 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: presto214
Date: 2004-08-19 00:12
I always have trouble playing the upper part of the Altissimo register, specificially altissimo Bb, B, and C. the notes are a struggle to come out and im not sure why. The high A always comes out fine but any notes above that are a struggle and I have to adjust my embochure and put less lip on the bottom reed to squeak out the last 3 notes. Any suggestions? and I use plenty of air. I believe it is a voicing problem.
AAHHH!
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Author: kdennyclarinet
Date: 2004-08-19 02:13
By taking in less of the reed and "squeaking" those notes out, you are eventually going to get the notes to "come out" but with an unsatisfactory and undependable result. The approach needs a bit more focus. I used to have the same problem, but by being "forced" to learn Eb clarinet, I was able to correct a lot of these issues on my Bb clarinet. I love the eefer now.
From what I've been told by my professors and from the success that I have experienced, you actually have to make sure that you have plenty of the reed taken in. The voicing changes as you reach that high to not only need your tongue to be high and in an "EEE" position, but the tip actually has to come forward a bit to help redirect the air in this upper area. It's a lot like whistling... to get those higher pitches out, your tongue comes forward a bit. Just make sure as you bring it forward that it does not drop downward! Experiment with this idea. Keep your embouchure relaxed and keep your air pressure up. Resist the temptation to bite upward. If you do it just right, you'll even feel the notes begin to resonate in your nasal cavity.
Good luck,
K. Denny
BME, MM, DMA
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Author: D Dow
Date: 2004-08-19 17:08
Alot of this has to do with relaxing the back of the throat..a good teacher can do much to help and perceive certainly problems with altissimo playing.
David Dow
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Author: claaaaaarinet!!!!
Date: 2004-08-19 22:13
Another good voicing drill:
Play a throat register E natural (bottom line). Using the same fingering and WITHOUT using the register key, play the B natural a twelfth higher (first B above the staff). To play the B you will have to adjust your tongue and use your inner ear to pre-hear the note. Again, using the SAME fingering, play the next note in the harmonic series, a note roughly a minor sixth higher than the B (a G natural that is a little low in pitch). Once you get the hang of it, skip carefully between the three notes using only changes in your tongue (voicing) to get the different pitches.
Try the same drill using other notes such as throat F, F#, D#, D natural, and C#. Each time, play the fundamental note, the twelfth above it, and then the minor sixth above the twelfth. It gets harder the lower you go. Anything below C# is pretty tricky. Experiment with raising and lowering your tongue and slightly adjusting the placement of your lip on the reed in order to get the different partials.
This exercise is frustrating at first, but at some point something will click and it will seem much easier. It took me several weeks to really figure it out. It will help your altissimo register as well as your tone in other registers.
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Author: piu58
Date: 2004-08-20 08:58
Do you know a de Laval nozzle? It ist is basically a tube that is pinched in the middle, making an hourglass-shape. Only with such nozzles you can get supersonic air streams.
For high tones you need much air speed. Try to form (half) a de Laval nozzle with your tongue. It works for me.
--Uwe
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