 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Windy Dreamer
Date: 2018-10-18 21:47
The other night I went to a Jazz Club jam night for the first time ever. Instead of the nerve wreaking racket I expected I heard the best live vocalist and saxophone of my life. Two stunning guitarists played in mind numbing ways I did not know were possible. Everything the jam performers did was absolutely flawless.
When I entered the club I had to register as a musician because I was carrying two of my clarinets. After signing in as amateur the registrar told me that registrants could be called at random to play.Between the early evening concert and jam session I set up my frankenet, set the reed and played a few bars softly in a back corner to verify my readiness.After hearing the first few jammers I shamefully fled the scene before I could be called.
When I got outsidè I tried to play a few bars because I am trying to prepare for busqeing. There is a desperate need in Canada for folk art and folk music to be seen and heard in public places. I want to fill some of that vacuum while lobbying for repeal of the oppressive legal regime that has driven folk arts from public life.
In the near zero temperatures of the past week I have not been able to get a single note out of my clarinet outdoors. Can a plastic Jupiter Clarinet be played in below freezing temperatures ?
All of the above has been very demoralizing. For one full day I could not even pick up my clarinet. Most of my practice this week has been filled with squeaks, squawks, missed notes and an inability to maintain character of tone as I fumble from note to note.
In the past few hours things have begun to improve despite the despair. I suppose that perseverance through adversity will eventually instill the more positive mindset that is essential to competent play.
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Author: Paul Aviles
Date: 2018-10-18 21:56
There is a penalty for playing in the cold even beyond playing flat (slower moving air molecules equal lower tuning) and that is the contraction of the clarinet body. What happens is that there less distance between the posts (manifested mostly on the long rod keys at the bottom) and the keys will not move.
When I have a plastic clarinet meant for cold conditions, I place it in the refrigerator for an hour then test to see how well the keys move. Any that are sluggish due to binding get filed down until they move smoothly in the cold. Of course at normal temperatures these keys are really sloppy loose, so you have to pick your battles.
................Paul Aviles
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Author: Windy Dreamer
Date: 2018-10-19 04:40
You have given me much to consider Paul. My Jupiter is now sitting in the freezer preparing for a cold test.The freezer doesn' t come close to the -30 to-40 F. that we experience here but it is an indicator of fairer days.Flat tones would be very irrtating to me . AIr contracting while traveling through the cold clarinet means response would be as wildly unpredictable as the daily temperature.This means that I will have to tune my reeds to even higher pitches than I do now. On Monday and Tuesday I noticed I did not have enough air to overcome reed stiffness outdoors. Combining that with the concerns you raised I took my Jupiter reed to the belt sander and freehand extended the upper ramp by about .75 inch.The indoor sound is fabulous .The overtones are higher than I imagined possible.The reed is now so free blowing that I should be able to manage it at any temperature.I have also cosidered issues of contraction and seizure.The closer you get to the end of the clarinet the worse it will be. I have chosen to address that by playing only the upper joint in cold outdoor environments.
There is nothing like an exciting new reed to lift my spirit. While tuning my reeds I put all my energy into shaping the outer 3/4 of an inch. I had never considered extènding the upper ramp area.Todays discovery opens a whole new frontier of reed improvisation.
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Author: Windy Dreamer
Date: 2018-10-19 05:25
The 1 hour freezer test was exhilerating.While preparing to blow , the bell fell off.Luckily I caught it before it hit the floor. The rest of the clarinet held more firmly than normal. Upper section keys moved freely and responded normally. Lower section keys were seized rock solid.That is not an issue because I have already chosen to use only the upper section for outdoor winter busqueing. The volume was unbelievably loud despite my attempt to play softly. Possibly the loudest I have ever produced. The horn played freely with a very rich base character accompanied by rich overtones.If cold weather playing is anything like this I am going to have a ball. In the quest for new sound experiences I may freeze my Jupiter quite often in the future.
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Author: Paul Aviles
Date: 2018-10-19 07:33
Gosh, glad that's working for you. I actually never placed an assembled clarinet in the fridge. I did that as separate top and bottom joint, and only to assess how freely the keys moved (or didn't).
The tuning is really only an issue if you're playing with someone else. Of course other wind instruments have the same problem so you all play flat together. If you're playing against a recording, perhaps your electronics allow you to adjust the pitch of your source (if necessary).
