 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: claire Inet
Date: 2014-03-29 02:29
I've been playing my 'new' BC for maybe four months now, after a 35 year hiatus. Struggling with lots of harmonics on low notes and tough clarion. I've listened to (and read) the advice to have it looked at. First I did fabricate a light to run down the bore. I found what looked like a good sized leak around maybe 1/2 the left thumb F key. Took it in, he 'reseated' two pads and fixed the balky left pinky F (wasn't springing back).
$24 later and WOW what a difference. Clarion still not great, but the chalumeau is SO much better. Almost no accidental harmonics. I feel like now I can really start practicing.
Thanks for the advice.
Post Edited (2014-03-29 02:29)
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Author: acermak
Date: 2014-03-29 19:32
I was amazed the first time I took my contra alto in for an adjustment. I thought she was missing a pad (nope, there's no pad on a thumb touch plate for a contra alto, but there was glue residue so maybe someone at some point in time thought it needed one there). The repair tech replaced a couple pads, did some leveling and adjustment and WOW! I had no idea it didn't have to be so darned hard to play!
I'm pretty much to the point now if I buy another instrument, I would take it to my tech before torturing myself trying to play it. And this is even true on brand new instruments. I remember on my low C bass clarinet, I kept having trouble getting into the clarion register. Only to finally discover it was due to a slipped spring. Manually reattaching it fixed the whole problem, but then another would slip somewhere else. When I took it into the repair tech he re-angled the spring holder things (?) and adjusted everything and when I got it back it was better than it had been brand new.
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2014-03-29 20:07
Recently I had a student come to me with her recently 'serviced' E13 which she was having more problems with since it had been serviced. The top joint leaked like a sieve even though it had several new pads installed, but many others had been overlooked and were torn (the sharp tonehole bedplaces cut a disc out the centres of them).
So after replacing seven pads (with cork pads), she couldn't believe how easy it was to play and wasn't struggling in the upper and altissimo register as she was before, so it's amazing what an impact simply dealing with several minor (and some major) leaks can have.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: LJBraaten
Date: 2014-04-01 20:31
Someone has recently commented on another thread that regular service for a clarinet is a good idea, whether or not we think anything is wrong. We tend to adjust to minor problems and don't realize how much better we could have it with a few minor adjustments.
Laurie
Laurie (he/him)
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