Klarinet Archive - Posting 000879.txt from 1998/02

From: Jacqueline Eastwood <eastwooj@-----.EDU>
Subj: Re: High level tonguing
Date: Tue, 24 Feb 1998 17:51:50 -0500

On Mon, 23 Feb 1998, Ed Lowry wrote:

> I'd be interested in hearing from the more lingually-accomplished members
> of the list concerning their techniques for tonguing in the altissimo
> register. I am having particular difficulty on my eefer above d''' -- the
> one equivalent to fourth leger line g on the Bb clarinet. With the reed
> oscillating so fast, it doesn't want to start up cleanly after the tongue
> releases. Oddly enough, when I break the airstream without tonguing with a
> "hu-hu-hu" approach, I seem to get better results, but it's still not
> entirely satisfactory. Any advice on tongue location, strength of reeds,
> etc? (Jacqueline, I'm depending on you !)
>
> Thanks for all your thoughts.
>
> Ed Lowry
> Sacramento
>

Geez, talk about desperate! Well, I haven't actually played my eefer in
almost a year (I know, it's terrible, but my practice time is so limited
these days) so I'm shooting from the hip on this question.

Personally, I use regular Van Doren Eb reeds, I think they're 3's. They
work fine on my mouthpiece (Bill Street hand-faced). I always try to
find a reed with plenty of "cover" or "top" -- if your reed is naturally
bright and reedy-sounding, high notes will be exponentially worse and
difficult to control.

One tip I picked up from the Hadcock Eb excerpt book was indicated
for a passage in the Ravel Piano Concerto for the Left Hand. (Get your
hands on this book; it's cheap and extremely useful!) The tonguing
syllables used in this passage were "hu-tu"; starting the first note with
the breath only and using the tongue to define the second note once the
pitch has been established, in this case, a written d'''. Works great for
this instance.

The only other suggestion I have is a REALLY light tongue and lots of
support. More so than on the Bb, I think. And don't forget to "voice"
your notes; hear them in your head before you play them. Geez, I think I
need to spend more time with my beloved eefer now, lest it feel neglected!

Hope I helped and wasn't just rambling on!

Jacqueline Eastwood
University of Arizona/Arizona Opera Orchestra
eastwooj@-----.edu