...........Paul Aviles
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Author: Windy Dreamer
Date: 2018-10-19 08:36
I suppose there is a possibility of splitting even a plastic clarinet through rapid freezing and warming . I will have to try to find another cheap Jupiter in case of that. Tomorrow I hope to pick up a 6 foot length of bamboo from Home Depot. From that I hope to fabricate some experimental reeds with different ramp lengths and characteristics. I will also have to review online videos for home reed making so I can prepare a jig to speed up the process of reed making.
Due to my improvisational style of play and instruments I doubt that I will ever be able to play with someone else. I am confined to simple melodies comprised of few notes due to mild spasticity and severe dyslexia.
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Author: Luuk ★2017
Date: 2018-10-19 16:47
'Slower moving air molecules equal lower tuning'.
I would like to prevent some possible confusion here.
Wavelength is a function of sound speed, which is a function of density of the medium, and density is a function of temperature.
Sound speed in air is (approximately) given as c = 20*SQRT(273+T). (Where c is in meters/second, and T is air temp. in degrees Celcius. SQRT means square root.) Here we see that lower T means lower c.
Wavelength l = c/f (l in meters, f in Hz). This means lower c leads to lower l: the wavelength gets shorter when density goes up. Or, the other way around: f = c/l. If l stays the same, the frequency lowers at lower c.
Now, l is determined by the location of the clarinet holes. The dimensions of the clarinet get smaller at lower temepratures, but the 'shrinking' of sound waves is much greater than that of a solid (the instrument). Going from 20 C to -10 C the wavelength in air shortens about 6%, while a 'plastic' rod only shrinks about 0,3%. (Plastic: linear coefficient of expansion of PVC is 80, nylon is 120 - I used 100).
Effectively, at low temperatures the clarinet gets too large for the intended frequencies. And a larger instrument generates lower frequencies...
Regards,
Luuk
Philips Symphonic Band
The Netherlands
Post Edited (2018-10-19 16:59)
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Author: jdbassplayer
Date: 2018-10-19 17:59
"I want to fill some of that vacuum while lobbying for repeal of the oppressive legal regime that has driven folk arts from public life."
Sorry for the off topic question, but I just had to ask. What exactly is the Canadian government doing to suppress folk art?
-Jdbassplayer
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Author: dorjepismo ★2017
Date: 2018-10-19 19:24
There's a good reason that Yo yo Ma and Tony McGill doing Simple Gifts at Obama's inauguration was a lip sync.
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Author: Dibbs
Date: 2018-10-19 19:29
"This means that I will have to tune my reeds to even higher pitches than I do now."
This is a new concept to me. What do you to to tune the pitch of your reeds?
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Author: richard smith
Date: 2018-10-19 19:35
find it in Clarinet Acoustics and acoustic texts.
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Author: Paul Aviles
Date: 2018-10-19 19:51
The reed tuning was something I used to disregard out of hand. However, the Legere reeds do play a fair degree lower than cane. It comes down to physics. Whatever you can do to make a reed vibrate faster makes it play higher.
.............Paul Aviles
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Author: Windy Dreamer
Date: 2018-10-19 20:22
Reeds made from garden stake bamboo can have exceptiional tonal qualities but they can be equally fragile. I have shattered many of my best garden stake reeds while blowing loud base notes.I have never shattered a Rico reed in the same manner. Due to the combined influences of fragility and more conservative play styles I have not made these reeds in about 18 months. During that time I have only purchased about 6 new Rico reeds. Two to three years ago I could go through six reeds in a week. The loss of time and gas for reed buying compelled me to learn to make my own.
The reed on my Jupiter has now been reformed 3 times.As the leading edge wears down I trim the edge back with toenail clippers. With the aid of digital calipers and 150-600 grit wet-dry sandpaper I reform the ramp.My average Rico reed goes through about 6 rebuilds before it becomes to short to rebuild.When the garden stake reeds shatter the damage is so severe that they cannot be rebuilt. Inch long splits and 3/8 inch square fragments are common.
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Author: marcia
Date: 2018-10-19 20:23
The few times I attempted to play outdoors in the cold--above freezing, cannot imagine trying in below freezing temperature!!--I found that I could not form a strong embouchure. Consequently very little air went through the instrument. Most of it escaped out the corners of my mouth. Then there is the cold finger problem as well.
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Author: Windy Dreamer
Date: 2018-10-20 02:16
In response to Jd's question.
In the years 1968-1973 the governing Trudeau Liberals decided to launch a legislative and cultural revolution. As part of the cultural revolution they decided to reshape Canadian mores and values via manipulation of the arts. Selective funding of the politically correct coupled with elimination of alternative voices via oppressive bylaws and ruthless enforcement were the chosen methods.
