 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: CaptForce
Date: 2018-04-26 02:52
I've been playing for about five years after a fifty year break, returning to what I had once enjoyed in high school. I am progressing well as an intermediate, but I've recently been troubled with a stuffy resistance to producing the mid-staff C and C# as well as the low end corresponding F and F#.
I thought that maybe my reed was too soft, but I have the same problem with others. 've been using Vandoren 3.5 without an earlier problem.
I thought maybe some key adjustment, but I switched from my R13 to my older Noblet and the problem persists.
Well, what's left? ...It must be me! ......but it's a new problem. What are your thoughts?
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Author: kdk ★2017
Date: 2018-04-26 04:20
Stuffy long notes (with all the fingers down) are generally either reed problems or the result of poor finger coverage of the tone holes.
Does the stuffiness happen all at once - .i.e. E5 and D5 are good but C#5 and C5 are suddenly stuffy? Or is it a problem that's manageable up above C# and C but gets progressively worse as you come down?
It isn't impossible that the R13 and the Noblet could both have leaks down at the bottom of the instrument, but you're right to suspect that the similarity of the problem on both suggests it isn't a mechanical problem with the instruments themselves.
You can't rule out that the reeds you're using are too hard or just not balanced and that you've run into a string of unresponsive reeds. Try, if you can without a major investment, the next strength lower and see if the notes improve.
Karl
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Author: CaptForce
Date: 2018-04-26 18:33
Thanks, Karl, later today I'll pick of a couple of softer reeds and check the outcome with them. In the meantime here a some other observations. I notice that I don't have this problem when I start playing fresh, but it seems to occur after I've been playing for about two hours. At this time there's much moisture in my instrument, but a thorough drying doesn't help and neither does changing to another reed. I also have no change by switching from my M13 Lyre mouthpiece to my 5RV.
I'm tempted to conclude that there's some result from my own fatigue. I can imagine that I have sloppy fingering, but slow concentrated finger positions don't help. Could I be losing some muscular control of my embouchure that causes this? I don't feel anything different happening with my mouth or position on the mouthpiece, but I could be unaware.
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Author: kdk ★2017
Date: 2018-04-26 21:13
CaptForce wrote:
> I notice that I don't have this problem
> when I start playing fresh, but it seems to occur after I've
> been playing for about two hours. [snip] I also have no
> change by switching from my M13 Lyre mouthpiece to my 5RV.
>
The 5RV is a more open and shorter facing than the M13L, so any stuffy reed-centered problem would probably only be worse on the 5RV.
> I'm tempted to conclude that there's some result from my own
> fatigue.
Anything is possible. My first reaction, though, is that if the problem occurs only on those two specific notes (and their twelfths) and the ones just above them are clear, that it isn't a problem with your embouchure.
> I can imagine that I have sloppy fingering, but slow
> concentrated finger positions don't help.
Do you know another clarinet player who could help diagnose this? If so, turn the mouthpiece around and have the other player finger the notes while you blow into the mouthpiece. If the problem goes away, it has something to do with your fingers. If it persists, you need to look elsewhere.
> I don't feel anything different happening with my mouth or
> position on the mouthpiece, but I could be unaware.
Reeds tend to become more resistant as you play them through a long playing session. They don't really stop absorbing water and eventually the moisture even a seasoned reed takes on over a couple of hours can make the reed start to feel stuffy.
One thing we've discussed here in the past is the possibility of a torn pad that slowly absorbs water and eventually swells enough to cause a leak. Once the pad dries it returns to normal and the leak stops until the next time. Two hours is longer than this typically takes to happen. Also, it wouldn't explain why the same thing happens to you when you play the Noblet.
Just out of curiosity, what happens if, when you reach this point on the R13, you then switch to the Noblet? Are those two fingerings stuffy right away, or does it again take time to happen?
Karl
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Author: CaptForce
Date: 2018-04-26 23:05
When I'm having trouble and switch to the Noblet or when I switch to a fresh reed (the same 3.5), my difficulty remains; however, if I return to playing the next day or hours later, I don't have this problem.
I'm going to switch to a 2.5 reed at the next event and see what my response is then. Thanks
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Author: CaptForce
Date: 2018-04-27 01:27
Trial and error has solved my problem. When I played for a couple hours this afternoon I began to have the stuffy squeeks again. I immediately switched to a 2.0 Rico and no longer had any problems other than the less rich sound with the wimpy reed. I had moved from 3.0 reeds to the 3.5s about two months ago, but I'd been giving them a lot of prep and some abrasion on the vamp. It's just been a couple weeks that I've been playing the 3.5s with minimal prep.
I knew I was putting more effort into sounding good with the stiffer reed, but I didn't recognize that I was wearing out. This is all good news. I can develop a stronger, more enduring embouchure. Others would likely have understood my fatigue and not worried about their instrument. Thanks for your advice.
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