 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Meredith
Date: 2001-04-01 23:25
I have a student that is having a terrible time trying to play top A. The only fingering for this note that I have been able to find is by overblowing top E minus the D#/Eb key. She can play top G with no problems but is having a terrible battle with top A. Is there any other way to finger this note? I find this note really easy to get and have tried to describe how I do it but without any success. Her clarinet has recently been serviced and everything else is in good order. Any suggestions would be appreciated.
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Author: Benny
Date: 2001-04-02 00:08
She just has to tighten her embouchure and play it like an E. (There are no other fingerings that I am aware of.) She might also have to get a slightly thicker reed so the note will come out clean.
Benny
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Author: Alphie
Date: 2001-04-02 07:25
Simply add the long f#/c# lever to the altissimo E fingering without the ab/eb key, or, E fingering, +ab/eb and left side f/c key.
It's also very important to use a reed that is strong enough to carry this register.
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Author: Gene Wie
Date: 2001-04-02 08:35
I agree with Alphie; I use the high E fingering with the F#/C# lever myself for the altissimo A.
What piece is this for specifically? There are a couple other alternate fingerings that might work better, given the situation.
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Author: graham
Date: 2001-04-02 09:45
Can she "hear" the A. Practice singing the phrase. In my experience, if you can hear the A, it just pops out with no more ado. Thinking of tightening things is dangerous.
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Author: Gordon (NZ)
Date: 2001-04-02 12:24
"Thinking of tightening things is dangerous."
If it has the same fingering as E then SOMETHING has to alter to make it go up to A. Something has to tighten, possibly/probably breath pressure &/or pressure of lip on reed.
Players very used to this adjustment/tightening trick probably just don't know they are doing it, just as they don't know which muscles they are constantly adjusting to balance their on their feet vertical, or balance their head on their neck, or get their spoon into their mouth, or even keep the eyes pointing in a given direction.
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Author: Ed
Date: 2001-04-02 17:53
Proper air support is crucial in the altissimo, especially in those high regions.
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Author: Dee
Date: 2001-04-02 22:01
1. Hear the note you want in your head (shades of Professor Hill's "Think system" in the musical "The Music Man"). If you don't hear the right note, you will probably miss it every time.
2. Proper air support. High pressure air is needed here.
3. Firmer embouchure. Note that I use the term firmer not tighter. A board is firmer than a pillow but neither one of them reaches up and grabs your head. Yet each one feels quite different if you lay down on it.
4. The right amount of mouthpiece in your mouth. Too much or too little really makes it hard to get the note. It seems to me that there is a "sweet spot" on the reed mouthpiece combo for notes of A and above.
5. Some reeds just aren't very cooperative at A and above. So here is where a person needs to pay more attention to the reed.
6. The instrument and mouthpiece need to be in good working order. Slight problems that aren't noticeable can stop you cold here.
After she gets so she can reach the A by climbing to it in a scale, a difficult but very worthwhile exercise is to switch back and forth between the E and A by embouchure control alone. The difference in feel needs to be trained into her muscles. Eventually she will get to the point where she can hit either note at will but it could take a while. I remember my initial work on the A. It was tough to control which note I got. Once I was able to get the A reliably, I had trouble for awhile getting the E until I was used to the difference in feel.
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Author: Erin
Date: 2001-04-03 03:19
For me, the A works best fingerd like an E, but with the left F/C key down and keeping the Eb.
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Author: Meredith
Date: 2001-04-04 02:51
She got it!!!!! Everything just seemed to click and she played top As with confidence all lesson. She doesn't need this note for any piece in particular but needs it for her A major scales + arpeggios as well as her D dominant 7th arpeggio for an upcoming grade 6 clarinet exam. Top A is the upmost note of the range expected at this level of playing so it was really important that she be playing the note with confidence before the exam in July/August. Now if she can just learn all of her scales she should be fine.
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Author: Evan
Date: 2001-04-04 03:13
The best way is to use the E fingering but to open the throat and to use the C key with the ritght pinky as a tone key.
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