In the early 1970s you could find poets, musicians and artisans scattered throughout Canadian parks and pedestrian byways. Canada had a rich cultural landscape at that time. As I traveled across Canada I loved to visit those artistically inclined peoples and debate public issues with them.
In year 1 municipalities began to charge $10.00 per year for a city wide license to vend.Bylaw officers began to question and persecute all artisans in public places. Year 1 saw the elimination of at least 80% of Canadian public folk arts.In year 2 the cost of an annual city wide license in Toronto rose to $20.00. The aftermath of year 2 was the total elimination of public folk art in all the areas I knew of across Canada. With the loss of public folk art came the rise of government funded and regulated politically correct festivals. I personally don't discuss social issues with them because they temd to be echoes of state policy. Those that are not echoes fear public debate because it threatens both their funding and licensing. Their fear taints all discussion with them.
In my city it now costs about $2000.00 a year for licensing and insurance to occupy a specific 10x10 foot area. There are very few locations that you can be licensed to. If on a hot day you move to a shady location you would be subject to fines, seizures and arrest. The few licensed vendors you find are socially deaf business practitioners. Even beggars and busquers are subject to fines of $450.00 for simply posting a sign that police and bylaw officers deem to be " aggressive panhandling ". I know several people facing arrest and imprisonment because they owe over $10,000.00 in fines over simple signage.
As a banned politically outspoken artisan I have been thrown out of several publicly funded arts events just for attending as a silent observer. A little over a year ago I erected a tipi and attempted a yard sale to raise funds to distribute used clothing in poor northern Amerindian communities. Bylaw responded by threatening my elderly landlord with a $10,000.00 fine and 1 year in prison. In consequence of the ensueing evictionI lost a secure 20 year low rent tenancy and now reside in half a bedroom isolated from most of my stored possessions.
I could spend another 20 hours recounting 20 years of ruthless economic, political and social oppression endured by myself and my peers but I think there is more than enough here for this forum.
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Author: Tony F
Date: 2018-10-21 16:00
While I'm sympathetic to your health issues and your problems with the authorities in Canada, I think this is material better suited to a blog than on a site dedicated to the promotion of the art and science of the clarinet. I'm happy to assist where I can with clarinet-related issues, but the other matters are not what I come here for.
Tony F.
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Author: Hank Lehrer
Date: 2018-10-21 16:55
Windy Dreamer,
I am in strong agreement with the comments of Tony F. above.
I do not appreciate the inclusion in your posts of information concerning your personal travails, perceived social injustices you as well as indigenous Canadian people have endured, and other off-topic themes not related directly to the clarinet. Airing political grievances is not what I want to see posted on this bulletin board.
Although you have made appropriate posts on some threads, you always drift off topic to your dire personal situation which then becomes the bulk of your message; this has become very annoying to read.
We all have our own problems but airing your life story here is not appropriate. Please find another outlet for discussing your personal problems and issues.
HRL
Post Edited (2018-10-21 18:10)
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Author: Windy Dreamer
Date: 2018-10-21 18:32
This is definetely a site with strong symphonic leanings where the clarinet is viewed by many as just a tool for the auditory expression of mathamatic formulae. In that world the clarinet is nothing more than an inanimate assortment of springs, levers, plastic and wood that serves a functional purpose.
The clarinet is in fact much more than an assemblage of miscellaneous parts.As a rose given at the appropriate moment can can dispel the sorrow and depression of a friend so also can the clarinet elevate and empower the soul of the general public.
Outside the symphonic world are many folk clarinetists that grieve for the apathy and despair of the general public.They know that in partnership with their clarinets they could elevate and empower the mindset of the general public if they could only bring their talents into their midst.
Unfortunately in many jurisdictions they are met with an overwhelming assault by legal and academic perpetrators that insult, harrass, fine and arrest them when they humbly bring their gifts to public places. In consequence the broken hearted folk clarinetist retreats to isolated frustration and despair while the general public continues to trudge along in its own dark world.
Even the most callous and narrow minded members of the symphonic community should be aware of the the suffering of the folk clarinetist and the tragic consequence s of their absence in the outer world.
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Author: Philip Caron
Date: 2018-10-21 18:32
jdbassplayer did ask about the "off-topic" reference.
I've seen discussions here about the cultural climate in cities hosting prominent orchestras and larger tendencies in the arts. I've almost never heard perspectives from "street musicians" or buskers, though visitors to any big city will have heard them, and some of them are very good.
I'm highly sympathetic to leaving politics out of this forum - it's a relief to be sure - but there is some overlap.
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