 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: janlynn
Date: 2001-08-17 12:42
i have been wondering some things but havent asked cuz...maybe theyre stupid questions for someone at my level. on saturday i begin teaching my frst adult (my bro-inlaw). he is the type of person that asks a lot of questions and im trying to prepare myself. i should probably know these answers but here goes...
why do we wet the reed? i mean, that was what i was told to do in the beginning. thats what ive always done. i never asked why. what does wetting the reed actually do to the reed that makes it easier to play than a dry reed?
one day a couple weeks ago he was at my house and i had been practicing. he brought the girls (7 & 9 who i also teach) for their lessons. he noticed i put my clarinet on a stand. i never leave it on the stand but i usually have it out when i teach. he asked if i could order them one so they could just leave the clarinets out. i told him i would but they shouldnt leave them out all the time....but i actually couldnt come up with a reason why not to leave plastic clarinets out. something to do with the cork? if they leave them on a stand how often should they taken them apart (1 x a week?)
that got me to thinking....why do clarinets come in parts anyway? why not just one whole piece?
wachya guys (n gals) think
janlynn
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Author: Keil
Date: 2001-08-17 14:21
As far as wetting the reed goes that's so that the reed will vibrate as much as possible. A dry piece of cane is much harder and less flexible. Wetting the reed softens it so that it will vibrate easily.
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Author: Sue B
Date: 2001-08-17 14:59
I think that as far as leaving a clarinet put together it does tend to screw up the cork and perhaps the pads if you are not swabbing.
There are people who buy the one piece metal clarinets just for the purpose of leaving it out all the time.
__Sue
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Author: Dee
Date: 2001-08-17 16:05
Reasons not to leave clarinet assembled:
1. They don't get cleaned out properly. Even plastic ones get get gunk built up in the joints.
2. They can get bumped, knocked over, and broken or knocked out of alignment. Even a plastic one costs a bit to fix and/or replace.
3. Over time the corks can get permanently compressed and have to be replaced sooner than would otherwise be necessary.
4. Or corks can swell or deteriorate and get sticky so that the instrument becomes difficult to get apart.
If they do want to leave it on the stand, here are some suggestions to minimize these problems.
1. When done playing, take it apart, swab it thoroughly, put it back together and then put it one the stand. The mouthpiece should be capped. The reed should be taken off entirely so it will dry properly and not mold on the back.
2. The stands should be in a "safe" area. i.e. Kids and pets aren't allowed to play in the area for example.
3. & 4. Take it apart once a day. If you know that several days are going to elapse before you will be able to play again, disassemble it and put it away.
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Author: IHL
Date: 2001-08-18 03:26
And as for coming in sections, that is simply for convenient carrying.
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Author: David Kinder
Date: 2001-08-18 05:50
Isn't it also possible that they come in sections to make it easier for clarinet makers to produce clarinets? I would think that one-piece bodied clarinets are much more subject to cracking during the manufacturing process than single pieces.
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Author: willie
Date: 2001-08-18 05:53
A wet (cane) reed will seal better along the rails. Set the clarinet down for a while then try to play it. The cane reed will still be wet a little on the inside, but the outside may dry up making it hard to play at first. Plasticoat and Legere reeds have a smoother finnish on the underside and aren't so picky about being dry.
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Author: Tracey
Date: 2001-08-18 08:46
What about the ability to pull out the joints of your clarinet to make your intonation sharper or flatter? Then again, I'm sure metal clarinets have something to compensate.
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Author: willie
Date: 2001-08-19 04:04
On metal clarinets, most are one piece with the barrel the only quick tuning device. Some notes can be tuned by raising or lowering the pad/s. The rest is up to the player to recognize the pitch and correct it by lipping it up (mostly) or down. Some play fairly in tune while others can be impossible.
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