 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: E. Michael Blake
Date: 2002-04-01 14:25
Playing clarinet again after thirty years off has been a source of ever-unfolding wonderment to me, as I run into problems, try to figure out why they're happening, and ultimately find that they're caused by some unintentional, counterproductive actions on my part. The results of my latest investigation might actually be useful to others, especially new players who aren't getting one-on-one lessons. (I'm sure that a teacher would have spotted my problem at once, but I'm too cheap and time-strapped to schedule lessons.)
I was plowing through a method book passage that called for an eighth-note sequence in the clarion register: E, high B, E, high C, E, high B. I got in and out of both B's just fine, but squeaked or buzzed the C. Playing C separately caused no problems, so I had no reason to suspect a leak. After much messing around, I decided I was not properly keying the C in that passage for some reason, either not closing the thumb hole securely or not lifting the register key enough. This struck me as odd, because the clarion E just before it required both thumb and register to be engaged, and they were. Now, sometimes in getting from one fingering to another, my hand movements have (as noted above) unintended consequences, and it seemed that when lifting fingers after the E I may have been shifting the thumb position slightly (perhaps rotating it) and thus breaking the seal. But when I concentrated on keeping the thumb still, the C still wouldn't speak well.
It turns out that my problem stemmed from the fact that, when high C is fingered, there's nothing to hold the horn down against the left thumb. The high B's had spoken all right because the left index was in place, on the top/front of the horn, pushing down as the left thumb pushed up. But from E to C, the lifting of the five fingers that had been holding the horn down released the pressure that had secured the horn against the left thumb, so the continuing upward pressure of the left thumb was just enough to cause a brief, but note-ruining, lack of closure.
Okay, that's the diagnosis. What about the treatment? Well, when I usually finger high C the only points on contact on the horn are at the mouth and both thumbs. The thumbs tend to push up, and I couldn't see a way for the bite to push down on the whole length of the horn; there's no way to get leverage, and I have enough trouble trying to form embouchure without giving the mouth even more work. What seemed to yield the best results was a very slight downward pressure from the lower joint of the right index finger against the rod that holds the tone-hole rings. I was able to make this contact while playing the E, and continued it while I lifted the fingertips to get to the C; I got the index fingertip far enough above the tone hole to avoid flatting. Presto, a nice clean high C. Kids, DO try this at home.
But wait, there's more. The physics of this aspect of my clumsiness intrigued me, so I tried various other ways of getting a good high C. Pushing against a part of the horn that wasn't intended to be involved in tone production seemed inelegant, so I looked into whether actually fingering a key or tone hole would get the same results. Fingering the G# key worked, but depending on the run being played, it can be awkward to use it and then be ready for ensuing notes; I found this to be true for any other part of the left hand (for me, anyway). What really interested me, though, was that some uses of the right hand not only didn't help, but made matters worse. In particular, putting the pinky on the D# key, as is sometimes advised in altissimo, not only muffed the high C but made the lack of left thumb seal so obvious that I could feel it. I'll claim that I wasn't perplexed for very long, because there weren't any witnesses. Let's just say that after an undisclosed amount of time, I realized that I was putting downward pressure so far below the thumb rest that my right thumb became a fulcrum, and the horn thus had an even greater tendency to lift away from the left thumb. (A really strong, nonstop bite might prevent this.) Conclusion: right index pressure against the tone hole rod, or probably any left-hand pressure that doesn't close a hole, should solve the problem; right-hand pressure way below the thumb rest doesn't help, and may make matters worse.
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Author: ron b
Date: 2002-04-01 17:44
Welcome back to the wonderful world of Clarinet, E. Michael Blake
Best two pieces of advice I ever received, not from a one-on-one teacher, rather from one-on-one fellow clarinetists. I'd like to share them with you:
1.) Relax
2.) Breath Support
:)
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Author: RRS
Date: 2002-04-01 21:33
Open the throat; make sure your using the correct kind of air(push from the stomach and not from the throat.
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Author: Wes
Date: 2002-04-02 01:51
One can always do better on high notes if one practices Robert Springer's warmup long tone routine every day. It can be found on the internet but I forgot where. Basically, it is playing long tones in order on each chromatic note from E1 to C4, four beats to a note with occasional four beat rests at 60 beats per minute, loud or soft. Good luck!!
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Author: drew
Date: 2002-04-02 03:02
I use an alternate fingering for C that is very secure and is more in tune. To the typical high C fingering (left thumb closing thumb tonehole and opening register vent), add ring finger over G/C hole (the one without a ring), and also open side Bb/Eb vent with right hand. Very nicely balanced and more in tune.
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