 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: sweet_gal
Date: 2004-11-27 18:57
For music class, we get to choose our instruments between flute clarinet and trumpet. When I tried the flute i couldn`t make a sound, and the trumpet makes me dizzy, so i'm left with the clarinet which I realli want to play, but when I tried some of the notes like C, the sound came out kind of squeaky and its suppose to be lower cause its a C and I tried again and it still squeaky. Is there a way i can make it less squeaky and any suggestions or tips for the flute?
thanks,
Emily
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Author: John Stackpole
Date: 2004-11-27 20:55
Oh my... you sound just like me when I first took up learning - at the age of 40 or so. The guy who was coaching me looked and listened and told me ....
Unfortunately I forget what he said (way past 40 now...) but the squeeks went away. Eventually. (Mostly.)
Not very helpful, I'm afraid, but you are not alone. So be encouraged!
(Can't help with the flute.)
JDS
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Author: Gretchen
Date: 2004-11-27 21:34
you're either biting a too much with too little air or not giving enough pressure with your embochure and blowing a whole lot. Think of your chin pointing down, the corners of your mouth in (as if you're saying "oo",) and your upper lip sealing everything off. When you blow think about blowing your air towards one note or one point on the page or object that you have in front of you.
Make sure you don't have any leaks in the instrument too.
lastly, make sure you have a good working reed...sometimes for beginners, the tips of reeds are so broken and chipped that it can't vibrate, causing it to speak.
any more questions, don't hesitate to ask. That's what this board is here for, right??
Good luck!!
Gretchen
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Author: pewd
Date: 2004-11-28 03:24
in addition to the above, also make sure the pads of your fingertips are centered on the center of the tone holes. look in a mirror while you play, so that you can see your fingers. beginning students tend to miss the tone holes, causing leaks and thus squeaks.
- Paul Dods
Dallas, Texas
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Author: GEM
Date: 2004-11-28 03:44
You're going to have difficulty making a decent sound with whatever instrument you choose (except perhaps for triangle ![[wink]](http://test.woodwind.org/clarinet/BBoard/smileys/smilie3.gif) ). So pick something you want to play and then work at it with loving persistence and patience. Eventually you'll be making music!
GEM
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Author: allencole
Date: 2004-11-28 05:57
The clarinet is a playable instrument for most people. However, there are a lot of keys, and you have to dodge the wrong ones while touching the right ones--kinda like playing "Operation."
Make sure that your hands feel rounded and relaxed when you're playing. You should feel the full circle of the tone-hole in each finger that covers one. Make sure that you're not touching anything that you're not supposed to. A lot of new players get tense in the left hand and may touch the G# or A key by accident. Tension can also cause you to slowly pull your fingers off of the tone holes, so watch for that, too.
Difficulty with tone must be handled in a relaxed way. Don't puff your cheeks or pad the reed too much with your lower lip. If your pitch sags, DON'T BITE DOWN. Just push the horn into your mouth with your right thumb, and let your mouth react naturally.
If you like it, give it the old college try. It's a great instrument. But there may be a certain number of squeaks ahead of you. My advice is to get all the squeaks out of your system at home where no one can hear you. Just practice until they're gone and you'll be okay. <g>
Allen Cole
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Author: leonardA
Date: 2004-11-28 21:06
I agree with the comment that you will most likely have trouble getting a sound out of any instrument you choose. I've been studying clarinet for about two years and added flute about three months ago. I went through the same problems with each. I would suggest a few (if not continuing) lessons to accelerate your progress. Also, read David Pino's book, The Clarinet and Clarinet Playing or How To Play the Flute by Howard Harrison.
Good luck. It's worth the effort.
Leonard
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Author: jArius
Date: 2004-11-29 03:20
Lots of good advice.
Also be sure that it's the PADS of your fingers, not the tips, that are covering the tone holes. The little swirly in the middle of your fingerprint should be right over the center of the hole. (at least, that's how I do it.)
Jeremy Bruins
Proud member of the too-much-time-on-my-hands club.
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Author: jArius
Date: 2004-11-29 03:22
Oh, sorry pewd.... I didn't see your post until I posted mine. Oh well, it's an important point anyway, so what's wrong with a little repitition?;)
Jeremy Bruins
Proud member of the too-much-time-on-my-hands club.
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Author: psychotic lil clarinet girl (don't as
Date: 2004-11-29 04:05
oh my... I tried flute too and ALSO couldn't make a sound... Well it took me 2 hours to even get a sound out of the clarinet when I first started (Size 3 reed because that's all they had, and I also was blowing into it like I would try to blow across the flute)... But anyways, I just kept the thing in my mouth till I got a sound... try try and try again until you get the correct embouchere, and then when you have it rememberize it and keep it... Probably not so much help to ya, but I tried...
Good Luck!
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Author: pewd
Date: 2004-11-29 04:06
little swirly? is that a technical term? lol
-paul
- Paul Dods
Dallas, Texas
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Author: Jim E.
Date: 2004-11-29 04:12
Patience is the rule here. My first teacher kept saying "Tell your parents that this is not like buying a record player, it will tale a long time before it sounds good." (Record players were whar came before cd players, cassettes and even 8 tracks!)
It took well over a year for my son to sound decent. And as I remember, it took a similar amount of time for my mom to stop giving me dirty looks when I practiced. My revenge on mom came when my brother decided to study percussion!
Clarinmet squeeks are pretty bad, but have nothing on the beginning efforts of a young oboist, or french horn player. The worst might be violin which can sound like a cat in great pain.
Good luck, stick with it and soon enough there will be fewer squeeks and many more sweet notes. (The squeeks never leave completely, the other night I heard a grad student let one out as she played the Mozart concerto. A few years ago at a pre-concert warmup, I let one go that was so bad that the director started checking the microphones for feedback.)
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Author: jArius
Date: 2004-11-29 04:13
Yes, it is. It comes from the same anatomical dictionary as "the little dangly thing at the back of your throat".
Jeremy Bruins
Proud member of the too-much-time-on-my-hands club.
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Author: rbell96
Date: 2004-11-29 08:58
Don't worry about squeaks! I am about to go into uni to play the copland concert for my teacher and its full of squeaks!
Rob
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Author: sweet_gal
Date: 2004-11-29 20:40
For the last sentence, I accidently put"Is there a way i can make it less squeaky and any suggestions or tips for the flute?" What I meant was"Is there a way i can make it less squeaky and any suggestions or tips for the clarinet? Instead of it being flute, its clarinet
Emily
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