Klarinet Archive - Posting 000663.txt from 2003/08

From: Bill Hausmann <bhausmann1@-----.net>
Subj: Re: AW: [kl] perfect age
Date: Tue, 26 Aug 2003 06:23:31 -0400

At 09:22 AM 8/26/2003 +0200, Martina Gebhard wrote:
>I have a godchild who just had his 5th birthday. He is really fascinated by
>classical music and woodwinds and he is really fond of learning to play the
>clarinet. As he is repeating this wish now for about half a year I am quite
>sure that he really wants to start it. Now the dentist told his mother that
>it is not good for a child in his age to play clarinet, because it can
>affect his teeth.
>
>My question would now be: What do you think? Is it possible for a five year
>old, really clever boy to start clarinet? Any advices? What should we be
>aware of?

The dentist may have a point, since the clarinet does place outward
pressure on the upper teeth. A 5 year-old's teeth may not be firmly enough
set to resist the pressure. But besides that, it is unlikely that a 5
year-old's fingers will be long enough or thick enough to cover the holes
in a clarinet satisfactorily. I would recommend starting him on a
Flutophone or Tonette-type instrument, which uses basic woodwind fingering,
maybe graduating to a recorder, which requires greater breath control. I
know having played Flutophone in school as a child actually helped me a lot
when I started playing clarinet many years later. Don't forget to work on
the theory and note-reading skills.

Bill Hausmann

If you have to mic a saxophone, the rest of the band is TOO LOUD!

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