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RE: B Sharp

Author: John Kelly - Australia
Date: 2002-07-26 00:00

Thanks Todd - your keyboard analogy was quite informative although I was of the understanding that the QWERTY keyboard was developed because it places those commonly used keys within easy reach of the typist/e's fingers.

As for my using other pitch clarinets - I have a C [not in working order] and an A which I occasionally use to test myself when playing in Bb [to records of course!]. I can see that a classical orchestral player would find these of use particularly if he/she has to read a score in A - try doing that on a Bb - it just makes sense to have a bag full of horns! I guess that the jazz scene is so different to classical that if the clarinet player in the band pulled out a different horn for different keys it would be considered that he could not play his instrument properly!

I was listening to some of my collection last night and those big bands of 30s 40s 50s and the like arranged scores of popular and original numbers and often went through 2 or 3 or 4 keys changes in 2 or 3 minutes often at a rapid tempo and those guys just HAD to be able to play in those other keys on one horn as there was no time to pick up another. I have dozens of tracks where multiple key changes or just plain DIFFICULT keys were used to accomodate a STAR soloist usually a singer, who just preferred singing Night & Day in D or E [concert that is]!

A good jazz player will aspire to do it ALL on the one instrument - besides it's less to carry around!

Thanks for the feedback though.

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B Sharp new

Bob Schmedake

2002-07-19 14:55