Author: mrn
Date: 2008-10-02 16:15
Tony wrote:
<<But now I have a better solution, that Tom Ridenour's technique provides. That is: to set the jaw aperture and the lip flexion that corresponds to the musical effect I want, and then have the beginning of the note coincide with the 'snug' moment as I very slightly move the mouthpiece in.>>
That's an interesting idea--I'm going to have to try that myself. I am assuming that you usually play single lip like me. One question, though: When you tried this technique of moving the mouthpiece in, did you have to slide/scrape the mouthpiece much against your top teeth? (or are you doing this double lip like in the video?) I ask this because in my usual embouchure I apply quite a bit of downward pressure from my top teeth and not as much from my jaw, so I have to admit that the idea of sliding the clarinet inward with my teeth on the mouthpiece makes me a little uncomfortable (and it probably would not be possible on my old mouthpiece, which featured rather deep teeth indentations by the time I was done with it).
The video makes it appear as if most single lip players' teethmarks on the mouthpiece are the result of pushing the mouthpiece upward in the direction of the upper teeth using the jaw, whereas I think I probably tend to put more weight into the upper teeth to start with and then bring the jaw up with a moderate amount of jaw pressure applied to the reed. Does that make me a rebel?
Also, since you mentioned this, I thought I'd share that I've been sort of experimenting with a related idea I picked up from somebody's DMA dissertation I ran across on the Internet the other day while searching for something else. (Just so I don't look like I'm taking credit for someone else's idea, this technique was described in an excerpt from an interview with Stanley Hasty--so this is his idea, not mine [likewise, it's entirely his fault if it doesn't work ])
Basically the idea is that on a pp attack you start your airflow before the note starts (you let the air hiss through the instrument without making it speak) and right at the moment the note is supposed to start you tongue the reed while simultaneously tightening your embouchure so as to make the note speak. So the articulation is sort of like a "hhh-tah," where the "tah" is the note. Of course, the "hhh" part is quiet enough that nobody except for perhaps the player sitting next to you notices (which, for orchestra playing, is just fine).
This idea is supposed to accomplish two things: 1.) You have a more definite and secure start to the note because you don't have to rely on your respiratory system to get the timing right, 2.) You avoid the initial sharpness that usually occurs when you attack a note while beginning the flow of air.
The most noticable difference, of course, between what you're describing and what I read about is that in what you're describing, the tightening occurs as a result of the mouthpiece being moved toward the embouchure, whereas the idea I read about seems to assume that you will tighten the embouchure around the mouthpiece (presumably with the top teeth already in place).
I'm not trying to advocate for any particular technique--after all, I just started trying this Hasty idea, myself--but I thought I'd mention what I had found since it was in a similar vein, and I thought it might be interesting to consider both of these ideas together and see if that might lead to the discovery of new insights.
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The Clarinet BBoard
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