The Clarinet BBoard

The Clarinet BBoard The C4 standard

New Topic | Go to Top | Go to Topic | Search | Help/Rules | Smileys/Notes | Log In

Newer Topic | Older Topic

difficulty with finger position left hand

Author: spikey1973
Date: 2023-06-25 00:03

Hey to all,

ofcourse I have ben practising lately (not as often as I should've though).
Anway I adjusted the spring tention and that is a lot better.. But now I am bumping into another issue that I didn't notie on forhand, probably because the tension was a bit harsh.

anyway.. left hand position. when I have my fingers flat, my fingers reach the holes perfectly fine..but flat fingers aren't fine. On the otherhand when I arch my fingers as I should, I notice the fingers arc towards each other.. so it is diffiult for me (and I assume I won't be the only one here) for me to spread my middle and index finger enough to reach my middle finger over the E/B to reach Eb/Bb hole.helps to angle the hands downwards a little.. which it does. But not enough..

Is thereanything else I can do here? besides training my hand... overvan extended period of time.

Kind greats

Matthieu

Reply To Message

Re: difficulty with finger position left hand

Author: Burt
Date: 2023-06-25 00:50

I don't know what you mean by the Eb/Bb hole. Do you mean the D/A hole? While your fingers should not be perpendicular to the clarinet, perhaps yours are too close to being parallel.

I have a similar problem which led to getting a key to close the C/G hole (Stephen Fox did it); perhaps that's the solution for the D/A hole. It's likely an easier job than the one I had done because there's already a ring on it.

Burt

Reply To Message

Re: difficulty with finger position left hand

Author: spikey1973
Date: 2023-06-25 01:15
Attachment: clarinet toneholes.png (1259k)

Hey Burt.

No I do not mean D/A hole. the D/A hole is covered with the ring finger.
I am talking about the stretch between index and middle finger that cover the F/C and Eb/Bb holes respectively (please see added image) over the E/B valve.
For the names I refer too, sorry if the names are wrong, but i found this image used here on this forum.

Angle wise, I have been trying basically each possible angle. but around a 50 degree angles feels the best (a little more then 45 degrees i mean).. taking in account i also need to actually reach the hole properly to close it and have enough strength /agility to get the right movement there..

I am still a new and learning player. so closing a ring in to a pad seems well a bit soon.. and other options should be considered first,but yeah eventually.. if no solution present itself that this could be usefull..

Matthieu

Post Edited (2023-06-25 01:24)

Reply To Message

Re: difficulty with finger position left hand

Author: Paul Aviles
Date: 2023-06-25 01:28

I don't understand the problem either

BUT

I hear a lot of "shoulds" based on............?

The basic advice to avoid "flat fingers" is that a slight (or gentle) curve gives the architecture of the fingers more stability. It is just a more solid stance. If you achieve better contact with fingers relatively straight, I personally don't see why that should be a problem.

Then there is the idea that the finger of the hands "cannot" be perpendicular to the horn. Why not? If you have particularly small hands (or fingers) or are just young and are proportionately smaller, there is no reason to avoid this stance. In fact even for a large handed person it can make playing more comfortable for one reason or the other (I play this way more than not). I think we think there is some arbitrary "look" to the hand position that must be achieved to play clarinet properly, but the point is only to reach all the keys with ease and manipulate them as needed (look at the throat G# key, it's made that way for a reason). The last advantage to a "perpendicular" hand position is that ANY hand size can reach the pinky keys MUCH easier this way.

No problem..........no reason to make it one.

...............Paul Aviles

Reply To Message

Re: difficulty with finger position left hand

Author: spikey1973
Date: 2023-06-25 02:11

@ Paul,

Well even though you say you don't understand the problem you give a very informative answer on the problem.

First part of my issue is that I thought of my fingers as too flat, while they aren't flat.. just not curved like i am holding a big pipe, cause when doing that I have the issue i tried to explain, not when I have a bit of a less curve.
Wat made me doubt, is that my teacher made a finger arch related comment but wasn't clear about if I was doing it right or wrong in his opinion.

I have kinda big hands (my motorcycle gloves are XXXL and european XXXL too, which does make a difference).

So yeah I was makeing an issue of something that shouldn't be an issue
So back to my naturally comfortable gentle arched fingers...

Many thanks Paul!
much appreciated.

kind greats

Matthieu

Reply To Message

Avail. Forums | Threaded View

Newer Topic | Older Topic

The Clarinet Pages

For Sale
Put your ads for items you'd like to sell here. Free! Please, no more than two at a time - ads removed after two weeks.