Klarinet Archive - Posting 000094.txt from 2012/02

From: <p_marcus@-----.net>
Subj: Re: [kl] Instrument Support
Date: Tue, 07 Feb 2012 09:23:08 -0500

I agree with Mary that resting the bell is an option. Some people are
appalled at the idea (and it isn't ideal if you ever stand to play), but
many people playing with a double lip embouchere do this to allow for less
pressure on the upper lip and less movement while playing. Be careful of
between the knees, because it can have an effect on the long fingerings (low
F-E/middle C-B), already low on some clarinets. I try to keep it on top of
the leg on the bottom rim of the bell only.

If you really want and argument about resting the bell, head over the horn
lists. They'll talk your ear off! Meanwhile, time usually helps strengthen
the thumb, unless you have Marfan's or some other thing that causes loose
connective tissues.

Good luck,
Penny Ward Marcus

----- Original Message -----
From: "Mary Vinquist" <krsmav@-----.com>
To: "The Klarinet Mailing List" <klarinet@-----.com>
Sent: Tuesday, February 07, 2012 5:12 AM
Subject: [kl] Instrument Support

> Janice -
>
> The easy way to relieve the weight of the clarinet is to rest the bell
> on your knee, or hold it between your knees. Robert Marcellus did
> this, so you'll be in good company.
>
> There's a good thread on the Clarinet board, where I mentioned several
> instrument supports I'd come across.
> <http://test.woodwind.org/clarinet/BBoard/read.html?f=1&i=269920&t=269885>.
> You might at least try a padded elastic neck strap, such as the BG
> http://www.amazon.com/BG-BGC20E-Clarinet-Support-Strap/dp/B000RVSIXS
> or the Neotech
> <http://www.amazon.com/Neotech-C-E-O-Comfort-Strap-Black/dp/B000EEJ8MS/ref=pd_cp_MI_0>.
>
> The problem is not simply strength. I'm a big and strong guy, but I
> had right-hand pain problems I couldn't get past. I went to a
> physical therapist who specialized in the hand problems of musicians,
> who helped me tremendously, particularly with repositioning the thumb
> rest and learning to avoid hand and arm positions that produce strain.
> Therapy and strength exercises vary with your particular anatomy and
> problem, so it's well worth going to a therapist. The wind players in
> your local orchestra will certainly have information on whom to go to.
>
> You may have to get some keys altered. For example, Jeanne
> Baxtresser, the principal flutist of the New York Philharmonic, had
> extensive work done to cure hand pain. See, for example,
> <http://test.woodwind.org/clarinet/BBoard/read.html?f=1&i=10575&t=10477>,
> <http://www.woodwind.org/clarinet/BBoard/read.html?f=1&i=142168&t=142154>
> and
> <http://www.woodwind.org/clarinet/BBoard/read.html?f=1&i=51931&t=51868>.
>
> Don't play in pain. I tell you from experience that this is not
> something you can fight through. You need to get at the underlying
> cause. If you have a toothache, you go to a dentist. It's the same
> here.
>
> Good luck. Please let us know how you work it out.
>
> Ken Shaw
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