 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Albert
Date: 2002-02-04 15:32
I have just bought a clarinet & looking for the best way to start learning. My friend reccomneded an R13 to me & it sure looks good, but how does it work?
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Author: Paul
Date: 2002-02-04 15:36
If this is not a joke you just bought a professional clarinet. Go get some private lessons fast. Learning out of a book only you'll miss so much. Paul
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Author: Albert
Date: 2002-02-04 15:40
A pro. model? wow does that mean learning should be easier?
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Author: ~ jerry
Date: 2002-02-04 17:11
It's probably an Albert system (;-{}>
~ jerry
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Author: sarah
Date: 2002-02-04 23:03
I think Jerry was making a pun on Alberts name and the Albert system clarinet. Basically there are three grades of clarinets: beginner, intermidiate, and professional. Beginner clarinets are usually made of plastic. They are more durable and some can sound nice. Most are not made as well as higher level clarinets though. These make good starting instruments because it is fairly easy to get a decent sound. Intermediate clarinets are better, and usually made of wood. Mine, however, is quite out of tune but it plays well. Because they are made out of wood, there is the possibility that they will crack. Professional clarinets are for experienced players. The R13 is a very common professional clarinet.
I don't know if there is anything wrong with staring on an R13 (I started with a plastic vito). Anyway, you should get lessons, so that you know the proper way of taking care of a clarinet and how to play one.
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Author: Hiroshi
Date: 2002-02-05 05:51
When I started clarinet, I was about 24 years old(before then I played flute),
I did:
1. I thought as many good things as possible will be a good thing and bought:
1)a Selmer 10G, when it was first introduced.
2)Daniel Bonade ligature.
3)Vandoren hand select 2-1/2 reed box.
2. I went to a big Yamaha sheet music shop at Tokyo and selected
Gustave Langenus tutorials issued from Carl Fisher.
Lasarus seemed a little not well organized and Rudolf Jettel seemed
obviously too much.
3.I thought I should learn basic things and bought Oxford companion seriese Clarinet book written by Frederick Thurston. Some years later, I also acquired
Keith Stein's 'Art of Clarinet Playing'. These two books were very good.
4. I started myself withought bothering to make reed preparation. It sounded from
the first. After reading Keith Stein's book a few weeks later, I found,
1)how to prepare a reed. I bought a coner-rounded-off glass plate, reed rush, and
emmery papers. And tried.
2)Looking at the picture of Keith Stein plays clarinet, I found my embouchure
was wrong and remedied it myself.
5. During improving, I
1)obtained sheet musics suitable for my ability in each occasion,
2)obtained basic training books written by Carl Baerman,
I knew how to use a Metronome when I played flute.
Since I disliked to be told by another person to do this or to do that without being told their rationales and knew it takes very much money to hire a pro-level teacher, I did not take any lessons. My father, an ex-professional bassoonist, said to me that to take lessons from very poor talented teachers will be worse than teaching myself. My elder brother played clarinet before me but I thought him not so good and did not learn from him either.
These happened in the first six months or less. Three or four years later, I shifted to Rose 40/32 or other more famous sheet musics like Morzart or Brahmas.
By my experience, first one or two months concentration will decide what we become. At least two hours a day in week days and 8 hours each in Saturday or Sunday.
Now I know how to make progress easier. Psycology.
1)When practicing scales, beginners should not play from the lowest tone to the highest tone he can emit. Split to say 6 tones groups and practice them separately. That is easier to learn the full scale.
2)When I missed a tone, re-play it twice correctly. One is to cancel the memory or wrong playing, and another is to imprint the correct memory on my brain.
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Author: Hiroshi
Date: 2002-02-05 05:59
I forgot one thing. When I started,I bought a Vandoren 2RV too. At a shop I found this mouthpiece was designed under the guidance of a famous French man(Guy Deprus?) and thought it a good one. (I am weak to famous names.)This was a good choice. Vandoren was much good mouthpiece maker 26 years ago. There would be good artisans then.
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Author: Eoin
Date: 2002-02-05 07:39
Albert,
If you just want to get a few notes out of your clarinet to see what it sounds like, why not look at the Beginner's Guide which I put on the web at:
<A href="http://gofree.indigo.ie/~jonmca/clarinet1.html">http://gofree.indigo.ie/~jonmca/clarinet1.html</A>
This is not a substitute for a teacher, however. You really need to get a teacher to prevent you from picking up bad habits.
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Author: Don Berger
Date: 2002-02-05 20:49
GREAT advice from Hiroshi and Eoin, from an American northerner turned southerner. Don
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