 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: alanporter
Date: 2017-02-22 01:25
I have a Vito bass clarinet which plays wonderfully in the low register, but going over the break and jumping from ,say, C5 up to C6, results in mostly squeaks. I am sure fitting a second register vent would correct this, but how easy would it be to fit ?
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Author: Caroline Smale
Date: 2017-02-22 01:38
It would be a very non-trivial thing to do.
It's not just fitting the vent but making and fitting all the mechanism that connects the lower joint to the upper and then operates the switching levers etc.
A lot of bass clarintes have single vents yet work very well so I would say that you have a problem with yours caused by a leak or faulty regulation.
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Author: Tony F
Date: 2017-02-22 05:18
Properly set up and leak free the Vito bass works well. I think that your proposed solution is unnecessary, the problem is a leak somewhere. Bass Claris are very sensitive to small leaks.
Tony F.
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Author: Matt74
Date: 2017-02-22 08:54
Problems going over the break are often caused by the RH 3 ring key pad and the LH A/D ring key pad not being in adjustment (the "bis key" mechanism). Sometimes squeaks are caused by bumping keys that are supposed to be closed, like a banana key, trill key, or Ab. It's especially easy to do if you don't play the horn all the time. Think about where your hands are when you don't squeak, and check to see where they are when you do squeak.
- Matthew Simington
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Author: Steven Ocone
Date: 2017-02-22 19:35
I concur. I have always found these issues to be the result of a leak, perhaps from regulation.
Steve Ocone
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Author: alanporter
Date: 2017-02-23 07:45
Thank you for your responses, Folks. I cannot understand about the possibility of a leak. It plays perfectly easy in the low register so, if there was a leak, why would it play so well ? Is it me ? my emboushure ? my reed or mouthpiece ?
tiaroa@shaw.ca
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Author: clarnibass
Date: 2017-02-23 09:47
A leak affects the upper register much more than the lower register. A leak can only really affect notes below it, but if it's at the very top, the top of the clarion would be the most affected, gradually going down the larger the leak is. It can completely kill notes like C and lower in the upper clarion but seem to play fine in the low register (though it might come out even better without the leak).
Vito and some other similar models are harder to play at parts of the clarion, but not so much that notes don't come out. They just don't respond as smoothly as on the better models.
Adding another register vent would be a pretty big project and a huge project if you want it automatic. If you leave the lower register the same, a new upper register vent can improve some notes, but it won't improve going over the break for any notes that would still use the current vent.
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Author: Steven Ocone
Date: 2017-02-23 16:29
This is my (imperfect?) understanding.
The notes we hear are a mix of different frequencies. We assign the pitch of the note to the fundamental, whether it is the strongest frequency or not. Unlike the flute and sax and oboe, the fundamental is the strongest frequency for the clarinet. A leaky sax can still play in the upper register or octave (the strongest harmonic), but have trouble in the lowest octave. Clarinets are the opposite. This is also why clarinets can play so softly in the lower register.
Basically, clarinets like to play the low register.
Steve Ocone
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