Klarinet Archive - Posting 000460.txt from 1998/02

From: Rich & Tani Miller <musicians@-----.net>
Subj: Re: Naive question
Date: Tue, 10 Feb 1998 13:52:44 -0500

I admit that there are a few good Eb alto clarinet players out there.

My own personal opinion though is that the A clarinet produces a nicer
sound than the Eb Alto clarinet.

My experience with middle and high school level students has led me to
form the opinion that I just really don't like the sound of the alto
clarinet. I think that it is really hard to play with a well focused,
resonate sound. The alto clarinet always sound stuffy to me. Granted
this would probably be improved with better reeds and a better
mouthpiece but . . . . once again, I just don't like it.

In addition, the parts that are generally written for A, C, and I think
D clarinet are generally written with a soprano clarinet timbre in
mind. The alto clarinet has a significantly different timbre. Am I
correct on this? I don't have a whole lot of experience on C and D
clarinets. I once, before I went into music, sightread Beethoven's
Fifth and was dreadfully embarrassed when trying to play the C clarinet
parts on Bb. At that time, I had no idea what a C clarinet was.

I'm sure that someone else knows the historical significance of A, C,
and D clarinets.