 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: BassClarinetGirl
Date: 2005-04-23 01:40
My alto clarinet's middle B has been stuffy and airy (and icky sounding) for the past few days. I am going to contest tomorrow, and playing the Alfred Reed piece, Serenata, I have to play quite a few long notes on B. The piece is working out really well, and I don't want this note to ruin me. C and C# are fine, and play nicely in tune, but the B sounds horrible. Any suggestions on what I can do (or what my director can do in the morning) before I play for the judge?
Becca
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Author: VermontJM
Date: 2005-04-23 03:32
Have you checked to make sure the keys are all in correct adjustment? Maybe something got bent and the holes aren't sealing properly.
Is it the reed?
Good luck!
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Author: bandgeek
Date: 2005-04-23 22:37
I play bass clarinet, and i have the same problem. My other friends who play bass or b-flat complain about it too. It might not be just you. maybe it just be a "cursed" note for all clarinets, sorta like how trumpets always play flat on a D. and about the contest: just try to blow really fast air. That's what my band director tells me to do.
island1@bellsouth.net
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Author: Don Berger
Date: 2005-04-24 13:15
The mid-staff B nat. on many cls is a ?bad? [difficult note] and a test of the "tightness, leak-proofing" of all pads. Specifically for altos {IMHO}, most have a low Eb which is the primary "vent" for the E/B, and it should be open as far as possible since it serves as the bell does on a soprano cl. On some altos and most basses [the C A and C B as well] it is helpful, possibly necessary, to have a properly located register hole/pad [Double Register Keying] to assist the "speaking" and clarity of the B, C, C#, D, D# clarion notes. My Selmer-Paris alto, a B-series horn, shows its fine design and "set-up" , having clear, in-tune Bb's and clarion notes, it took ownership of several altos to find "my best". You might try the B nat, obtainable by using the A key plus the 2 highest trill keys [I believe, without having my alto in hand to check] to see if it is satisfactory for what music you are playing, since its "tonality" will be much the same as the A, and diff. from the "long-tube notes". Kinda wordy, aint I. Luck, Don
Thanx, Mark, Don
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Author: Ken Shaw ★2017
Date: 2005-04-25 14:40
If it's changed, there's something wrong with the pad, or the key mechanism. Or maybe the swab or the mouthpiece cap is stuck in the bell, or some joker put Scotch Tape or Saran Wrap in there.
Ken Shaw
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