The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Tim T
Date: 1999-03-31 14:33
I just read about Anchor tounging, and have read several other posts concerning tounging. I never touch the reed when I tounge. I go to lessons and only once has my teacher said anything about it. I've recorded myself and listened, and cannot hear any difference from when I listen to the pro's on my clarinet cd's. I have tried to touch the reed on several occasions, but it just for me sounds, well BAD!
The question that is now really bothering me is. Does one have to touch the reed with there tounge in order to either A. tounge correctly, B. produce some kind of better sound.
Or am I missing something all-together???????????????????
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Author: Mark Charette
Date: 1999-03-31 14:49
Tim,
yes, the tongue must touch the reed to stop the reed - when we pull it off, the sound starts. How are you starting and stopping the sound in fast passages?
In regular "tip to tip" tonguing, the tip of the tongue rests on the tip of the reed. In anchor tonguing (which is hardly ever recommended), the tip of the tongue rests somewhere lower and the middle/back of the tongue hits the reed.
<b>Everyone</B> sounds bad when they first start tonguing correctly - normally there's a "th" sound at the beginning of the note, or a "thu" sound when the tongue stops the reed. It gets better with lots of practice :^)
My instructor said that if all you did every day is tonguing practice, you could sound good in a month or two - but who'd only want to practice tonguing that long??? So - it normally takes somewhat longer. I still don't tongue right all the time (my tongue gets ahead of my fingers, but I think it's my fingers getting ahead of the tongue, and then I get confused!)
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Author: Rick2
Date: 1999-03-31 15:10
Sherman Friedland's Corner has an article where MR. Friedland described his early incorrect tonguing as exactly what you are doing, and that he had trouble fixing it also.
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Author: Katherine Pincock
Date: 1999-04-01 21:36
I know that this doesn't seem like a problem for you now--and it is quite possible to sound very good tonguing incorrectly--but if you're serious about improving your playing, it's worth fixing as soon as possible. I tongued incorrectly for about five years, and the summer before I auditioned for universities I had to completely relearn my tonguing because I couldn't possibly go faster than 120 in sixteenths. If you fix it now, it'll be easier to break than later. As Mark said, it takes a while to do (my teacher said that she actually strained her tongue doing too much heavy tonguing practice, so please be careful) but it's worth it. Now, while I'm still slowly than I'd like to be, I can tongue 144 in sixteenths easier, and I'm getting faster all the time. Good luck!
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Author: Terri
Date: 1999-04-10 22:22
Anchor tonguing is accomplished by anchoring the tip of your tongue against the back of your bottom teeth. The tonguing action is accomplished my moving the muscle up and down usually striking the reed midway or a little further back. This technique is usually not recommend until much later, after you have mastered normal tonguing. In terms of tonguing, you are partially correct...articulation is more air than tongue but it might be helpful to think of placing your tongue on the tip of the reed and then pulling it away. Do this slowly until you are consistent then speed up. If you revert to your old method of tonguing, slow down again. This whole process will take a while but it's definitely worth it! If it makes you feel any better I've just finished my third year of music study at university and I'm still working on articulation.
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