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Re: Tone Quality

Author: kdk ★2017
Date: 2020-02-18 19:40

EbClarinet wrote:

> My question is do you have to get the collegiate pedagogical
> tone and then professional clarinet tone quality and then learn
> the bebop, swing and jazz clarinet tone quality?

Your whole premise shows so much misunderstanding that it's hard to know where to start.

First, there is no such thing as a "collegiate pedagogical tone." I have no idea what you have in your ear that fits that description. Three clarinet teachers with whom I'm personally familiar: if you study at Curtis with Ricardo Morales, you'll hear one kind of tone quality; if you had studied with Don Montanaro you'd have heard (and been expected to emulate) a very different sound concept; if you study with Sam Caviezel at Temple, you'll hear something different still. Those are only three well-known college/conservatory clarinet teachers (pedagogues) who are still working, but they are three I've heard a great deal of in person.

Second, I'm not sure what you have in mind when you lump bebop, swing and jazz clarinet tone together and use Goodman as an example. Did you ever hear Goodman play except on 30s to 50s recordings made with 30s to 50s recording techniques? Do you hear the same sound coming from recordings of Peanuts Hucko, Acker Bilk, Jimmy Hamilton, Jimmy Noone and Artie Shaw? I hope not!

>
> Benny Goodman player classical clarinet b4 getting this tone
> quality and the 1st chair in a neighboring city could get that
> tone quality. What r they doing inside their mouth to get this
> tone quality? Is it the tongue level?

Benny Goodman played classical music until the day he stopped playing. In fact, he didn't sound the same when he played with his band as he sounded when he played the Weber Quintet with a string quartet. I heard him do both one night at the Academy of Music in Philadelphia. Yes, it probably had to do with the shape he made inside his mouth, possibly with his tongue position and very likely with his choice of reeds for each style. But those are simple things to manipulate. You can try them yourself and see what effect they have. They are fairly superficial techniques that can be applied as needed. So is the growl Goodman often produced. and the glisses between notes. They were part of his style of big band jazz. I never heard Artie Shaw make those growling sounds. Jimmy Hamilton in the recordings I've heard didn't do much of any of that.

>
> Thanks for bringing up the different tone qualities 2. I'm in
> the USA and that bright tone quality is called the best coast
> sound. I don't want that 1, I prefer the dark classical 1.
>

Dark and bright are fighting words among many here and in the larger clarinet community. I'm not sure what either word means to you and you can't possibly know what anyone else means by them because the words have no clear meaning (any more than "collegiate pedagogical tone," "professional tone" or "jazz tone" do). Best to avoid them completely except maybe among close friends and acquaintances who all share a common understanding about bright and dark. Otherwise, you may as well use "schmet" and "frumal" - they will carry almost as much meaning in a general discussion of tone.

Your goal as a student should be to develop a tone quality that is first of all controlled, then resonant, well tuned and flexible enough to allow you to play fluidly and expressively. Your anatomy will influence how you sound and to an extent, so will your equipment. You can't really "replicate" (to go back to your initial post) someone else's oral shape because your natural anatomy is unique. But you will not sound exactly like anyone else no matter how hard you try. There is no "tone quality that we all aspire to have." You also will never hear yourself the way others hear you.

Concentrate on trying to produce the sound *you* want with a blowing technique that's comfortable, that allows you to play consistently. Once you develop the kind of control you need to do that, you'll be able to vary it to produce tone that *you* consider appropriate for different styles, guided by your ear, your imagination and whatever models you respect. The important thing is that, beyond the basics, what you produce is dependent on what you want to hear. Relax and listen to yourself.

And, to go all the way back to your first question, no, a Buffet isn't the God-given key to great tone quality. That's pure nonsense.

Karl

Post Edited (2020-02-18 21:21)

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