 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: diz
Date: 2002-08-01 02:07
One thing puzzles me about the contra-alto and contra-bass clarinets, I mean - why? I can understand one owning a contra-bass clarinet, but the contra-alto still needs convincing (to me at least).
Is there band music written that actually diferentiates between these two mamoths or are they just doubling the bass line (more or less).
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Author: Willie
Date: 2002-08-01 04:52
Yes they do have pieces that are written to bring out the contra voice. Not too common thought as we mostly augment the other basses. I play mostly tuba and string bass parts on mine.
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Author: Patrick
Date: 2002-08-01 08:41
Diz,
In answer to your question, which I paraphrase as "why contra alto", I'm going to reproduce one of my own posts to Yahoo bass clarinet, which I made a few months ago. In addition, let me add a few points not raised in that post, which was not intented to compare the BBb contrabass with the Eb contrabass (contra alto) clarinets:
1. MOST IMPORTANT: The contrabass and the contra alto are distinct instruments, just as are, say, the baritone and the tenor saxophones. They can be distinguished by a listener, and when used optimally by the arranger or composer, play different roles in ensemble work. As a gross generalization, I would say that the contra alto clarinet sounds relatively more like a bass clarinet, and the contrabass clarinet sounds relatively more like a dark, low saxophone/clarinet. This difference, together with the technical playing and compass differences, mean that most contra specialists like me own both.
2. If you are like the great majority of bass and contrabass clarinet players, you play in a concert band or other wind ensemble. The contra alto clarinet gets more parts in the concert band, and it is the more versatile doubling instrument of the contras.
However, to the composer, director, or arranger, the BBb contrabass clarinet is at least as valuable as the contra alto, because it plays the lowest of the low reed notes that are typically underrepresented in the band.
About 50% of the band music I've encountered has a part written specifically for the Eb contrabass clarinet; 40% of it has part for the BBb contrabass. Roughly 25% of the music scores both instruments. In clarinet choir music, maybe 70% of the music has a part for the contra alto, versus 30-40% for the contrabass. In my own arrangements for clarinet and mixed reed (w/saxophones), some of which I will be publishing to the web in the next few weeks, I of course score for both of these beautiful instruments!
Like most contra clarinet players, I have no trouble playing one or the other contras full time in whatever ensemble I'm in. When I don't have a part, I use the Eb contra alto to play bassoon, tuba, or string bass parts. Less often, I use the BBb to play contrabassoon, bass clarinet (8va), or bass saxophone parts.
Please, Diz, search the archives here on Sneezy, and you'll find a wealth of information on the contra clarinets, by Ken Shaw, Grant Green, and many others, including me. There have been quite a few posts here (and on the Yahoo bass clarinet group) recently that are quite relevant to your question.
Okay, now for the reproduction of my old Yahoo post:
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Leblanc Model 350 Paperclip EEb Contrabass Clarinet (aka contra -
alto) - An Owner's Appreciation
1. Compass/Keywork: The 350 is the only contra alto clarinet in
current production (Leblanc Paris, presently) with a range to written low C. That's equivalent to the lowest playable F on the BBb contrabass, within a whole step of the lowest note of the EEb
contrabass saxophone, and just about an octave below the Bb bass
clarinet and Eb baritone saxophone. The ranges of the the bass
saxophone, bassoon, string bass, baritone saxophone, and bass tuba
lie entirely within the range of the paperclip contra alto clarinet.
The 350 also has three RH1 side trill keys, including the middle clef B natural. The BBb instrument has only one of these keys -- the crucial Eb key.
2. Concert Band Performance: In my band performances, I play my EEb
instrument more often than my BBb one. There are as many or more
parts in concert band literature for the contra alto as for the
contrabass, but in addition, with an Eb transposing instrument it is very easy to sight read bassoon, tuba, or string bass parts (simply read as for treble clef, and add three sharps to the key signature -- eg, play a Bb major part in the key of G major). If you're interested in actually performing, and you have the money for only one Leblanc contra, the model 350 would be a good choice.
