 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Mark J.
Date: 2002-01-09 12:10
Sometimes when we get bored at work, we try to play the clarinet left-handed. It's quite a challenge but perfectly possible. You have to find ways to reach the L.H. bottom keys (left 1st. finger or thumb) but mostly things work. I really think its a good mental exercise and worth doing, if only to make you have to really think about your fingers rather than just being on auto-pilot.
Does anyone else have any similar tricks?
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Author: William
Date: 2002-01-09 14:54
While suffering through yet another rehearsal of the same Sousa march in our college band, my stand partner (former DC Navy clarinetist and returning adult student) and I, would either play our music upside down or try playing the entire piece from memory. Also in pit orchestras--and ice shows (when they still used live musicians) we would often try playing parts of the the show from memory, with our books ready in case we needed them. During orchestral rehearsals, entire card games have been played within the wind section suring extended rests and long "strings only, please" rehearsal sections. Sometimes, even now, when I grow tired of "one more time", if the part is not too difficult, I will transpose it on my other clarinet just for the challenge. Now, please understand that if someone out there shares any of this (confidential) information with my conductor, "I never wrote this!!!" "Been there, done that"--but always, Good Clarineting!!!!!!!
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Author: ron b
Date: 2002-01-09 16:54
Yes, Roger, left handed clarinets have been made. The ones that survive are possibly prototypes (I think that's the right term). What I mean is, I'm guessing that a few were distrubuted to test their marketability and they fizzled. The subject was discussed here a few months ago and some responders were left handed players who saw no need for a left handed instrument. The dominant-hand coordination factor is not the same as it is for stringed instruments. That's probably the reason left handed clarinets never became popular or profitable and, as far as we know now, were discontinued forever.
It would be interesting to find out whether the same cycle occurred with brass instruments.
Mark J., could you guys do research on this during downtime at work? 
I might be a notch better than playing Solitaire....
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Author: Wes
Date: 2002-01-09 17:01
Yes, it would be interesting to see some research done on this subject. It seems to me that the left hand above is more comfortable in the same way that it appears that the left arm over the right arm is natural when folding the arms(for "right brain dominant" individuals). Many musicians seem to be in this category.
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Author: Laur
Date: 2002-01-09 19:07
Hmm.. we play pit tag ! That's fun.. hehe
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Author: Ralph Katz
Date: 2002-01-09 20:46
There used to be a clarinet player (30 years ago) who played in a restaurant in Greektown in Detroit on a left-handed Albert system clarinet. New Alberts are still being made in Italy for the Turkish market. A friend with a 5-year-old Italian Albert clarinet in G says he thinks you can still get them left-handed.
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Author: werner
Date: 2002-01-09 23:41
these left-handed clarinets very likely have been made by bored
clarinet-makers .. sort of mental exercise ..
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Author: Leanne
Date: 2002-01-10 02:58
Anyone ever see the movie American Pie?
Towards the beginning the flute player says, "Today, in band, let's play our instruments backwards!"
My friends gave me strange looks when I said, "I can do that!"
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Author: Cindy
Date: 2002-01-10 03:42
I'm the only oboe in one of our school bands (yes, I play clarinet too). Because I am the only one, I sit between a flute and a clarinet. When we have pathetically easy songs given to us, we will rotate instruments and transpose our original part. We've gotten some pretty odd looks from the conducter, but we are yet to make a huge noticable mistake. Its really weird switching instruments (and fingerings) in the middle of a song, but it keeps our minds awake.
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Author: IHL
Date: 2002-01-10 11:40
One thing to try is bar-swapping, with another clarinet with the same part ie you play a bar, the other player plays the next one, and you swap back and forth for the whole song. It certainly saves you a lot of breath!
for a more interesting sound, try it with a different instrument, say the sax player behind you.
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Author: David Pegel
Date: 2002-01-10 22:52
I played tuba for a concert band (Still do when I'm not playing contra.) There was a Bb clarinetist who wanted to learn tuba, so we switched for a rehearsal. The director didn't even notice until he realized that that the top-notch clarinet was absent and I was playing a clarinet solo from memory... on a Bb clarinet.
He had us switch back, but he was surprised I knew the solo since I was used to boring tuba rests.
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Author: Hiroshi
Date: 2002-01-11 03:23
By seeking the deepness of tonality, boredom can be solved. I believe.
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Author: Mark J
Date: 2002-01-11 14:43
I discovered deepness of tonality years ago. It didn't solve anything, believe me.
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