Oddly enough, the higher I climbed on this horn, the better and more professional it sounded. The Edgware's smoothness would make some sense of players preferring it as a primary jazz horn-especially if they are coming to it from Buffets. Keep in mind that my biggest criticism of the average R-13 is the timbral shifts between every register (and many in the altissimo). On this particular horn, the clarion matched the chalumeau better than many Buffet R-13s I've played. Still, it yields a good, solid sound with considerable body-more than I expected, but difficult to project. Comfortable, easy to blow, and somewhat open, the main problem is a lack of depth, power, and character to the sound when compared with a vintage Selmer or Fritz Wurlitzer (whose chalumeau is perhaps unsurpassed for power and timbral palette). Of all registers, the Edgware chalumeau betrays its 'student' status most. Having said that, the keywork was not the standard of a top professional horn.

The keys were beautifully preserved, and my general impression was that this horn had either barely been played, or wonderfully restored recently-perhaps both. The particular model I played was in excellent condition. So it was with a predisposition towards dismissiveness that I recently played an Edgware dating from about 1949 (if the serial number chart I checked is to be believed). Top jazz players have always played top pro model horns, and the Edgware was a high end student model horn from the 50s-70s when Boosey & Hawkes were at their height. I've always been a bit skeptical of this, thinking is says more of the player's poor understanding of jazz sound than the instrument.

There are many on the web who say the B&H Edgware makes a good jazz clarinet.

Boosey hawkes clarinet serial numbers