Klarinet Archive - Posting 000167.txt from 1996/10

From: Steve Prescott <mipresc@-----.EDU>
Subj: Re: CO2 influencing pitch
Date: Tue, 8 Oct 1996 15:28:46 -0400

Scott wrote:

>I SAY:
>
> Perhaps I am just unenlightened, but, in the absence of a more
>colourful Dan Leeson characterization, I find this all sounds like a lot of
>nonsense!
> First of all, I have read NOTHING in this discourse that could even
>remotely suggest that any change in pitch could be related to the CO2
>content of the air being forced through the clarinet. Everything I've read
>here - from belching to breath-holding- sounds more like the effect of
>proper air-column support and effective use of the diaphragm (THAT's why
>you'd wait a couple of seconds after taking your breath before attacking)
>on the pitch rather than from the gas mixture in that air in our lungs!
> Secondly, even if sound travels faster or slower in CO2 than in N2,
>it is completely irrelevant because we are not LISTENING to that sound
>travelling through CO2: we are listening to it travelling through AIR
>(N2). So, unless you are a volcano and the amount of air you blow through
>your instrument can drastically affect the air composition in the room
>around you, IT DOESN'T MAKE ANY DIFFERENCE!
> My proposal is:
> The soundwaves emanating from the clarinet are dependent on
>the acoustics of the instrument and the air support used to create the
>tone.
> The composition of that air, alone, does not affect the pitch.
> The pitch MAY be altered by reduced air column support
>caused by ineffective use of the diapragm and breathing techniques (i.e.,
>hyperventilation, etc.) and relaxation of the embouchure due to fatigue or
>loss of control as a result of overriding bodily functions (i.e., belching,
>coughing, smiling, etc.).
> If you drink and play, please make sure you have a
>designated soloist!
>
> -Scott

Thank you Scott. This is precisely my point. Though I would suspect (as
others have noted) that external air pressure and its composition would
have some affect on pitch, I also concur with Scott...AIR SUPPORT!

Steve.

Steve Prescott
Instrument Rep.Tech./ Clarinetist
Indiana State University
mipresc@-----.edu