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The standard German clarinet from soon after its introduction in 1860 until the 1890s, this design was the instrument for which the clarinet method of Carl Baermann was written, and on which a vast body of German Romantic music - including the works of Brahms - was first performed.  (The association with Brahms has led to the modern appellation "Mühlfeld clarinet" for this type of instrument.)

This version is modelled on originals by Wilhelm Hess Jr. and Anton Osterried/Gottlieb Gerlach (Nicholas Shackleton collection).

A sophisticated design, this clarinet is more complex than the Boehm system.  It is the forerunner of the Oehler system clarinet and has similar (though not identical) fingering to modern German clarinets and to the "simple" or "Albert" system clarinet. 

The body is boxwood, and the keys nickel silver, normally unplated (as was the case in period). The clarinet is supplied with a mouthpiece (manufactured by Ed Pillinger) copied from an original by Wilhelm Hess Jr. and made from synthetic material.

For more information, see Mühlfeld's Clarinet.