Klarinet Archive - Posting 000211.txt from 2000/10

From: Bilwright@-----.net (William Wright)
Subj: Re: [kl] Hhhey th-air
Date: Wed, 4 Oct 2000 09:27:10 -0400

<><> Neil Leupold wrote:
As I mentioned in my post to you privately, I'll get back to you (and
the rest of the list) on this one. Meanwhile, perhaps others have
thoughts -- in the language of science -- that will satisfy Bill's
insatiable curiosity in the meantime(?).

Neil, I will be (and am) truly grateful. I'm not curious just for
the mere sake of curiosity. There is something at stake here, namely
learning how to play.
Certain fundamental things about clarinet playing don't, to this
day, make sense to me -- especially where dynamics are concerned. I *do*
read books, such as the ones that Tony Wakefield has recommended, but it
takes a long time to read all of them and to think about them
afterwards.
=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0At this week's lesson, my instructor told me not to blow
so hard because my tone is becoming ragged, "fuzzy around the edges". It
happens that she plays professionally in a large musical theater. She
and I have had the 'earplugs are required' discussion that the Klarinet
list had a couple of months ago.
=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0So I asked her, "You can play loud enough to blow me out
of the room and still you have a mellow tone. How do you do that?"
=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0Her answer was embouchure strength, which of course sets
me to thinking about clamping down harder..... but even I have learned
that this doesn't work. =A0 What does "strength" mean then? The closest
I can come is "maintaining continuous contact over the reed's entire
width", which takes muscle, or perhaps "being so firm that the reed's
vibration doesn't transmit to my lip".
=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0I haven't figured it out yet and, putting aside the
amusements of Internet conversation for a moment, I will be reading your
reply, when it comes. with total concentration.

Thank you,
=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0Bill

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