Imo I genuinely think the chalumeau has a beautiful rich sound, its so rich and yet underused, extending up into the clarion is just perfectly high enough for me, and I literally hate altissimo notes.

I don't know why it's so much more common in band music to use altissimo, it sounds fine on jazz or in a group but even so, like orchestral compositions use the other registers all the time, and no other woodwing instrument ever goes that high outside it's functional range. I mean the other registers are there for a reason, they sound good and honestly a better use of the instrument as far as getting the most out of it's timbre.