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Re: Questions on shrinking tone hole

Author: Chris P
Date: 2024-04-07 21:56

A smaller diameter tonehole will yield a flatter and poorer quality (stuffy) note compared to a larger size tonehole in the same distance along the bore.

On your typical clarinet, the C#/G# tonehole is exactly this as it's a smaller than normal diameter tonehole positioned much higher along the length of the bore compared to a full size tonehole for practical and cost reasons. The ideal location of that tonehole would be just below the tenon shoulder and going through both the socket and tenon which is doable and more costly to make. Single piece body clarinets often have this and clarinets with an articulated C#/G# mechanism have this too.

Altering the length of the tonehole with a chimney or tube will also change the pitch, quality and stability of the note that issues directly from it - typically a bushed or tonehole with a chimney will be much larger than its plain equivalent even if the venting is the same. The thumb tube is considerably larger than the side F# tonehole for the simple reason the standard fingering for F# (thumb off, xoo|ooo) is effectively a forked note as LH1 is closed and the diameter of the thumb bush is not only made wider to compensate for the extra length of the thumb bush, but to also compensate for LH1 being closed so the F# that issues directly from the thumb tube is in tune, whereas the side key fingering for F# is a fully vented note with the left thumb on the thumb tube and the side key opening a smaller tonehole at the same distance without being compromised by any other toneholes being closed below it (eg. LH1). If you close just the LH1 or thumb ring without covering any toneholes, the F# will be sharper than the sandard and side key fingerings. The same is true with B/F# with both the standard (xxx|oxo) and cross key (xxx|xo/o) fingerings as the first is a forked fingering and the second is a fully vented fingering. The Acton vent compensated for this to fully vent B/F# and altissimo D#/Eb with the standard (xxx|oxo) fingering.

The fully vented notes (those without any toneholes closed immediately below the one the note issues from) on Boehm system clarinets are from highest to lowest:

Throat Bb (both standard and side key fingerings)
Throat A
Throat G#/Ab
Open G (all fingers off)
F# with the side key fingering
F/C (left thumb only)
E/B (xoo|ooo)
Eb/Bb with side or cross key fingerings
C#/G# (even though it's compromised by having a smaller diameter tonehole)
C/G (xxx|ooo)
B/F# with the cross key fingering (xxx|xo/o)
Bb/F (xxx|xoo)
Ab/Eb
F#/C#
F/C
E/B which issues directly from the bell.

All other notes not in tat list are effectively forked/undervented fingerings as they have a tonehole closed immediately below the one the note issues directly from and the toneholes are often much larger in diameter than their fully vented counterparts.

Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.

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