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 Out of tune!
Author: Beccy 
Date:   1999-09-12 19:47

Hi, I play on a Boosey & Hawkes 926 and I've been having real problems getting the different registers in tune. The throat notes are extremely sharp and also some of the lower notes,but when I pull out from the barrel everything else goes flat. Has anyone got a solution or is this something I'm going to have to put up with until I buy a new pair? Thnks!

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 RE: Out of tune!
Author: John Y. 
Date:   1999-09-12 20:04

Loosen up your emborchur(isspelled) on the sharp-toned notes and tighten your emborchure on the flat-toned notes. This might take a while to figure out though.

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 RE: Out of tune!
Author: Fred McKenzie 
Date:   1999-09-12 22:26

Beccy wrote:
-------------------------------
Hi, I play on a Boosey & Hawkes 926 and I've been having real problems getting the different registers in tune. The throat notes are extremely sharp and also some of the lower notes,but when I pull out from the barrel everything else goes flat.

Beccy-

Any given note may be affected by pad height of the next lower note. It sounds like some of your pads may be the wrong thickness, or adjusted to the wrong height.

You may get a better idea about your problem by adjusting the barrel to tune the lowest note on the instrument, and then checking where the other notes fall.

Fred
<A HREF="http://www.dreamnetstudios.com/music/mmb/index.htm">MMB</A>


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 RE: Out of tune!
Author: William Fuller 
Date:   1999-09-12 22:40

Pull your barrel to tune the left-hand notes first (middle G down to D). Then, if necessary, pull your middle joint to tune the right-hand notes (Low C down to E). Lip the sharp throat tones down as needed. Tuning is a compromise on most clarinets, you just have to learn your own horn. I recently tried out a new Selmer Signiture clarinet that was as "in tune" an instrument as I have ever played. If you can afford it, it's worth the price--about $2500.00. Good luck.

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 RE: Out of tune!
Author: Rick2 
Date:   1999-09-13 03:57

It may be that your instrument itself is causing the problem. Changing the emboucher shouldnt be necessary. You should think about getting a more mainstream clarinet. I thiknk even student models by one of the big four manufacturers would be in better tune. See if you have the probem with somebody elses horn.

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 RE: Out of tune!
Author: Chris Hill 
Date:   1999-09-13 04:43

I suspect that the problem might be in the combination of the clarinet with the mouthpiece. The thing that brings me to this conclusion is that you mentioned a problem with the intonation from register to register. What type of mouthpiece are you using with this clarinet? If it is a large bore instrument, then a mouthpiece that works ok on a standard Buffet (or other small bore clarinets) such as a Vandoren B45 will cause this type of problem. You will most likely need to either replace the mouthpiece with a larger bore one, or get a new clarinet. Some examples of larger bore mouthpieces
are the extremely old Selmers, old Penzel Muellers,
and some of the old table-stamped Woodwind Co. Honestly, if you can afford it, I'd suggest getting a mainstream clarinet.
Chris


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 RE: Out of tune!
Author: Hiroshi 
Date:   1999-09-13 07:16

As you are trying to make everything to remedy a present problem of your present clarinet, I think Fred's suggestion- chech wrong pad elevations-sounds most reasonable.

As your throat tone is too sharp, it may be a first choice to check your register key elevation. It should be no greater than 1.5 mm or it should be even smaller.This is not my opinion but professional way I learned from Tom Ridenour's fingring book and also in Klarinet archive(You can seach there.) You can experiment what happens by sticking a strip of tape under the register key contact place(not cork). Other key-elevations adjustment will be very difficult for us repair-amateurs. It will be better to consult good repair people.
(This is the fastest way if the problem is fixable,anyway?)

I think B&H has been one of the main stream instrument manufacturer in UK(Reginald Kell used one,I guess), although may not be so in U.S.

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 RE: Out of tune!
Author: Don Berger 
Date:   1999-09-13 19:08

As some have said, your problem may be in matching a mouthpiece to the bore of your cl [barrel?]. I believe Lee Gibson of the ICA, has investigated this, and there may be a solution in his book [PB] "Clarinet Acoustics", available from Amazon. Good Luck, Don

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 RE: Out of tune!
Author: Chris Hill 
Date:   1999-09-14 05:25

Hiroshi, you are correct; I realize B&H is a major
manufacturer in England. However, it is difficult to
find mouthpieces to match that large bore here in
the US. I guess I was operating with the belief that
this is an American student. (I suppose they call it the "World Wide" Web for a reason!) Wherever she's
located, however, a probable cause of the problems
she described is bore differential. Key heights are a probable cause for some of the problems, as well, but register to register intonation problems are mostly bore-related.
Chris

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 RE: Out of tune!
Author: Kimberly Nisius 
Date:   1999-09-18 00:59

Beccy-

A quesiton you have not answered yet would be what is your mouthpiece? Also what reed brand and strenght are you playing? and also how long have you been playing?

Young students with soft reeds will also have this exact problem. A soft reed does not allow for the upper notes to be supported correctly to be played in-tune.

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