 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: justchen1369
Date: 2022-01-27 03:31
Attachment: Screenshot from 2022-01-26 18-31-03.png (87k)
Hi Clarinet Bboard,
Currently in my band we're preparing a piece called 'Wedding Dance From Symphonic Suite "Hassenah"', for which the tempo is "as fast as possible". How do I play M63-M77 up to speed? I'm particularly having difficulty "crossing the break" fast enough, as well as fingering the notes in a precise and efficient manner.
(tldr; Bb-C#-Bb eight note triplet at 153 BPM)
Post Edited (2022-01-27 03:39)
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Author: DAVE
Date: 2022-01-27 05:15
I suspect this is the result of some unaware composer who composes with Finale and has no idea that at 153 BPM this is not going to happen. Unfortunately you'll see this all the time... Just do the best you can and don't worry about it.
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Author: Ken Lagace
Date: 2022-01-27 06:13
An opportunity came up many, MANY years ago to perform a very difficult clarinet piece, but I had only a short time to learn it. So, I developed a new way, and it worked nicely for me.
#1 Practice the 'break' separately by itself.
And the Opperman 'Modern Daily Studies' #6 would be a great help. In my younger years I could play it at mm 150.
#2 Start practicing at the end of a difficult part first. Last 2 bars? Make a judgement call where to start. Set a playable beat on a metronome. When you can play it 3 times without mistakes at that tempo, add a few earlier bars at a time until you can play the entire section three times without mistakes at this tempo.
#3 Set the metronome up one mm marking (60 to 61 for instance) and back to #2.
#4 When can’t improve any more or you tire, quit for now.
Sometime later, hours or a day later, start at your best 'Three in a row perfectly' tempo, and start again at #2.
I have found that I increase every day by a few mm’s and in a week am amazed at my progress.
The reason this works is that as you play, you are getting more and more into spots you have practiced the most.
And practice to a tempo faster than will be needed so you can be quite relaxed when performing.
Post Edited (2022-01-27 06:19)
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Author: Tom H
Date: 2022-01-27 06:30
We've played this a couple of times in the Westchester Band recently at frightening speeds. I didn't find the bars quoted to be the most difficult ones-- I played everything normal fingerings. At bar 100 I did resort to open altissimo D and LH 1st finger for altissimo C#.
The Most Advanced Clarinet Book--
tomheimer.ampbk.com/ Sheet Music Plus item A0.1001315, Musicnotes product no. MB0000649.
Boreal Ballad for unaccompanied clarinet-Sheet Music Plus item A0.1001314.
Musicnotes product no. MNO287475
Post Edited (2022-01-27 06:31)
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Author: justchen1369
Date: 2022-01-27 07:37
Ah yeah, that part's also a tad difficult. Thanks for the advice too Ken, I'll be sure to practice loads more instead of lamenting about the difficulty
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Author: Morrigan
Date: 2022-01-27 12:59
Great piece, we've done this a lot. I hope you have an incredible E-flat player!
I use a two-speed method for fast technical passages like this.
SLOW: This is the predictable thing to do. Set a metronome speed so low that you quite literally can't play a wrong note. If that's painfully slow, then so be it.
FAST: Practice minuscule chunks up to speed. How minuscule? As much as you can do, perhaps 2 to 3 notes at a time. When you get small chunks under the fingers, chain chunks together. For example, a set of 4 semiquavers, then practice the next 4 until each is reliable on its own. Then play 8 semiquavers. Work your way through.
This seems slow but in the context of a 1-hour practice session, you will make significant progress. Good luck!
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Author: Tom H
Date: 2022-01-27 22:55
Yes, our 2nd chair guy does Eb as well and he is incredible.
The Most Advanced Clarinet Book--
tomheimer.ampbk.com/ Sheet Music Plus item A0.1001315, Musicnotes product no. MB0000649.
Boreal Ballad for unaccompanied clarinet-Sheet Music Plus item A0.1001314.
Musicnotes product no. MNO287475
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Author: Micke Isotalo ★2017
Date: 2022-01-28 20:20
Probably you are already keeping all your r.h. fingers down from the C# preceding the Bb-C#-Bb triplet until the last note of that triplet (or at least until the C# in the middle) - but if not, then that would be most helpful.
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Author: SecondTry
Date: 2022-01-29 02:30
I'd find myself taking the ![[C#5]](http://test.woodwind.org/clarinet/BBoard/smileys/db5.gif) notes with the right pinky.
There's just something for me less difficult about going between throat tones and full fingered notes when the right versus left pinky is used. YMMV.
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Author: Micke Isotalo ★2017
Date: 2022-01-29 02:41
For my part, I would actually depress the C# with my r.h. pinkie already from the very beginning of bar 63, and keep it down until the second C# note in bar 65. At least for me, this kind of use of the pinkie fingers (r.h. and l.h.) both "in advance" and depressed "as long as possible" contributes to both speed and accuracy in my finger movements - but is probably difficult to adopt in just a few weeks or even months, if you aren't used to this kind of approach already.
Then I would add the rest of my r.h. fingers from the third note (A) in bar 63, and keep them down until the last note of that bar (but as said, not releasing the C# pinkie until bar 65).
In any case, you should use your r.h. pinkie for these C# notes, not your l.h. - considering the speed.
If you aren't already used to such an independent use of your r.h. pinkie in relation to the rest of your r.h. fingers as described above, I would suggest that you depress all four r.h. fingers at the same time at the third note in bar 63, and then also release all of them at the end of that bar. This would be quicker to adopt in this particular case, but for the long run I would still suggest getting used to the above method - in any kind of similar passages. The easiest method to get used to, with more or less instantly improved speed and fluidity, would be the one in my previous post above - but that I suppose you are already applying.
Post Edited (2022-01-29 14:02)
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