 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: sultan
Date: 2009-11-16 22:05
Hi everyone
Whenever I play a clarion G or higher, my bass clarinet tends to jump a fifth, and it sometimes does this with lower notes too. Sometimes the clarion doesn't come out at all. I've been frustrated by this issue, and it's been getting worse over the last few months. Today, I was struggling to get the upper clarion to work at all, and while trying to get it to work, I noticed that if I pressed the keys *very* hard, it worked, but if i pressed them with normal force, they jump by a twelfth.
I suspect it's a leak in the instrument, but then I just got it serviced near the end of August.
Any ideas about what the problem is? Any suggestions to play those higher notes in the interim before it it fixed?
Thanks,
Sultan
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Author: Ed Palanker
Date: 2009-11-16 22:17
Well first off all you really need to make sure it's not leaking. Just because it's been serviced doesn't mean it's not leaking. If it's a double octave it may not be working perfectly. If you can't determine the problem you really need to go to a professional bass clarinet player and have them try the instrument. If it's not that then they can help you out. In the meantime read my bass clarinet page on my website to get some hints of playing that register on the bass clarinet. In past years I've often had to work with repairman to "find" the problem. Often it seems like the instrument is not leaking just to discover that one of the register - octave keys is not closing perfectly when switching from one register to another because it was so slight and difficult to see. ESP http://eddiesclarinet.com
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Author: sultan
Date: 2009-11-17 00:41
Thanks for your advice. I'll get the instrument checked more thoroughly when I get a chance. I also checked out your website; your advice matches what I have found from trial and error over the past 4 years that I've been playing and I also found a couple new ideas that I'll try.
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Author: clarnibass
Date: 2009-11-17 06:33
Everything you describe sounds exactly like a leak, most likely somewhere in the most upper part of the instrument. If it was repaired so recently then either something happened now or the repair wasn't reliable. Or maybe the repair was econimical i.e. for budget reasons it didn't have anything repaired and/or problems that were gradually getting worse weren't repaired, etc. The solution is to invest in a good repair by an excellent repairer.
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Author: Bluesparkle
Date: 2009-11-17 12:44
I had this same issue, but it was an issue with the neck. When I pulled out enough to be in tune with the rental instrument I had, I accidentally created a leak at the neck where it screwed together. The neck I was using had a slit in the part that went into the clarinet itself, and pulling out was just enough to cause the slit and the screws to align and therefore, cause a leak. It was acting like a register vent of sorts. I mostly noticed it in the low notes.
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Author: Lelia Loban ★2017
Date: 2009-11-17 17:16
I agree that the register key is a likely suspect for a small leak -- and another place to check is that small screw where the A and A-flat throat keys cross, if your bass has that screw. Over time, it can unscrew itself slightly, and it's more likely to do that on an alto, bass or contra than on a soprano. The person who serviced the clarinet may not have gotten that adjustment quite right, or the adjustment may need changing slightly after new pads groove in. I've found that, although it's easy to loosen and tighten that screw, it's one of the trickiest adjustments on the clarinet. Even as little as a quarter turn in either direction can cause trouble. If you can't find anything else wrong, try tweaking that screw and see what happens.
Lelia
http://www.scoreexchange.com/profiles/Lelia_Loban
To hear the audio, click on the "Scorch Plug-In" box above the score.
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Author: sultan
Date: 2009-11-18 04:22
Thanks for the advice everyone. Today, I sat with a small screwdriver and adjusted everything. I found a major leak in the tone hole for the Bb throat tone. A bit of fiddling with the screw that controls it fixed that leak. Even a quarter turn was too much, it is such a fine adjustment. It still leaks, sqeaks and jumps a little, and I'll take it in for repair after my upcoming performances this december, but I can now do a 3 octave chromatic scale (from low chalumeau E to altissimo E) fairly reliably.
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