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Re: length and pitch

Author: kdk ★2017
Date: 2018-02-03 19:07

Bubalooy wrote:

> My daughter is playing on a very nice Leblanc LL, French system
> of course. I can't be sure, though if the barrel is original.
> It is 66 mm long, about 1,5 mm
> longer than the barrel I'm using on the S1. I also play flat
> on her horn, but not as low as she does.
>
I bought a Yamaha 4C.
>
> It seems she only has to get up to
> 441. She's about 10 or 11 sents low of that, according to my
> strobe. The good news is the pitch is consistent with
> different notes in different registers.

So, this all makes a difference. The first thing that strikes me is that you and she don't get the same pitch from the equipment she's playing. Are you playing her Leblanc with her mouthpiece and reed and getting a higher pitch? If so, it suggests there's an issue with her embouchure that contributes to her flatter pitch. If you're using your mouthpiece and reed on her instrument, that may explain the difference by itself.

In any case, IMO the 4C can't be helping. Although there are a lot of possible choices, especially if you go online to mouthpiece sources in the U.S., I'd look as locally as possible (to keep shipping charges down) for a Vandoren **non-Series-13** mouthpiece. My own choice for a young player would be an M15 or maybe a 5RV, but you'll immediately after I post this get lots of opinion about other facings that other players prefer. What's important is that it not be a Series 13 VD (which lets out the M13-Lyre, my favorite of the VD line) because the 13s are deliberately designed to play lower than the "traditional" Vandoren mouthpieces.

If you and your daughter use different reed strengths, try the reeds she's using to be sure they vibrate freely. Even if it feels soft to you, if it has enough resistance to keep vibrating without your contorting your mouth to keep from closing it, it should be OK. I have young - even sometimes not-so-young - students come to lessons often with reeds on their mouthpieces that can't possibly produce a consistent tone or good pitch in the upper clarion. As soon as I have them change out to a new reed of the same nominal strength, their response and pitch problems evaporate.

Obviously, if you use the same reeds, you can even more easily monitor the reeds she's using. A reed that's genuinely too soft for a given mouthpiece can prevent the player from applying even the minimal amount of embouchure pressure that's needed for control. Flatness is often among the results.

Getting at the problem with a shorter barrel, if all else seems good, shouldn't be as problematic if you're only trying to get the LL up to A441 (or 442 to provide a little wiggle room). A mouthpiece (which, again IMO, should be replaced anyway) might do the trick by itself. If not, a 65 mm barrel to replace the 66 mm one may be enough. But as (I think) Bob pointed out, the pitch is determined by the overall volume of the system, so the bore width and shape of the barrel have their effect along with the length. Manufacturers never quote the bore volume in their ads, so it's important to be able to play test a barrel, if possible in person or else through a good online return policy, to make sure you're getting the pitch correction your daughter needs.

Karl

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