Woodwind Methods #1 - Clarinet Test

Assembly of Clarinet

From bottom up:

1. Bell

2. Lower (right hand) joint

3. Upper (left hand) joint

4. Barrel

5. Mouthpiece

Be CAREFUL with the bridge (DO NOT turn 360, as this will cause damage to the bridge. Instead, use twisting motion)

Mouthpiece flat “table” should be lined up with the register key

Align tip of the reed even with mouthpiece tip (tip to tip/straight on the moutpiece)

Body Posture/Balance

• A/O joint: connects the head to the top of the spine. Proper alignment of this joint is crucial for maintaining a relaxed posture that supports tone and breath control. 

• Sit tall: Sit on the front half of your chair with a straight back and tall spine. Avoid leaning back, which can cause you to slouch. 

• Rocker bones: The pair of rounded bones at the bottom of the pelvis that you sit on. 

• Feet flat: Keep your feet flat on the floor, ideally shoulder-width apart, to provide stable base.

• Relaxed shoulders: Your shoulders should be relaxed and down. Avoid shrugging them or tensing up. 

How do you clean calcium deposits off of mouthpiece?

Soak in vinegar and water (diluted vinegar) or lemon juice for 5-10 minutes, then gently wipe the residue with a soft brush or cloth, and rinse with cold water.

Regular vs. Inverted Ligatures

Regular: screw(s) are positioned on the reed side

Inverted: screw(s) are positioned opposite the reed side

Inverted Ligatures have sound advantages over regular.

Reed Storage

• Keep at least 2-3 reeds.

• Store them in individual or multiple reed cases to keep them flat and allow them to dry between uses.

• DON’T leave reeds in cardboard holders and NEVER store reeds on mouthpiece, as they will mold, dry out, etc.

• Harder reeds are beneficial for high notes, as their increased resistance helps produce clearer, more stable sound.

Reed Adjusting Equipment

• Paper: rubbing the flat side of a moist reed on paper may close pores and speed up break-in period: this is called “curing” the reed

• Reed knife: scraping allows player to balance/adjust reed surface

• Reed Rush: early adjustment alternative to knife, used wet on surface: students can’t cut themselves…or you!

• Sand Paper: alternative for vamp or back work. Use 600 grade emery paper.

• Reed Clipper: clipping reed tip strengthens soft reed

• Flat File (fine): for smoothing the flat back of the reed only

Other items in Clarinet Case

• Swab: best type is Handkerchief (CLOTH) swab. Basically a Handkerchief attached to a weighted string.

  • Chamois swabs: less effective (they get stuck, rot, etc.)

  • Felt swabs: also ineffective (they get stuck, leave lint, etc.)

• Cork Grease: preserve cork life, avoid stressing keys and rods during assembly

• Mouthpiece cap/cover: protects mouthpiece and reed tip when not playing

Items in Bass Clarinet Case

• Peg: to support weight of instrument

• Neck strap: to ensure good angle

  • If marching with bass clarinet, neck strap is ESSENTIAL

Teach Note Range in THIS Order:

• E down to middle C

• F up to B-flat (Throat Tones)

• Low B down to Low E

• Middle B up to High C (Clarion/Upper Register)

Only things that DON’T change when playing clarinet:

Right thumb (holding clarinet) and embouchure

Hand position:

• The left hand should form a relaxed C; right hand, opposite

• Right thumb supports clarinet under thumb rest (nail/knuckle)

• Right fingers should be curved and poised over the rings, without leaning on the right hand rod or keys.

• Left thumb: usually covering the hold on the underside, angled 30-40 degrees, so that a small leaning motion will contact the register key, while still covering the hole.

• Left fingers should be curved and poised above finger holes. Index finger curves around the G# key, without leaning. 

Embouchure:

• Top teeth resting on top of mouthpiece

• Bottom lip over teeth - only a small amount of red on lip is visible

• Corners of mouth pulled back, firm to the touch

• Chin pointed down, leaving a relatively firm, flat surface

• NO PUFFING CHEEKS (will not happen if all above is secure)

Tongue:

• Always begin playing with the tip of the tongue touching the underside of the reed tip

• Engage air support with tongue touching reed

• Release tongue to start note, using a “doo” or “dee” syllable

• The tongue should generally be arched slightly while playing, ready to interrupt reed vibration with another “doo.”

Stacatto Tonguing:

• The tongue quickly returns to the reed to stop vibration

• Maintain air pressure & embouchure during the silence that occurs while tongue is on reed – “doot-doot-doot” (tongue is on reed during staccato, stopping the vibration/sound)

Common Causes of Squeaking:

• Leaks are the most common 

  • Finger holes not securely covered (the fleshiest part of the finger tips should cover the holes)

  • Bumping or leaning against keys, inadvertently opening holes

  • Mechanical - leaking pads, leaking tenon corks, or instrumental crack

• Taking too much mouthpiece in mouth almost guarantees squeaks

• Using too much bite pressure from jaw (instead of embouchure firmness & air support)

• Embouchure is not firm enough for the reed (reed too hard) causing need to over-blow

• Reed is placed crookedly on mouthpiece, or it is unbalanced

What can be used to correct embouchure problems?

