 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: trish24
Date: 2017-06-11 10:01
I have been playing for a few years and this problem has only appeared recently. Since it started, my clarinet has been serviced and it is still happening. Quite randomly, any where in a practice session I will be trying to play notes in the bottom register( below middle C) but they sound in the upper register (without the register key being pressed). I have tried everything...trying to adjust embouchure, breathing, etc. but it is impossible to correct at the time. It is very frustrating as it seems impossible to correct on the go and I also get no warning of when it will happen
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Author: kdk
Date: 2017-06-11 12:08
trish24 wrote:
> I have been playing for a few years and this problem has only
> appeared recently. Since it started, my clarinet has been
> serviced and it is still happening. Quite randomly, any where
> in a practice session I will be trying to play notes in the
> bottom register( below middle C) but they sound in the upper
> register (without the register key being pressed).
The easiest way to check if this is a problem with the player or the instrument is to have someone else test-play your clarinet.
I'm assuming that this problem developed before you last had it serviced - may even be why you took it to a repair person in the first place. What you describe sounds almost certainly like a leaky pad somewhere. Is the repair person dependable? Did he/she test the instrument by playing it? If he tested it for leaks, how did he test it?
Karl
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Author: Steven Ocone
Date: 2017-06-11 16:10
Intermittent problems can be caused by a key not always landing in the same place. The top two trill keys are suspects.
A key that is a little sluggish may not always close properly.
Steve Ocone
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Author: kdk
Date: 2017-06-11 18:43
I trot out a story once in a while about a similar problem I had with a bass clarinet a long time ago. All would be well for several minutes, so normal leak testing didn't find the problem. At some point the whole right hand would become unreliable or stop responding completely.
It turned out to be a torn pad cover that was letting moisture into the pad felt as I played. The pad would start off sealing normally, but it would swell as it absorbed moisture, and as it swelled, it lost its seal. The repairman had to take each key off and closely inspect the pads one by one until he found the torn one. It wasn't a tear he or I could see when the pad sat closed as it did when I wasn't playing.
That's not to say that your problem must be a torn pad, but whenever something is wrong that takes several minutes to develop, I've always since that time thought of the possibility.
Karl
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Author: Philip Caron
Date: 2017-06-11 19:18
Sounds a lot like a leak. The little screw in the key for throat G# isn't screwed in too far, is it?
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Author: WhitePlainsDave
Date: 2017-06-11 20:10
Although I believe my suggestion might be consistent with the opposite problem to that you describe, I nevertheless might suggest "when in Rome," if the register key is going to be removed and examined, that a pipe cleaner be taken to the register hole to make sure it's open/clean it out.
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Author: trish24
Date: 2017-06-12 10:04
Thank you, everyone.
Still working on it with my teacher..I am much more stressed about it than she is!!
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Author: toffeeman3
Date: 2017-06-12 23:17
I would suspect you have a slight leak on one of your pads or the ajustment is not correctly ajustaed on the low e/f keys which must touch down at exactly the same time.
Assuming there is no tone hole damage and you are using a Buffet or Yamaha (which I am familiar with) then you can do several tests one is a suction test the other is a light test and the third is a cig. paper test
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