[N.B. In the time elapsed since I posted this, I joined a woodwind quintet, where I serve as the "bassoon" player. Elsewhere in this forum, I discussed how this quintet became a whole new animal with an Eb contrabass (aka contra alto) clarinet, with a special smooth sonority all its own!. But with respect to your question, Diz, the BBb contrabass clarinet that I own COULD NOT technically play the music that I routinely play in that quintet, primarily due to the problems with the BBb contrabass altissimo. This is a range frequented by the bassoon]
3. Tone Quality: You will find opinions, pro and con, on
contrabass.com and elsewhere, about the paperclip BBb contrabass
clarinet. However, the EEb paperclip is a distinct instrument, about which little has been written regarding its tone quality. Let me first say that, in my experience, the mouthpiece/reed setup has more influence on timbre and quality than body tube material, bore, and thickness of body tube combined. My setup is a Charles Fobes San Francisco Contra Clarinet mouthpiece and Vandoren #3 Contrabass
Clarinet Reed, and with it, I achieve a rich, saxophone-like
chalumeau, and a clarion not unlike the chalumeau of a bass clarinet. The altissimo is similar to a bass clarinet clarion. Note that the bore of the EEb paperclip may contribute to the richness of tone -- it is the LARGEST bore contra alto clarinet available (it is the same bore as the BBb paperclip, which has a smaller bore than the professional grade Selmer Model 41 BBb contrabass)
4. Beautiful Design: Leblanc's paperclip contras -- EEb and BBb --
share their nickel silver construction, bore, mouthpiece and reed,
and compact coiled construction. If you're lucky enough to possess
both, you can bring them to your performances and move your
mouthpiece from one horn to the other -- no dry reed issues. The EEb instrument, due to the coiled configuration, is actually shorter than a standard Bb bass clarinet (though the very heavy gauge nickel silver makes it alot heavier than one). It travels very nicely. All contra clarinets require loving care, and an occasional screw tightening by the owner. The metal Leblancs, it is said, are a bit less finicky because the nickel silver doesn't expand and contract as much as rosewood. Also, and this is a matter of taste, the nickel silver alloy of these instruments takes a very high polish (get those sunglasses out!). This, coupled with the fact that the instrument protrudes well above the player's head when seated -- visible above the other woodwinds (like the contrabassoon) -- makes the paperclip contra quite a visual focal point in a performing ensemble.
5. Cost: Though it is the most expensive contra alto clarinet,
whether new or used, the 350 is clearly the most capable, and, due to the low C extended range, is a true contrabass instrument. As such, it's the cheapest entry to the foghorn club you can buy. Also, you'll never be turned down for membership by your local community band, as they commonly have only one contra clarinet if they have any at all.
[N.B. See recent posts on Sneezy in the thread "Low C Bass Clarinet versus Contra Clarinets, many of which discuss cost. Used Model 350s in fine condition are $2500-$3500; half that if needing restoration. The 340 BBb contrabasses in fine condition (two less-than-fine ones are on Ebay right now!) go for $4000-$5000]
Enjoy,
Patrick
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Author: David Spiegelthal
Date: 2002-08-01 14:30
diz,
I bought an EEb contra-alto rather than a BBb contrabass mainly because one can read concert-pitch bass clef parts directly, by pretending the music is in treble clef and adding three sharps. Thus it's easy to play bassoon, contrabassoon, string bass, and tuba parts in concert band (my main use of the instrument). Besides, my used Buescher (a.k.a. Bundy) EEb contra is less than half the price of just about any BBb contra. Furthermore, one can use readily-available baritone sax reeds, and my Rovner bass clarinet ligature (opened almost all the way up) fits the EEB contra mouthpiece very nicely.
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Author: Patrick
Date: 2002-08-01 17:10
Dave,
Bundys and Vitos can be great contras when properly set up, and I agree, the contra altos in general are very versatile in wind ensembles.
Price wise, I've seen plastic contras go for barely more than used bass clarinets at times. I've also seen 'em fetch very dear prices indeed.
As if to prove the point that a plastic contra can transform a concern band with its sonority just about as well as a metal or rosewood horn, I saw a used Vito BBb contrabass on Ebay a few months ago sell for more than the discount NEW price! That price was clearly related to the great tone quality on that horn. The enterprising Ebayer who sold that Vito made an MP3 of himself playing scales, then linked this file to his Ebay auction. Well, I listened to that MP3 over..and over...and over. It was remarkable -- what a great sounding, resonant contrabass clarinet thst plastic Vito was! Even distorted by that MP3 encoding. Mind you, the guy selling it was just a little shakey on his scales, and he risked not a single altissimo note, but he sure did achieve a good tone in the chalumeau register. Clearly, other people listened...and bid the price of that horn to a level higher than new!