• Double-lip embouchure can be used to correct embouchure problems:

  • Correct biting

  • Correct a bunched up chin

  • Correct a “frown” embouchure

  • Correct bad embouchure air leaks

  • Strengthen, involve top lip muscles in embouchure

Anchor Tonguing

• Anchor Tonguing: the tip of the tongue remains anchored behind the bottom teeth, making it unavailable to touch the reed; thus, students tongue the reed with the MIDDLE of the tongue.

  • To be avoided or corrected

  • Excessive jaw movement often accompanies anchor tonguing.

• Results of Anchor Tonguing: 

  • Tonguing sounds heavier than normal

  • Tonguing is slow and inflexible

Throat Tonguing

• When student’s tonguing sounds bad, they may inadvertently try throat tonguing.

  • The throat closes between notes, stopping the air with a “guh” or “kuh”.

• Result: guttural noises, excessive throat movement, lack of clear articulation

Tuning

• If sharp, pull out 

  • Adjust the barrel for upper joint notes (open G and up)

  • Adjust the middle for lower-joint notes (middle C and down)

    • MINIMAL adjustments, without interfering with bridge

• If flat, push in

• Cold instruments = flat, warm instruments = sharp

• Soft dynamics = sharp

• Loud dynamics = flat

Clarinet History

• Direct ancestor - the chalumeau: produces low register tones only

• Invention of the clarinet is attributed to Johann Christoph Denner 

  • Around 1600, he added the speaker, or register key

  • He also added the A and B keys to bridge the register gap, which resulted in his first three-key clarinet

• Famous Mozart Clarinet Concerto - 1791, 5-key clarinet

• 1800-1850 saw major improvements: Klosé and Buffet worked on 17 key clarinet together

• Cause of woodwind advancing: Theobald Boehm’s ring/plate system

• Buffet Crampon Co. - still leads world in clarinet production

• Klosé’s clarinet method book - remains standard for high school and college

• Cylindrical bore (don’t be fooled by the bell; it is not conical):

  • Like an organ pipe, the clarinet functions acoustically like a straight pipe

Clarinet Register Names

• Chalumeau: the strong, characteristic low register of clarinet

• Throat tones: The notes that immediately precede the register break on clarinet (open G - Bb)

• Clarion register: The new fluid, melodic upper register notes were named this, probably after the clarion (high) trumpet, which provided the new instrument’s name

• Altissimo register: The highest notes, beyond high C

Trouble Shooting/Emergency Repair

• Pads make a sticky noise when lifted:

  • Put a dollar bill between the pad and the tone hole, push down on back of pad cup enough to create friction, slide paper out

• Screw keeps backing out:

  • Put a drop of nail polish on back of screw

• A spring snaps off: 

  • Use a rubber band to hold the proper key closed; be careful that it will not hinder any other part of mechanism

• No sound comes out but a stuff throat-tone note on clarinet:

  • The student has screwed the “A” screw in too far, so that the G# key is lifting; back the screw out with screw driver

• Pad falls out:

  • Put pad in its general position

  • Heat back of pad cup with a lighter to melt glue; (do not touch tip of flame to instrument or pad). 

  • Using a rag or swab, push hot pad cup gently against its hole, so that it will find its correct position. 

• You find a crack in the wood:

  • If it’s cracked through to the bore so that the instrument is leaking, the problem is serious; get an expert to advise.

  • If it is not cracked through, a little carefully placed nail polish (temporary) or super glue (more permanent) may prevent further damage until an expert inserts a “pin”

Clarinets

• Beginner (plastic): Yamaha, Leblanc (Vito)

• Middle (wood): Buffet E12, Backun, Copeland

  • Best: Buffet (Tosca, Presitge), Selmer, Yamaha, Backun, Royal Global, Copeland

Bass Clarinets

• Beginner: Leblanc, Yamaha

• Middle: Buffet, Copeland, Royal Global

• Best: Buffet Prestige, Selmer, Backun, Royal Global, Copeland

Ligatures

• Metal:

  • Bonade (specifically inverted)

  • Rovner Versa (fabric with metal plate)

  • Rico “H” (gold - brighter sound - and silver - darker sound - platings)

Reeds

• Beginner:

  • Mitchell Lurie

  • Rico Royal

• Intermediate:

  • Vandoren

• Advanced:

  • Vandoren Blue Box

  • Vandoren V12, V21, Rue 56 (alternate cuts that many pros prefer)

  • Rico pro reeds

• Synthetic:

  • Légère plastic reeds (don’t have to wet = convenient)

Mouthpieces

• Beginner (made of plastic):

  • Pyne

  • Yamaha

• Intermediate (made of hard rubber):

  • Vandoren M13 Lyre

• Advanced:

  • Vandoren B40, BD5

*Hard Rubber = heavier than plastic and easier to resurface

*Most popular reed and mouthpiece brand: Vandoren