 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: BassClarinetBaby
Date: 2011-03-20 15:16
After recently switching my focus from bass clarinet to the soprano (although I have always/still do play both) I have been playing a lot in the altissimo register. I have noticed that the F6 standard fingering makes it difficult to produce the note whereas I can get a clear, immediate sound using a number of alternate fingerings. This is a new instrument although I think the problem lies in my embouchure/technique as all other notes are fine. The F is not out of my range as I can hit the G6 cleanly. Is it a problem to use alternate fingerings (provided they are in tune) even when they are not called for (ie. the passage is easily played with the 'basic' fingering).
Also, just a bonus question: How many of you named your instruments? I guess it sounds kind of silly but I always felt mine had a personality and named them accordingly.
Never Bb, sometimes B#, and always B natural! ♫♪
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Author: kilo
Date: 2011-03-20 15:57
I believe you can be "inventive" with altissimo fingerings as long as they are in tune and don't effect your facility. You might try letting another clarinetist play the instrument and see if the problem shows up for him. Unless you are in a conservatory setting and under the watchful eye of a dictatorial teacher I think the musical results are the prime concern, not how you achieve them. And no, I've never had the slightest inclination to name my instruments — although I can just imagine the names they have for me.
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Author: BassClarinetBaby
Date: 2011-03-20 16:23
Thanks for your answer.
Your last comment made me laugh. My clarinet must really hate me some days too.
Never Bb, sometimes B#, and always B natural! ♫♪
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Author: kdk
Date: 2011-03-21 00:29
The main reason why one fingering would be the "main" one and others alternates is, I think in any case I can think of, because of the "main" fingering's convenience. Alternates are used frequently or not depending on their tone quality and intonation. If a particular alternate sounds better or tunes better that the regular fingering, many players will prefer it except where technical difficulty makes the regular fingering easier. There are lots of places where I use "forked" F#5 (1st finger + "sliver" key) even if the passage isn't chromatic because the regular fingering (2nd finger) is a little sharper on my instrument. I nearly always use the same fingering with the sliver key a sixth higher for D#6 because the 2nd finger is (as it is on many clarinets) flat on that partial. So, the general rule ought to be that if an alternate sounds as good as or better than the "normal"-"regular"-"main" fingering, use the alternate without guilt.
That said, it will be worth finding out if your problem with F6 is yours or the instrument's. The most used alternate is the closed F, which may speak more easily but has a tendency to be slightly sharp and is less resistant than the notes around it, so it can sometimes pop out of a step-wise passage too easily. The pinkly key that opens for the regular F6 is the same one, of course, as C#4/G#5 below it. That tone hole is notoriously misplaced too high (and then sized too small to compensate for the resulting sharpness) to avoid being drilled directly into the socket and tenon joining the top and bottom sections. So F6 may be stuffier or flatter than it needs to be, especially if C#4 and G#5 are also stuffy and flat. A competent tech can improve that by undercutting the hole if this is indeed the case.
Karl
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Author: Bb R13 greenline
Date: 2011-03-21 06:16
I named my instrument when I was in 8th grade cuzz it was a fad but it didn't last long because as I got better I felt the clarinet moreas an extention of myself than it's own sentient being. As Eddie Daniels sais, if you think your playing the clarinet there's already two much seperation
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Author: Tony F
Date: 2011-03-21 10:21
I sometimes have names for my clarinets, but I wouldn't repeat them here!
Tony F.
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Author: Bob Phillips
Date: 2011-03-21 16:28
Grab a copy of the altissimo and high altissimo fingering charts available here and play around with them. Some speak easily, some pop out, most vary in their tuning, some are easier to get to from some other note.
For drill, take each alternate fingering and try slurring it to every other alternate fingering (the permutations and combinations are quite large, it will take a while to give them all a fair trial). Some of the transitions won't work well, others will be eye openers.
I'm currently working on the Bb clarinet transcription of the Pleyel C-Major concerto and find that squeezing up a full tone in the altissimo has a strong impact on my ability to play cleanly. I'm finding a lot of uses for the "full" or "long" F#:
TR XXO | XXX
On my horn, it speaks much easier than the "middle finger" or "sliver key" alternatives, blends better, is in-tune.
Adding the right hand sliver key to either of the "standard" F#6 fingerings can improve their responsiveness and pitch. BUT, you have to curl your finger and poke the key to the right of the right hand rings so that you don't press down the upper pad that the ring keys actuate.
Bob Phillips
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Author: Ed Palanker
Date: 2011-03-22 00:59
No matter what fingerings you end up using you should be able to play the "regular" fingerings. Check my website for my fingering chart. It may be your embouchure but it could be about the say you voice, the way you place your tongue and or your throat. There's some articles on my site about that too. When all else fails, take some lessons with a pro. ESP http://eddiesclarinet.com
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Author: BartHx
Date: 2011-03-24 01:33
Have you checked the relationship between the right first finger ring and the pad cup above it? If the ring has gotten bent down a bit, it would be possible that the pad only fully closes when you put the second finger down giving you E or F#, but leaving the pad leaking slightly with the first finger F. The G above it would not be a problem since the right hand fingers (and thus the pad) are up for the notes above it. If a correctly fingered note is not sounding for you, the problem is either with you or with the instrument. The instrument is, usually, the easier of the two to diagnose, why not start there. There's no reason you should have to find a work around on a note fingering unless it is for the sake of tone or intonation.
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