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Klarinet Archive - Posting 000047.txt from 1995/07

From: Gary Bisaga <gary@-----.ORG>
Subj: Re: Articulated G# key
Date: Thu, 6 Jul 1995 07:49:55 -0400

Susan Pontow asks what an articulated G# does and what is the
advantage.

I like to look at the articulated G# as being a "modifier" key rather
than an "action" key. I.e. on a normal clarinet, the G# key always
causes the G# pad to open. An articulated G# key (e.g. on a sax or
some clarinets) *allows* the G# pad to open, but only if some other
combination of keys is pressed. I like to think of it as modifying
the normal G fingering (we're talking just-above-the-top-line G here)
to instead play a G#; any other fingering will continue to play the
note it would have played had the G# key not been pressed. So, play a
G# on either instrument, hear a G#. Then, depress the first finger of
your right hand. On an articulated instrument, you hear an F. On a
non-articulated instrument, you hear kind of a flat G#.

What is the advantage? Besides the more-or-less obvious one of making
F#/G# (also C#/D# on clarinet, of course) trills easy to do, I also
find it makes playing in some keys (formerly called "wierd" in
klarinet-speak) easier. Since much of the music I play (vocal lead
lines, accompaniments, or obbligatos on same) is heavy into step-wise
movement of notes, playing in the keys of A/E/B/F#/C# have the F#/G#
note combination all the time. When you play mostly music written for
guitar accompaniment, this means every song you play.

Gary