 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: contragirl
Date: 2003-11-20 03:54
I'm trying to start a clarinet choir at my college next semester and I have gotten a lot of interest. I started a list and have about 25 people interested.
I'm wondering how I would go about seating, because I know the playing level of most of the clarinet majors but not of the non-majors. I also don't want people getting upset that they are always playing third. I might have to do some cycling of seatings. Low clarinetists are no problem.
I'm also worried that there might be too many Bb clarinets. Is there such a thing as too many clarinets?
I could use any advice on how to organize everything.
Thanks,
Contragirl
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Author: hallahallahalla8
Date: 2003-11-20 06:37
the way we do choir here is that we play a different part on each song, and make sure you have at least one strong person on each part.
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Author: lyn
Date: 2003-11-21 01:31
I make up "teams" of players - mixing strong and weak players, and also mix those who are faithful about coming to rehearsals and those who are not
Then you rotate the teams among the parts. Usually the Eb soprano, contra and alto can double on clarinet on pieces where there are no parts for them. Basses usually don't have to do that (they are usually playing!).
Lynn
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Author: chicagoclar
Date: 2003-11-21 05:31
I started a clarinet choir this year and have the difficulty of having students range from junior hight to college music majors. I just rotate parts. Look at parts ahead of time and decide what people are capable of. On pieces that are really even or that every one can handle easily, we have even drawn numbers.
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Author: Mel
Date: 2003-11-21 06:25
I am faced with a similar situation next semester. My professor suggested that it might be a good opportunity for the ones who always play Bb to try out something new. If you have only a few exceptional players, it may help to balance out the group by placing them on a different instrument, and add to their enjoyment by giving them the challenge of a new instrument. As for seating, I would recommend keeping the Eb soprano in the second row where it is a little more hidden, and not so piercing. Otherwise, I would set it up very much like a typical band with low instruments in the back and higher instruments in the front. Good luck with your choir!
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Author: Pam H.
Date: 2003-11-22 01:58
I'm currently involved in a flute choir and our leader rotates parts played some. Obviously, the folks that have the lower instruments would get those parts a lot unless they would like to share. (Switching mp and reed setup of course). Often the most experienced, i.e. better, players play first parts but the rest are often mixed amoung the different players so that nobody ever feels like they are always playing the last part/bottom notes unless that is what makes them happy.
She does always keep a list of who is playing what part on the folders for the originals so it's easy to tell which parts are covered well, or if a new person comes what might need covered. She does what lyn does as well making sure that weaker players are supported by stronger players on the same part. Sometimes parts are switched as well as players grow or holes in the parts appear at a performance. (Sight reading is a GOOD THING.)
In the flute choir music I've seen sometimes the second or third part is more interesting to play than the first.
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