What I'd like to see is a line of plastic or greenline composite contra alto and contrabass clarinets that have low C as well as improved altissimo (via a triple octave on the contrabass, and a Leblanc-like mechanism on the contra alto). These would have much of the durability of the metal contras, with the more traditional clarinet look of the rosewood contras, for a lower price than either.
Patrick
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Author: diz
Date: 2002-08-01 22:45
Patrick - very convincing, thanks for your erudite reponse. I never really thought of the contra-alto as instrument to the contra-bass, your explanation is good and inspiring.
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Author: diz
Date: 2002-08-01 22:50
Damned recalcitrant fingers!!! that should have read:
I've never thought of the contra-alto as a separate instrument instrument to the contra-bass, etc
bah!
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Author: Patrick
Date: 2002-08-02 06:15
Diz,
Glad to be of help!
As you can tell, I'm just slightly enthusiastic about - what was your word? -- the MAMMOTHS of the clarinet family. I have the pleasure of seeing more and more people playing and listenting to the contrabass clarinets every day.
Regards,
Patrick
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Author: Jean
Date: 2002-08-02 12:14
As Dave S. said the Eb reads the basss clef parts. If one doesn't have a bassoon in thier group the transposition is a snap.
Jean
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Author: Patrick
Date: 2002-08-02 18:31
Jean,
The ease of reading bass clef is ONE reason for using the Eb contra alto clarinet to play bassoon parts (rather than using the Bb bass clarinet or BBb contrabass clarinet), but it is NOT the most important reason to choose it for this service. (The situation reverses itself when we're talking about CONTRABASSOON parts...see the last couple of paragraphs of this post).
The fact is, for all practical intents and purposes, the Eb contra alto clarinet is the ONLY widely available band instrument whose pitch range encompasses that of the bassoon. That, coupled with the beautiful timbre of the contra alto clarinet, makes it the BEST instrument to substitute for the bassoon, or use as an alternative to it, for intrinsic musical reasons.
Except for the Eb contrabass clarinet, all band instruments attempting bassoon parts need to fudge either the bassoon's high notes (BBb contrabass clarinet, tuba, bass saxophone) or its low notes (bass clarinet w/o ext, baritone saxophone, euphonium).
For the benefit of those here who aren't familiar with the bassoon and/or the contra clarinets, the high register of the bassoon is commonly used; virtually every concert band bassoon part has notes higher than the concert F two ledger bars above the bass clef staff. This high F corresponds to the first true altissimo note of the contra alto clarinet, the written D above the treble clef staff; yet this is not considered an especially high or unusual note in a bassoon part at all. Significantly, that note is deep into the altissimo territory of the BBb contrabass clarinet, corresponding to the written high G four ledger bars above the treble staff. The BBb contrabass clarinet has no problem playing that G -- the problem tends to be in playing the D and Eb below it (as I've discussed elsewhere in this forum). Also since the bassoon can easily play a major fouth higher than the F mentioned here, the bassoon's range must be considered outside the practical range of the BBb contra.
The altissimo of the Eb contrabass clarinet extends to the highest notes of which the bassoon is capable, and perhaps a little higher (the Eb contra's compass extends considerably below that of the bassoon as well).
The fingerings which must be used for the Eb contra's altissimo differ from the more regular progressions of the soprano clarinet in its altissimo register, however. For this reason, the Eb contra's altissimo is likely not to have all the virtuosity of the bassoon, but this should not be a problem except in fast staccato passages.
What about contrabassoon parts? From the standpoint of fidelity to the music, the BBb contrabass clarinet is the best substitute for the contrabassoon available. The BBb contrabass clarinet range encompasses the range of the contrabassoon almost exactly (provided the clarinet is equipped with the low written C, as all professional BBb contras are these days), without need of the altissimo register on the contrabass clarinet. The BBb contrabass clarinet also represents a very reasonable musical ALTERNATIVE to the contrabassoon -- not just a substitute for it -- because of the contra clarinet's greater volume of sound, at least equal flexibility and speed, beautiful timbre, and much greater availability (due to its far lower cost).
No, the BBb contrabass clarinet player does not get to sightread contrabaassoon parts as though they were written treble clef. However, anybody who plays the BBb contrabass clarinet in concert band is advised to learn to read contrabassoon and double bass parts, both of which are written an octave higher than the sound, in the bass clef.
Patrick
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