 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: mandyH
Date: 2010-08-16 15:03
I'm a senior in high school and have been playing clarinet for 7 years now. I plan on majoring in music and know i have what it takes...except for one thing. I need help with tonguing. I mean, I can tongue correctly and very fast, but only in certain conditions and on certain pieces such as the Mendelssohn scherzo and weber concerto/concertino. It seems like the faster and more staccato a piece is the easier it is for me to tongue correctly. However, during a more lyrical or legato style piece I don't tongue right-as in I don't place my tongue on the reed. This is my worst habit and I desperately need to get it fixed. The reason I don't tongue right during such pieces is because I feel is doesn't sound as clean as when I tongue wrong...I know, makes no sense. Do you think it could be my setup?
-Buffet R-13 Bb
-BG Super Revelation Ligature/ Vandoren Optimum Ligature
-Vandoren V12 3 1/2 Reeds (sometimes I use Rico Grand Concert Select Evolution because the tip is a bit thicker)
- Richard Hawkins standard mouthpiece
I will be receiving a new Tosca Clarinet from my work in a few days and plan on using this setup:
-Tosca Bb
-BG Super Revelation Ligature
-Richard Hawkins "R" mouthpiece
-Rico Grand Concert Select Evolution reeds
Any advice at all would be greatly appreciated!
-A
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Author: Paul Aviles
Date: 2010-08-16 15:57
Tonguing must be learned S-L-O-W-L-Y and correctly before charging forward.
Robert Marcellus once said, "Learning tonguing is like toilet training."
Start off with your tongue on the reed with air support behind it. The very act of damping the reed is what keeps it from vibrating (producing a sound).
NOW, remove your tongue from the reed........
This is tonguing. It is NOT a violent poking of the reed, it is in fact only the act of drawing your tongue AWAY from the reed.
So practice like that. TAAAH.....silence... TAAAH...... silence ..... TAAH .... etc (which is "withraw tongue..... place tongue .... withdraw tongue ... place tongue ... etc.).
After you get comfortable with that, then you can start to speed it up, but always go back to reinforce this essential technique.
....................Paul Aviles
PS As for Mendelsohn, I think many of us with slower tongues have to double tongue pieces like this. This is the addition of a NON reed damping moment in which a spot further back on your tongue briefly cuts off the air column by being placed on the roof of the mouth producing a "kaaah" sort of moment. This takes more practice and the the "kaas" will never fully sound like the "taas" so you just need to get used to it and use it for faster passages only of course.
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Author: ohsuzan
Date: 2010-08-16 16:41
Hi Mandy --
I had the same experience you have had, with tonguing being easier on staccato passages than on legato. Paul's post is definitely on the right track, but in addition to that, I'd like to share what my teacher told me .
She suggested that the reason it was easier for me to tongue staccato was that I was using my air improperly. I was playing "with" the air, rather than "on" the air. In other words, I needed to learn to maintain the air stream consistenly, with tonguing taking place as Paul suggests -- an interruption to the consistent airstream, rather than a stopping or starting of the airstream.
It was easier to play staccato when I was playing by stopping and starting the air because the air wasn't actually stopping very long at all between quick, short tones. But when it came to legato, the cessation of air support was longer, and thus led to an audible distortion of the tone every time I tongued.
Learning to keep the airstream consistent led to a big improvement in the way I sound. It took time, and was sometimes frustrating (because I really couldn't play very fast at first), but it makes all the difference between sounding really good and sounding just pretty good.
Susan
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Author: salzo
Date: 2010-08-16 19:26
Ohsuzan makes very good points.
The air has to be constant, and more often than not the problem with tonguing is not the tongue itself, but the obstruction one creates when moving the tongue(stopping air, tightening embouchure, etc). Tabuteau said, and I am paraphrasing, do not use the air to articulate, but articulate the air.
One thing I find very effective to focus on when legato tonguing (and rapid tonguing for that matter) is to focus on "the other" thing the tongue does-not only does the tongue action start a new note, but it also is finishing the previous note. I find focusing on the finishing part, rather than the starting makes for a much more smooth transition.
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Author: Ed Palanker
Date: 2010-08-16 19:54
If you have the time check my website and look at the clarinet pages. I have some articles on tonguing that appeared in the Clarinet journal some years ago, you might find them helpful. Remember though, the result is more important than the technique you use to get the result. What I mean by that is that there are players that do not tongue "the classic way" yet sound fantastic. Much depends on the size of your tongue, teeth, lips etc. Everyone does not have to do everything the same way to get the same result but that doesn't mean you shouldn't try to do it the "right" way first. ESP http://eddiesclarinet.com
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Author: Ron
Date: 2010-08-19 20:45
I agree with all of the above. I suggest that you get a copy of the "Clarinetist's Compendium" by Daniel Bonade. You can download and copy it for free at this website:
http://education.conn-selmer.com/pdf/AVP74_Leblanc_Clarinetists_Compendium.pdf
I also suggest that you get a teacher who can work with you on the fundamentals which includes starting and stopping the tone as described above. Although you have a fast tongue, this is not enough. You must understand and be able to start and stop a tone correctly for a note of any length. The correct technique for starting and stopping a half note or a staccato note is the same. As described above, the air column is already there before the note starts and then you take your tongue off the reed for the sound to begin. It is the release of the tongue from the reed that give you the "attack" of the note. Then you put your tongue back on the reed to stop the sound but continue with the air column. Slow practice is essential to learn this tonguing technique which is one of the most fundamental concepts that you must learn. Eventually, the correct way to start and stop the tone will become second nature. But you must learn to crawl and walk before you run with this. This is the key to having good articulation at any speed.
I also suggest getting Book I of the James Collis' Modern Method for the Clarinet. James Collis was my first teacher and a student of Daniel Bonade. In this book which may seem elementary to you, Mr. Collis explains very clearly how to start and stop the tone correctly. Many teachers today still use the James Collis Modern Method for the Clarinet for their students.
Once you get this fundamental technique down, you will be amazed at how your articulation will improve.
Good luck.
Ron
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