some springs were heavier than my current setup but overall all of these minor adjustments to my playing were in service of a higher-level of playing. I couldn’t believe how effortless certain passages that had always required a bit more attention on my other horns felt on these. The evenness of tone from the bottom to the top with a full bodied resonance that’s carried from the bottom up is unparalleled, unmatched by any horn I’ve played before. In the most venerated concert halls of Europe the Devon & Burgani horns felt right at home. They had presence at the softest pianissimo and never spread at the fullest fortissimo and my colleagues noticed. The final serendipitous point that effectively sealed the deal is of a personal nature. This company, what can best be described as a boutique clarinet house, provided me with just that, a boutique experience, personalized for me, with valued attention and care. I’ve felt welcomed by them from the onset and looking at the makers, distributors, and progenitors of these gorgeously exquisite horns, I love seeing myself reflected in them, in this company.
Suffice it to say I’ve gone all in and am the proud owner of a set of D&B Fluency clarinets. The journey to discovering them has been epic. I wasn’t successful in my audition or touring pursuit but I did find these horns and the onward journey to living up to their caliber is one I look forward to and have committed myself to embarking on full steam ahead, so much so that I’ve created a self-imposed #BaermannChallenge (I’ll detail more in later blogs) where my goal is to get through the Baermann method in a year aiming for flawless, fearless, phenomenal playing in every exercise and allowing myself the space and time to further develop mastery of the instrument and specifically mastery of these horns.
I’m extremely happy I’ve found them and that they’ve found me and proud, honored, and humbled to announce that I am officially an exclusive Devon & Burgani Artist.
If you’re interested in finding out more about Devon & Burgani and their instruments feel free to contact me on the contact page or you can check out their Facebook and Instagram or visit their website.