Klarinet Archive - Posting 000907.txt from 2000/10

From: Bilwright@-----.net (William Wright)
Subj: Re: [kl] Saxophonist problems, thanks.
Date: Mon, 16 Oct 2000 07:43:03 -0400

<><> Charles=A0Schneider wrote:
For me, the sound(s) i can achieve with the B40 is actually the best for
me. But my problem of resistance (and maybe breath) happened since I use
the B40 instead of the B45. There are 15 years that I teach saxophone
and that I haven't taking real lessons (every weeks).

Since you have played a reed instrument for much longer than I
have, I am nervous about offering you any advice. I have played less
than 2 years.
However your message suggests that you have tried different models
from the same manufacturer rather than trying different manufacturers.
I fell into this trap myself, mostly because the local music store has a
limited stock. I've only recently escaped from this trap, and so I
want to tell you my own experience.

Vandoren is a widely distributed brand with a good reputation.
When I decided to move up from the inexpensive mouthpiece that came with
my plastic student clarinet, the local music store had only Vandorens on
the shelf, and so I bought a B45. During the months that followed, I
was not comfortable with it, but I couldn't explain why not.
Therefore I did the usual student thing of buying a few different
ligatures and reeds, and I bought two other Vandoren mouthpieces.
However I never felt comfortable with any of these set-ups, despite my
inability to explain why not.
Eventually I made a decision that I was going to remain a clarinet
player, and I invested in a (used) professional wood instrument. In
particular, this instrument is 'easier blowing' than other clarinets
that I've tried at festivals such as ClarinetFest, and I notice that you
raise the issue of resistance also.
One day recently, my teacher became really frustrated with a tone
problem that I could not overcome, and she asked to play my mouthpiece.
Keep in mind that my instructor has a permanent professional chair in
the best of the three professional orchestras in my town, and she is an
accredited private instructor who also is also hired by a local school
district. So her opinions carry some weight with me.
After playing a few notes, she raised her eyebrow and told me,
"Bill, you need a different mouthpiece! Let me try one of your other
mouthpieces." So I gave her another Vandoren model that I had in my
bag, she played it, and again she raised her eyebrow and asked me,"What
else do you have?"
To make a long story short, she spent 30 minutes demonstrating that
she could play all of my mouthpieces well, and then she said to me, "You
hear that I can play all of these, but I wouldn't want to." She told
me quite firmly to buy a mouthpiece from another maker. So I bought a
mouthpiece from one of the makers on this list (I took three of the same
model ob trial, and then I returned the two of them, again at my
teacher's insistence).
What a difference! That's all that I can say, Charles. What a
difference! I have learned a lot during my first 18 months of playing,
and I don't fell that my efforts have been wasted. But I dearly,
dearly, dearly wish that I had moved beyond the confines of a single
manufacturer in the very beginning.
The standard advice here on the Klarinet list is "Try different
set-ups and choose the one that works best for you." I think this
statement should be modified to: "Try different models from _different
makers_ and chose the one that works best for you."

<><> If William Wright have the time (one this days) to tell me
more about those differences between clarinet and saxophone embouchures

I don't play the saxophone, and any comment of mine would be
meaningless. The only thing I will say is that my clarinet teacher has
allowed me to play one of her saxophones on several occasions (for 5
minutes) and she has demonstrated to me that a clarinet embouchure
doesn't work on a saxophone. The way you hold your chin felt a lot
different to me, in addition tothe lip placement. But this is the
limit of what I know about it.
I'm sure that one of the more experienced players here will
elaborate their feelings. The only thing I'll warn you about is that a
good doubler lives in a different world than a beginner such as myself.
What seems to me like a "major difference" is only a "trivial refinement
of solid basic technique" to them. A while ago, I rented a bass
clarinet and started to talk here about how different the embouchure for
a bass clarinet is. The folks here nailed me to the wall before I
finished my first paragraph, and probably rightfully so. I've learned
the difference between the perceptions of a doubler and those of a
struggling 'singler' such as myself, and I'm not going to step into that
mine field again.

Cheers,
Bill

---------------------------------------------------------------------
Unsubscribe from Klarinet, e-mail: klarinet-unsubscribe@-----.org
Subscribe to the Digest: klarinet-digest-subscribe@-----.org
Additional commands: klarinet-help@-----.org
Other problems: klarinet-owner@-----.org