Author: paul
Date: 2000-01-10 16:43
Before you start modifying the new horn with more hardware, you may need to learn more about your horn. Here are a few ideas to chew on for a while. See a pro tutor for the proper order of these tricks, how they are done, and how both you and your horn can benefit from them. You may have to learn how to "lip up or lip down" notes to bend them slightly into tune. Remember, undercut pro grade clarinets are a lot more sensitive to finger positioning, especially for the tone holes. You may have to learn a very tight discipline for fingerings, so you don't unintentionally "shade" the notes out of tune. You also may need to get your (I assume totally brand new) clarinet regulated to tweak individual keys and key pads for proper tuning by themselves and in thirds, fourths, fifths, sixths, octave and 12ths leaps. Don't try bending keys yourself. Get a pro to do it for you. That's because it takes a lot of patience and controlled strength to get it right. You should never use a tool (pliers, wrench, etc.) to bend keys. Tools put way too much force over such a small area of the keys. Plus, many of the tools have hard teeth that can put a permanent gouge of bitemarks in your keys. Gentle, yet persistent finger/hand pressure works the best.
A pro tutor can tell you all about these problems, how to solve them, and more. There is a lot more fine art in learning how to play a clarinet than an engineer like me can imagine. The pro grade horns demand a lot from novice and intermediate grade players. I personally went through about a year's worth of transition pains stepping from a straight cut intermediate soprano clarinet (Yamaha YCL-52) to an undercut premium pro grade clarinet (Buffet Festival, sister to the R-13) as an adult novice, even with a seasoned pro tutor's help every week.
Follow the good advice given quite frequently on this BBS. Use a good third party mouthpiece on your horn, make sure you have a collection of high quality broken-in reeds at the ready, get expert professional tutoring and advice, and work hard to meet your performance goals. I'll add to these tips and say be patient getting to know your horn, get expert help adjusting it to meet your needs, always take quality time warming up for every session, learn to have relaxed yet disciplined fingers and hands, work fully focused, and then take the time to relax and have fun.
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The Clarinet BBoard
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