 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Pyroadept
Date: 2007-12-24 14:40
Hi everyone,
I'm an experienced pianist and have just started to teach myself the clarinet. I'm using the 'New tune a day' series and it's going quite well, but I'm now on lesson 2 and my F natural is sounding like an F#. My G is also sharp compared to concert pitch, but my F# is so sharp that it's sharp compared to the other notes I can play! The only way I can flatten the G is if I hold the clarinet almost at a 90 degree angle, and the F stays sharp! Can someone please tell me what I may be doing wrong?
Thanks
Post Edited (2007-12-24 14:44)
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Author: tictactux ★2017
Date: 2007-12-24 15:02
Hmm. If the pitch of your clarinet changes noticeably when you hold it at a different angle, I suspect an embouchure issue.
Do you have a teacher? Not that it is necessary to teach you the notes, but I think some lessons re how-to-blow would be a wise investment. Else you risk learning bad habits that are difficult to get rid of later.
--
Ben
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Author: NorbertTheParrot
Date: 2007-12-24 17:19
The pitch of the throat notes will vary a lot with embouchure.
I suspect you are biting, possibly very hard indeed. However, this doesn't explain why different notes are sharp to a different degree.
Try playing using the minimum pressure that produces an acceptable sound. Is this a lot flatter? If it is, you were biting.
Make sure you are playing around mezzo-forte to forte. Unlike flutes and recorders, clarinets go sharper as you play quieter. Learn to play in tune at mezzo-forte, then learn to correct the intonation at pianissimo and fortissimo. If you are playing quietly to avoid upsetting the neighbours, find a better place to practice. You should be loud enough to be uncomfortably loud in a small room. You should be loud enough to overpower the average upright piano, but in balance with a grand piano with its lid closed.
What is the instrument? is it in good repair? Is it clean? Muck in the tone holes will send the intonation way out, though normally flat rather than sharp.
What mouthpiece (maker and model) and reed (maker, model and strength) are you using?
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Author: William
Date: 2007-12-24 18:14
In case you don't already know, the clarinet is a transposing instrument and it's F# is really a concert (piano) E.
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Author: Synonymous Botch
Date: 2007-12-24 19:39
How do you like playing the licorice stick, so far?
You're starting head and shoulders above most of us, in that you can read the charts, and perhaps have musical theory behind you.
Do be careful about playing while standing up... many beginning players get faint from constant exhalation. This will take some time to resolve (training effect in play).
Your most important gear is the reed.
After that, the mouthpiece.
I STRONGLY recommend the Legere synthetic reed for starters.
A bad, or poorly prepared reed (re: Rico orange box) can derail progress.
Don't be too butch in reed selection, higher #s don't necessarily mean better players... you're looking for the "sweet spot" between effort and tone.
The way you sound is easily as important as pitch control.
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