 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Hank Lehrer
Date: 2003-06-23 18:59
Hi Everyone,
I have a terrific Selmer Series 9 clarinet that is perfect in everyway except for A5 which is between 8 and 10 cents flat. The D4 is OK as I recall (clarinet not with me so I can check) but this A5 problem is a real pain.
Notes on either side of A are just fine and I have checked the pad height of the first key in the next section and even with the key removed, the A5 is still flat. The clarinet has an articulated C#/G# but that seems to be operating just fine.
I know the traditional cure would be to remove a little of the upper part of the tone hole but that's pretty scary. I've reviewed the fine article by Clark Fobes but that seemed pretty daunting. However, maybe I'm going to have to get brave, find a small dowel rod and a piece of emery cloth, and try removing a little but there seems to be a lot to lose here with even a mild screwup.
Any thoughs would be most appreciated. I do careful work and I don't think this is rocket science so....
HRL
Post Edited (2003-06-23 19:07)
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Author: GBK
Date: 2003-06-23 19:16
Although this won't permanently solve your A5 problem, here are two alternate fingerings for A5 which will bring the pitch up:
TR x x x + right side Eb/Bb key / o o o
and
TR x x o / x x x + right pinky F/C key
I'll leave the possibility of tone hole undercutting, pad height adjustment or register key tube shortening to the knowledge of the repair techs ...GBK
Post Edited (2003-06-23 19:17)
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Author: Don Berger
Date: 2003-06-23 22:06
Hank, I'm assuming we are talking about the A just above the staff? If so, looking at my Pete F [style] LeBlanc which has [only] the artic. C#/G# AND the 7th ring [with small hole/pad] to provide the "fork" Eb/Bb, AND my Full Boehm [older] Selmer R I which has these and others, there are additional toneholes [even tho "normally" closed] which may affect the pitch of your A ! I believe the primary "venting" for the D/A is the open hole [covered for C/G] and the secondary, [open for fork B nat/F#] , the next open hole, which may be a bit lower [than usual] because of the "better" location of the C#/G# tone hole thru the tenon/socket. I find myself all wound-up in description of structure, but the essence of what I'm trying to say is, You had better get a tuning-pro to sort out what to do, rather than just "opening-up" a tonehole. More complicated than usual!! Luck, Don
Thanx, Mark, Don
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Author: Benni
Date: 2003-06-23 22:11
The same note is noticeably flat on my Series 9 . . . I have just learned to "bend" the pitch up a lot using the back of my tongue.
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Author: Hank Lehrer
Date: 2003-06-23 22:42
Don, you are right that this may be more complicated than just file work. Benni, I can favor the note up but should I have to? But then the clarinet is great for all other stuff so maybe it is just one of those things (just one of those fabulous things, a trip to the moon on .....)
Thanks,
HRL
Post Edited (2003-06-23 22:43)
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Author: Hank Lehrer
Date: 2003-07-04 01:13
Hi everyone,
I'm going to comment on my original post to get it back to the top of the BB (hope GBK or Mark don't catch me) and maybe someone that missed it first time can assist on my A5 problem.
Benni, please send me an email to the address on this post as I'd like to found out more about your Series 9 A5 problem.
HRL
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Author: diz
Date: 2003-07-04 01:20
GBK - you never cease to amaze me with your knowledge!!
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Author: Mark P. Jasuta
Date: 2003-07-04 04:50
Hank,
Well undercutting on the mouthpiece side will raise the pitch. But you can put small pieces of tape on the other side to build it up a little (this is not easy to do on a clarinet however). This would have the same effect. The best part is that the tape can be removed. This is how we do it with a sax, but because the tone holes are larger we use cardboard most of the time.
Best Regards
Mark
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Author: Hank Lehrer
Date: 2003-07-04 12:05
Hi Mark,
I will try the tape idea again. I gave it a try before but put the tape on the inside of the hole but on the top rather than the bottom. I cut a couple of small strips of electrical tape and it lowered it even further. Now I see that the node should have been moved up rather than down (Wrong Way Corrigan).
I'll report back on this one.
HRL
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