Klarinet Archive - Posting 000619.txt from 1998/02

From: Roger Garrett <rgarrett@-----.edu>
Subj: Re: pleeeeease help me!!
Date: Mon, 16 Feb 1998 11:49:05 -0500

On Mon, 16 Feb 1998, James Foley wrote:
> Tuning tends to be pretty sharp in the chalumeau register, but I think
> that's an embouchure thing. Once I start resting the top half of my
> embouchure on the mouthpiece, the notes start to even out. It has a
> really nice altissimo register, though, and the larger key spacing is
> wonderful for my long fingers. I can't wait to try bass clarinet after
> this!

It is less of an embouchure thing than a reed/mouthpiece thing and the
speed of air that you blow. However, in defense of the embouchure
statement, if you don't take enough mouthpiece in, you will be sharp and
squeak a lot.

> I'm playing as the bass voice in a clarinet quartet, opposite three
> Bflat sopranos. It's a pretty neat sound, and should be even nicer once
> I get the tone quality improved. Right now the clarion register sounds
> stuffy. Is that characteristic of altos?

There will always be a little bit of a spread tonal characteristic to the
alto clarinet (and the basset horn) - but you should go out and purchase
either the recordings of the Chicago Symphony Clarinet Section playing
Mozart Basset Horn Divertimenti or the really delicious recordings of the
same (plus some other nice tidbits!) put out by Sabine Meyer and her
husband (can't remember the third basset hornist). These are the sounds
that are representative of what the alto clarinet can/should sound like.
The clarion register is not notorius for being any more stuffy than the
chaluemau (I think I spelled that incorrectly).

Roger Garrett
IWU