Klarinet Archive - Posting 000552.txt from 1996/09

From: Benjamin Maas <bm004e@-----.EDU>
Subj: Re: soft pallate and clarinet playing
Date: Wed, 25 Sep 1996 01:03:49 -0400

I don't know if it is actually possible to raise or lower the soft pallate,
but this is something that Eli Eban taught in some of the lessons I had with
him.

He said that you should think about lowering the top lip (almost like it
would be a double embochure) and that acts almost like a sea-saw with the
back of the tongue and the pallate. If you lower the lip, the tongue and
pallate become raised. This, in turn, helps redirect the air into the
instrument. It also helps keep these parts of you mouth from obstructing
the air-stream and therefore it is easier to support your sound and it leads
to more fluid playing.

I hope this makes sense.... I am not that great at expressing in words what
I do and in some cases what I have been taught. If this doesn't make sense,
let me know and I'll give it another stab.

Ben Maas

--
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*Benjamin Maas * "It's as if the country is built on*
*Student, Eastman School of Music * a slant: everything loose rolls *
*bm004e@-----. Mencken *
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