Klarinet Archive - Posting 000493.txt from 1996/04

From: Jacqueline G Eastwood <eastwooj@-----.EDU>
Subj: Re: key/pad "clearance" and throat tones
Date: Wed, 17 Apr 1996 12:47:09 -0400

Hi, Bill,

Speaking only from my own experience (I'm not a physics expert!), the
distance between the hole and the opened key/pad DOES make a difference.
My A clarinet had the stuffiest throat Bb you could imagine -- if I
wanted a decent sound, I'd have to use the side trill key for Bb, which
of course is not always possible. By increasing the clearance of the
speaker key and thinning the cork pad as much as possible, it has been
drastically improved. Along the same lines, my new Eb has a pretty sharp
Bb3 -- I'd like to have my repairman lower the clearance of that side key
to see if it would help while not muffling the tone quality too much.

Does this really work? Repair guys out there?

Jacqueline Eastwood
University of Arizona/Arizona Opera Orchestra
eastwooj@-----.edu

On
Mon, 15 Apr 1996, Bill Fogle wrote:

> Does pad clearance/mechanical tuning have a marked effect on the tone of
> individual notes? I've noticed since playing it more lately that my
> Selmer Recital Bb has extremely airy, insubstantial throat tones. I can
> get a sense of this because other Bb's I've got show up the difference
> (same mouthpiece, reed, etc.) The Selmer is in all other respects a great
> instrument. I'd like to investigate the question as a possible function
> of key/pad mechanics. Does this compute?
> ````````````````````````````````
> Bill Fogle
> Washington, DC
> bfogle@-----.edu
> `````````````````````````````````
>