Klarinet Archive - Posting 000506.txt from 1997/02

From: Adam Michlin <amichlin@-----.EDU>
Subj: Re: Sax/clarinet double
Date: Fri, 14 Feb 1997 18:32:13 -0500

At 10:58 AM 2/14/97 -0800, you wrote:
>>You're correct that dropping the jaw is not the way play the low notes on
>>saxophone. Dropping the jaw (on either clarinet or saxophone) is probably
>>about the worst habit you can get into.
>
>Oh-oh! I have a habit of dropping my jaw just to get out a half-decent
>glissando when I'm playing Dixieland. My tongue doesn't give me
>the kind of range I want. If I'm a decent groove, my embochure comes
>back immediately. If I'm less lucky, it can screw me up. Does
>anyone else use a "jaw drop" to gliss or am I just Frankenstein's
>Clarinetist?

The problem with dropping the jaw is that you get strange out of tune
sounds. This isnt necessarily a bad thing when you're playing jazz,
though. But even for jazz you should be aware of what you're doing and why
you're doing it. It's best to learn to play without dropping the jaw and
then learn to drop the jaw only for the stranger effects.

-Adam
amichlin@-----.edu
amichlin@-----.com

   
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