 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Ray
Date: 2002-03-20 21:06
i'm playing the first one tomorrow in a recital
any suggestions?
i'm playing it on a Bb clarinet, and what annoys me most is how there are long notes on the throat tones (esp. the g). i sound so bad on those notes.
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Author: diz
Date: 2002-03-20 21:29
Ray - good luck with your recital - remember, when playing the throat notes - relax!! Think with your mind's ear of the exact pitch (especially with the G). Focus and concentrate. Also, warming up with exercises of long sustained notes around the throat notes is useful (I've found anyway). Start your notes as soft as you can play them and increase the volume to loud and then back down to very soft. pp < ff > pp
I sometimes find it useful, occasionally, to play these notes into a tuning device so you can see if your pitch is "spot on" (at least as spot on as you can get in equal temperament).
Also - instead of focussing on the difficulty of the passage in question, just remember that it was composed by one the most brilliant minds of the Romantic era - basically enjoy yourself and best of luck.
diz, sydney
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Author: Ken Shaw
Date: 2002-03-20 22:38
Ray -
Actually, # 1 is played on the Bb more than on the A, to avoid the slur in bar 9 from top line F up to C#, which is easy to crack on. On the following C# to C, it's also difficult to avoid a "click" going over the second register break twice on consecutive notes. Also, a few bars later, the D to D ascending octave slur is more secure from Eb to Eb on the Bb clarinet, using your right ring finger instead of the middle finger.
Some people play the entire set on Bb. Reginald Kell did this on his 1950s recording.
Some "resonance" fingerings to firm up the throat notes:
Ab -- put down your right index and middle fingers.
A -- put down your left ring finger, your right index and middle fingers, and the low F key with your right little finger.
Bb -- put down your left ring finger, your right ring finger and the low F key with your right little finger.
These fingerings work on most clarinets, but you need to experiment to find what works best on yours.
You should read http://www.ocr.sneezy.org/articles/gholson1.html, an interview with Sidney Forrest by James Gholson, where the advice is to blow harder. When you learn to play a resonant throat Bb, you can sound good on any note.
Finally, read the thread on the problem at http://www.sneezy.org/clarinet/BBoard/read.html?f=1&i=34399&t=34365.
Best regards.
Ken Shaw
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Author: Stephane
Date: 2002-03-21 19:24
I am actually studying this very piece as we speak, and it was written indeed for Bb clarinet (or viola or cello as suggested by Schumann), it is a real pleasure to play it. I bought the Peters edition that comes with a play along CD (the piano part only), of course this is not like playing with a real fellow pianist, but falling short of one at hand, this is a good replacement! All the best with your recital.
Stéphane.
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Author: Hiroshi
Date: 2002-03-22 05:33
When I hear Schuman's music, I always feel some difference and am
at a loss to understand from what this difference comes.
Roland Barthes's discripition of Schuman's music seemed to partly clear my question in mind.
http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Rhodes/9533/barthes.html
cf. Roland Barthes(deceased) is a famous French anthrolopologist.
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