Klarinet Archive - Posting 000569.txt from 2000/10

From: Daniel Leeson <leeson0@-----.net>
Subj: Re: [kl] A vs. Bb -- spectral graph
Date: Wed, 11 Oct 2000 12:42:03 -0400

Womderful posting Bill. I thank you for it. However, I don't think
that the discussion on this subject argued that there was NO difference
in character between the A and B-flat. If I remember correctly, there
was general agreement that such a difference did exist.

What was being argued was that composers selected a clarinet on the
basis of that difference; i.e., it was the causative factor the resulted
in a specific clarinet being chose. And it was I who suggested that
that was not the case, but rather that the selection was based on other,
in fact, technical and objective reasons. It was even further said (and
by me) that once the selection was made, composers might take advantage
of the character difference between clarinets by writing music that was
more idiomatic for the selected instrument, but this decision was made
after the fact and not before.

But I don't think that anyone denied that a character difference
existed. (I might carp at the use of the word "color" difference and
you will notice that I have been careful to use the equally vague
"character," but with that minor caveat, I think I have correctly stated
what was the center of the discussion on this matter a few days ago.)

William Wright wrote:
>
> A few days ago, I promised to search through Benade's larger book
> (Fundamentals of Musical Acoustics) for the graph which demonstrates --
> assuming equal embouchures and wind pressures and so forth -- that A and
> Bb clarinets produce different tone colors for the same note.
>
> The graph is figure 22.9 in section 22.5 of Chapter 22, "The
> Woodwinds: II". This graph shows cutoff frequencies, which Benade
> proposes as the most meaningful numerical index of tone color, rather
> than showing a full graph of the partials. Thus my memory wasn't
> perfect in every detail, but the graph shows clearly (IMO and in
> Benade's opinion also) that the overtone ratios and hence the tone color
> of the same note are different between A and Bb clarinets when all other
> conditions are equal.
>
> Cheers,
> Bill
>
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--
***************************
** Dan Leeson **
** leeson0@-----.net **
***************************

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