 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Dawn
Date: 1999-05-20 06:18
Is this instrument the hardest dang thing to get a good sound out of or did I just have a bad horn? I switched to Alto clarinet for the past 2 semesters of clarinet choir at my college and I have had the worst time trying to make it sound good. It always seems to resemble the sound of a tenor saxophone. (But in a bad way). It is especially bad in the throat tones, and sometimes in the higher notes, especially when crossing the break. What makes it worse is that there were 2 altos in the choir this year, and we were out of tune more often than not. Don't get me wrong it wasn't completely bad, we had our moments. I was wondering what I can do to improve my sound(if anything) or if I should just give up and return to my familiar Bb clarinet next semester.
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Author: Kimbo
Date: 1999-05-20 06:37
well when i played alto i also had a hard time all i can say is work with it practice makes perfect
~kimbo
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Author: Don Berger
Date: 1999-05-20 16:20
True! It IS a different horn, more like a bass clar than as sop. [to me, playing all 3 from time to time]. Try out some mp's and reed combinations, I finally found an old Olympia medium tip opening and medium lay and a high quality soft reed to give the best tonals and, as I posted earlier, just pretending you are playing Mozart on a Basset Horn will also help! Luck, keep at it, Don
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Author: Rich C
Date: 1999-05-20 20:02
The Alto Clarinet can be quite a beast...one thing I've found very useful is to try not to think of it as a clarinet ,but as a totally different instrument...the best tips I can tel lyou is to keep your emboucure looser, use a decent reed (I use 3 Rico's, but when I started learning, I had to start out at 2 because my lung capacity wasn't strong enough for it), use more air support, and be sure to use a neck strap if you don't already use one. Also, make SURE your reed is good! I find that the quality of the reed seems to effect my Alto more than it does my soprano...
Anyways, these are just a few baisc tips....I wish you good luck! Long live the Alto!
-Rich "Alto Boy" C.
:)
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Author: Gary Van Cott
Date: 1999-05-21 15:13
It is important to have a decent mouthpiece for any clarinet and it really makes a big difference on alto and bass. The mouthpieces that come with most alto clarinets found in schools are not very good. I use a Vandoren B44 which is the best one I have found for me so far. I have also played a Woodwind #5 which was almost as good and about half the price.
The other problem is the instruments. It is my experience that with a good mouthpiece, an student instrument like a Bundy should work fine in the lower register, but above that (sometimes starting with the first line e) you will have problems, some notes are ok and a lot aren't.
The previous model Buffet instrument was pretty good but still had problems with the upper register (uneven). The latest model Buffet is much better, with resonance keys that open up the sound of the lower clarion notes. It isn't perfect either, since they eliminated the use of a lower register key for the middle line b.
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Author: Don Berger
Date: 1999-05-21 15:35
Good advice above, a couple more comments. By all means try as many mp's and reeds as available to find the best match to your particular alto. I also have a VD B44, but still prefer my oldie for my present Selmer and previous LeBlanc [both single register keyed] which my teacher-friend loves! I have had some experience with a Bundy and a Buescher [plastics], and a Gerard wood having a double R K, which didnt seem to help! Likely, small variations in construction make a greater difference in playability than with sopranos [and maybe basses]. Enjoy this discussion, I consider it to be a good day when I learn something! Don
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Author: Lelia
Date: 1999-05-21 21:53
I'm not quite sure what you mean by comparing the sound to a tenor sax. Too loud? Too "reedy"? That would be rather unusual for an alto clarinet. If it's the usual problem with alto clarinets, a sound that's muffled and stuffy, try an alto sax reed. The extra-long jazz reeds might not fit the mpc, but I sometimes use a Hemke Premium alto sax reed (French cut, similar to the Mitchell Lurie Premium Bb clarinet reeds) on my alto clarinet. Mine is a Selmer "A" series, which seems to have a louder, more resonant, balanced tone than some other altos, but I notice that the sax reed makes it even louder and brighter. (I use "brighter" to mean a sound with more audible high partials.)
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Author: snowjacks
Date: 1999-05-22 11:42
In the final analysis, mouthpiece and reed changes may help, but your problem could be the horn. I currently own three altos, and each has its own unique voice. One simply sounds like a soprano clarinet pitched lower. Another transitions from the sound of a soprano clarinet to the sound of a tenor sax (like you describe)on all of the notes where the bell comes into play. Ahh, but the third has a unique and consistent voice throughout the registers that I have come to love as the alto voice. Why the altos are so unique in this regard, I cannot answer. I have not had the same experience with bass clarinets, where the correct mouthpiece and reed seem to fix any problems provided the instruments are mechanically correct.
In regard to the problem you mention about being horribly out of tune with the other alto, that is probably a mechanical problem caused by certain keys not opening wide enough to vent a sufficient volume of air, and can be fixed by a competent repairman.
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Author: Henk Raven
Date: 1999-05-24 08:11
Snowjacks wrote
>> Ahh, but the third has a unique and consistent voice throughout the registers that I have come to love as the alto voice. <<
What type of alto is this?
Do you also have experience with alto's with a double register key like the more professional bass-clarinets?
When I was at the Frankfurter Messe ,I was suprised that the topline Buffets didn't have this double register key. On a bass this extra key is a big improvement.
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Author: Gary Van Cott
Date: 1999-05-24 19:02
>Do you also have experience with alto's with a double register key like the more professional bass-clarinets?
When I was at the Frankfurter Messe ,I was suprised that the topline Buffets didn't have this double register key. On a bass this extra key is a big improvement.<
This was standard on the previous model Buffet which wasn't replaced that long ago, about 1995. Overall the mechanism on the new instrument is much, much more complicated than the previous model. I am not sure why they emliminated it, however, the long clarion B could use it. It does have a double register mechanism for the throat Bb.
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Author: snowjacks
Date: 1999-05-24 22:29
Henk Raven wrote:
-------------------------------
Snowjacks wrote
>> Ahh, but the third has a unique and consistent voice throughout the registers that I have come to love as the alto voice. <<
What type of alto is this?
Do you also have experience with alto's with a double register key like the more professional bass-clarinets?
I left out the brand originally because I didn't want to encourage any brand wars. But since you ask, the alto with the beautiful and consistent voice is a 1970's vintage Buffet Paris Professional model. I really love the instrument, and I've gotten more compliments on it than on any other instrument I own, including my two Buffet Bass clarinets. If someone tried to trade me today for a brand new top-of-the-line Buffet alto, the answer would be "no".
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Author: Contragirl
Date: 1999-05-25 03:52
snowjacks wrote:
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I left out the brand originally because I didn't want to encourage any brand wars. But since you ask, the alto with the beautiful and consistent voice is a 1970's vintage Buffet Paris Professional model. I really love the instrument, and I've gotten more compliments on it than on any other instrument I own, including my two Buffet Bass clarinets. If someone tried to trade me today for a brand new top-of-the-line Buffet alto, the answer would be "no".
I wouldn't trade the school's contralto (if it were mine to trade) for anything in the world. They don't make 'em like they used to!
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