Klarinet Archive - Posting 000019.txt from 1995/09

From: Jonathan Cohler <cohler@-----.NET>
Subj: E & F# above the staff
Date: Sat, 2 Sep 1995 06:59:48 -0400

Contrary to what most clarinetists are taught and believe, the solution
here is a modification to the embouchure which can, should and must be made
to play those notes properly. It is a result of the physics of those notes
(and there are other similar ones, such as the A one line above the staff),
and it is unavoidable. Furthermore, modifying the embouchure on the fly is
very "doable" and when practiced properly not only does it not hurt the
tone quality as many believe, but it drastically *enhances* the tone
quality. Here is one of the main reasons why.

First, practicing various half-hole or slurring techniques is simply
avoiding the problem. It won't solve it. You still won't be able to play
a high E from pppp without an undertone.

The problem is that the clarinet has two coupled systems in it that
vibrate: the air column and the reed. On those "bad" notes (the ones that
tend to generate undertones when the embouchure is unmodified), the reed is
trying to vibrate in another mode.

In order to excite the reed to playing in the proper mode, we must create
an appropriate node (or actually set of nodes) on the reed that is
consistent with that mode. We create nodes on the reed by the pressure
with our lower lip (actually the jaw and teeth under the lip).

For the E & F#, the node is generally slightly lower down on the reed than
where you play normally. Therefore, you must push your jaw forward
slightly, which causes your lower teeth to move forward and down the reed
(your lip can stay stationary, because the motion is not that large). At
the same, make sure that you do not have too much pressure on the reed by
pushing the clarinet up against your top teeth with your left thumb. The
other adjustment that will help to some degree is placement of the tongue
relatively high inside your mouth.

Play around with these positionings and you will find the optimal
combinations for various notes. The difference in positioning starts to
matter quite a bit from the G just above the staff on up, with the high E
and F# being the most problematic.

To find the correct position of the teeth and the right amount of pressure,
practice playing harmonics of the "natural" fingerings of those high notes.
You'll find if you are playing the harmonic correctly (without the aid of
the octave key and other fingering modifications) that the high notes will:

1. Speak perfectly without undertones from a dynamic of ppppp
2. Slur smoothly from anywher without the clumsy use of half-holes
3. Sound full and round (to use some imprecise terminology!)

When I say natural fingerings, I mean, for example, play a low A. Then
overblow it using reed and tongue position (generally higher as you go up)
to the first harmonic, which is the E. Don't change your fingering at all.
Then overblow it up to the next harmonic which is a flat C#, etc.....

If you can produce the harmonic C# (with the low A fingering) cleanly and
at will at a low dynamic, then you must be in the right position on the
reed. At that point if you add the octave key and lift the first finger of
your left hand, you will discover that you are playing the C# the way it
"wants" to be played, and therefore you will be able to slur to it etc....

More on this later.

Jonathan Cohler
cohler@-----.net