Klarinet Archive - Posting 000756.txt from 2001/11

From: Bear Woodson <bearwoodson@-----.com>
Subj: [kl] Jaw dropping to lower the pitch
Date: Wed, 28 Nov 2001 00:49:36 -0500

Hello, Klarinet List and Mr. Roberts.

> > I'm wondering how clarinetists adjust the Into-
> >nation while playing. It's easy enough on bowed
> >stringed instruments to bend the pitch, to make
> >Major Thirds and Leading Tones a hair sharper,
> >but how is this done on Clarinet?
>
> There are several ways to accomplish this. One
> common way is to adjust the shape of the mouth.
> Dropping the jaw can result in a significant drop
> in pitch -- sometimes as much as a whole-step in
> the right circumstances. Tightening the em-
> bouchure can result in a raising of pitch, although
> usually only a small amount.

I find this fascinating. I had just written a flutist
friend in Norway, who said the same method ap-
plies to flute. I'd guess that it works on any wind
instrument. I'm curious as to how they bend pitches
to better suit the Intonation in chords, while playing.

I started composing with a strong emphasis on
counterpoint, so Multiphonics and Quartertones
never suited me for MY music, but they are great in
other people's styles of writing. I am impressed to
watch how those things progress.

Would this use of jaw-dropping to bend the pitch,
have anything to do with how you play the Clarinet
Glissando in the Gershwin "Rhapsody in Blue", or is
that another technique?

Bear Woodson
Fat Fuzz-Faced Theory Geek and
Composer in Tucson, Arizona, USA

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