Klarinet Archive - Posting 000211.txt from 1996/08

From: Mike Cavin <mikec@-----.EDU>
Subj: Re: Neckstraps
Date: Thu, 8 Aug 1996 02:43:15 -0400

I type a bit, and have played clarinet since I was 12 years old. Before
that I played piano for 6 years or so, and picked it up in college as a
Music Major. I have been a professional player for many years, and my
fingers are fine. Make sure that the motions used with the fingers are
"natural" motion, and that the hands are in a good position, and it
should all work out well. Make sure the fingers are naturally curved,
and that the motion for clarinet playing is made from the large knuckle
moints closest to the palm, and NOT with a lot of opening and closing of
the smaller finger joints. This puts the working motion on the large
joints and not the small ones. Pianists learn to play the same way,
too. Also, some people may just have more tolerance for this type of
finger motion, through what they inherited physically. I have played
pieces in performance that have demanded a great deal of technique, in
the past few years: Nielsen concerto, Bartok Contrasts, etc. I am now
sixty years old, and still going strong. Mike Cavin.