Klarinet Archive - Posting 000153.txt from 1996/03

From: Karl Krelove <KClarinet@-----.COM>
Subj: Re: bass clarinet embouchure
Date: Wed, 6 Mar 1996 01:31:11 -0500

In a message dated 96-03-04 09:57:30 EST, Judy (Lamm) Figi writes:

>I play bass clarinet and use a double lip embouchure, It gives me alot more
>coltrol of tone quality and pitch. However, I find I can only use it
through
>about half of a rehearsal, then my upper lip gets too tired. Any
>suggestions?

At one time during the years when I studied with Gigliotti I was going
through some really disabling confusion about embouchre (hasn't everyone at
some time or other?) and, I think out of desperation, he taught me to use a
double lip embouchre as a temporary solution. He has always played single
lip, but his basic approach (I doubt if it has changed much since then) was
to pull the upper lip firmly against the top teeth as though it were part of
a double lip embouchre, but without actually pulling it under the teeth. He
had me play double lip part time for several weeks, trying after a few
minutes of a practice session to continue simulating the double lip without
actually tucking the upper lip under my teeth. The effect was little short of
miraculous at the time on my own embouchre, and I still find this to be one
of the most useful things, at least for me, that I learned from him.
The point of this is that you might find this useful to try, when your
upper lip starts tiring (I assume from the pressure of your teeth digging
into it). Let your upper lip out in front of (but firmly against), instead of
under, your teeth. Work at keeping everything else identical to what you were
doing. You may find that you can get the same control (and maybe a tad more
stability) with this approach to single lip that you feel with the double
lip. If you can keep your embouchre consistent with both single and double
but still feel more in control with the double, you can try using the double
only for exposed passages and play the tuttis single. The idea of this kind
of embouchre switching may make some players uneasy, but it works very well
for me and may for you.

Karl Krelove

   
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