 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: alanporter
Date: 2011-01-07 00:48
I have an old Vito bass clarinet which, on the whole, plays very well, but I can never hit C6. There is little problem with the rest of the clarion, but following B6 I only get a squeak. I know that pro quality basses have two register holes compared to the Vito's one, and I am wondering if reaming out the hole slightly wider will help ? I use a refaced George Bundy number 3 hard rubber mouthpiece, and I have tried every reed strength from 2 to 4. Thanks.
Alan
tiaroa@shaw.ca
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Author: LarryBocaner ★2017
Date: 2011-01-07 01:34
Make sure that when you finger high C the second vent -- the one that opens for throat Bb -- is firmly closed. I've experienced the same problem with these instruments when I've given school clinics -- it's not a difficult fix!
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Author: tictactux ★2017
Date: 2011-01-07 06:40
I second Larry'd diagnosis.
At the beginning of this season I had a similar problem. Turned out that an adjustment screw for the Bb/Register mechanism had come loose a bit and thus the throat Bb pad was not completely closing.
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Ben
Post Edited (2011-01-07 06:41)
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Author: Lelia Loban ★2017
Date: 2011-01-07 14:38
The adjustment screw is a finicky little (insert cussword of your choice). I agree with Ben and Larry. That screw is the first thing to suspect. Sooner or later, it works loose during normal playing -- and then it's easy to over-tighten it. I like to deal with an adjustment screw by knowing from the outset whether it's too tight or too loose, so I'm sure of which way to go. Do that by loosening the screw considerably too much, so that you're *sure* it's too loose, and then tighten it just a quarter turn at a time, trying the notes each time, until it's right.
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: Ken Shaw ★2017
Date: 2011-01-07 15:01
The standard advice for keeping an adjustment screw from turning is to put a dab of clear finger nail polish over it once you get it adjusted. Lelia, do you find that effective? Or would Duco work just as well?
Nail polish is easily removed, but most solvents contain acetone, which is nasty stuff and about as flammable as it's possible to be. I use it only out of doors with the wind at my back.
Ken Shaw
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Author: tictactux ★2017
Date: 2011-01-07 16:02
I use nail polish. (Rimmel Clearly Clear). Works without modifying the tone in any way, and is visually unobtrusive.
No, I am neither an endorser nor an artist. :-)
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Ben
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Author: alanporter
Date: 2011-01-07 21:17
I may seem dumb but, shouldn't the register - cum- Bb key be open ? How do you play C at the upper end of the clarion with the register key closed ? On the soprano it has to be open.
Alan
tiaroa@shaw.ca
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Author: LarryBocaner ★2017
Date: 2011-01-07 22:44
"I may seem dumb but,......"
Alan, the bass clarinet has separate vents for Bb and 2nd register.
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Author: alanporter
Date: 2011-01-07 23:31
Ooops yes, I am dumb. Too familiar with the soprano and not enough with the bass. However, I still cannot hit C6.....and altissimo..forget it. Thanks all for your kind responses.
Alan
tiaroa@shaw.ca
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Author: Ken Shaw ★2017
Date: 2011-01-08 00:57
Alan -
Have a friend hold the throat Bb vent closed. I'd lay odds you'll have no trouble with clarion high C.
Ken Shaw
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Author: Ed Palanker
Date: 2011-01-08 15:30
Maybe I'm missing something here but he said he has a Vito and it only has one Register key, not two. On the pro models when you depress the third finger in the right hand it opens one register key and closes the other, he only has one so the hole that is used for the throat Bb is the same register hole for the clarion register. Am I not visualizing this right? I can't give you an answer as to why you're having this problem because it there are so many reasons it could be from the instrument, the mouthpiece to the way you're voicing. ESP http://eddiesclarinet.com
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Author: tictactux ★2017
Date: 2011-01-08 17:17
...but the register key still operates two pads - the one for the register (obviously) and the one for the throat Bb (only when the thumb plate is not closed).
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Ben
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Author: alanporter
Date: 2011-01-08 22:49
Found it at last ! The pad that lies underneath the register touch lever, at the same level as the second-down side trill hole, was leaking slightly. When it was pushed firmly down I hit C6 easily. Seems odd that it didn't affect the chalumeau register though. I am grateful for your inputs.
Alan
tiaroa@shaw.ca
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Author: clarnibass
Date: 2011-01-09 08:44
It's usual that a leak affects the the clarion register a lot more than the low register, sometimes even seems like no effect on the lower register. Especially a small bass clarinet leak at the top, will be more and more obvious the higher you go in the clarion.
Is the leaking pad the one that goes down when you play the thumb F or first finger F#? Sounds like an adjustment problem of the thumb F/C key with this second pad that should close with it.
To Ed: On these student models, the register lever operates two keys, just like on a professional model. The difference is, on a pro model the two keys are for Bb+lower clarion and another for upper clarion, all connected to the lower joint for the transition. On student models one is for throat Bb, the other for all clarion and above, without a connection to lower joint.
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Author: Lelia Loban ★2017
Date: 2011-01-09 14:42
>>The standard advice for keeping an adjustment screw from turning is to put a dab of clear finger nail polish over it once you get it adjusted. Lelia, do you find that effective? Or would Duco work just as well?>>
I've never tried either one. I keep a set of tiny jewellers' screwdrivers in my ditty-bag where I practice and adjust a screw if it seems out of whack. I don't use products such as nail polish remover outside my workshop (two flughts of stairs down from my office), because I've always had at least one nosy cat prowling around. Jane Feline gets into everything.
>>Nail polish is easily removed, but most solvents contain acetone, which is nasty stuff and about as flammable as it's possible to be. I use it only out of doors with the wind at my back.>>
What Ken says, yes. I used nail polish remover for various things in my stained glass business. Even though my workbench has an industrial exhaust fan (salvaged from a much larger space in a metal foundry) that easily draws any fumes away from my face, I never brought nail polish remover anywhere near the workbench when the soldering iron was turned on.
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: Chris_C ★2017
Date: 2011-01-09 14:47
A leak here seems to be the reason for the same problem I have had for years on my Bundy alto - I have from time to time tweaked the adjuster screw with no consistent results, but actually holding the key down to ensure the pad is closed gives a consistent improvement. Slackening off the screws in the end of the rod by 1/4 turn helps, so I wonder if there is some binding somewhere.
Chris
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Author: Ed Palanker
Date: 2011-01-09 18:34
Sorry, as I said I can't really see what it looks like. We used to have a Bundy when I taught at Towson U., we had a two Selmers two, and I believe that only had one key with only one pad that worked both the Bb throat as well as the register key. I still can't picture one key with two pads, I'm bad. ESP
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Author: Ed Palanker
Date: 2011-01-11 03:37
Been a long time since I've seen one, I retired from Towson U. ten years ago, so I can't remember, me bad, me bad. ESP
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