 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Morrigan
Date: 2002-10-03 04:28
I am gonna go right for the heart of the topic and talk about legato...
I was speaking with my housemate (a soprano) and we were talking about our legato and how similar clarinet can be to singing. She said legato is what makes the masters. Agreeing 100%, I played the Weber Concertino to her. The things she picked up were the legato of the theme - the octave leap before the close of the phrase and that little turn. She said "Can you hear that little gap between the notes in your sound?" And although I wasn't aware of it, I listened again and could hear it. I know I've worked on this a lot before, but I must have simply forgotten it. We then went through being prepared for the note and being 'above' it before you even get to it. Within 10 minutes, I had a beautiful leap between tones, with no gaps.
How can you beat this problem ALL the time, while making it second-nature just like every other factor in technique?
What factors does one need to consider when combining this into his or her technique? What daily exercises can be done, other than simply listening very critically?
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Author: Robert
Date: 2002-10-03 11:57
I think that playing legato is one of the hardest things to do properly on a clarinet, shown by the fact one hears very few clarinet players who can really do it!
Now that you've become aware of what it is to really play legato, you're on a lifetime mission to achieve it. Legato is something we have to work on continuosly, and can never reach the point of saying "OK, now I can do it".
-Pay attention to equalising the dynamics and tone colours of each note in the legato phrase.
-Keep a continuous air flow.
-Try to develop a "soft" finger action at various speeds. There are different kinds of legato, and the action of your fingers controls this.
Far too many clarinet players are content to just play with a continuous air flow, but "bang" the fingers down when changing notes. Where's the legato there??!
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Author: d dow
Date: 2002-10-03 13:31
One study that I find helpful for students is to work on octave leaps scalewise going upward say in any given key...quite tricky when you consider the clarinet jumps 12ths....the logic behind this is to prevent the "gaps" you are experiencing in your sound you should play in a room that is acoustically dry or even very dead...
focus only on smooth relaxed hands --than go towards the top notes with a crescendo from the bottom or lower note in the octave....once you arrive on the top note maintain the volume and support of the tone...
Best wishes
DD
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Author: William
Date: 2002-10-03 15:25
The smooth connection of notes (legato) is often overlooked in our techno-frenzied "higher, louder faster" practice to play more notes per measure than the human mind is able to compherhend and out "dragon tongue" Robert Spring. To become a true clarinetist/musican, playing a simple melodic phrase producing smooth, seamless connections between notes is technique that must be constantly practiced to the point where it becomes second nature in our playing habits. Although, as a college freashman, it seemed like absolute torture to practice (for a whole year) various Rose studies at adagioisssssimo tempi (very slow) for absolute smooth/legato, seamless note connections, I am now so grateful to Dr. William Domonic for making me do it. Every lesson, for a whole year, started out with that excercise--and it has paid generous musical dividends over the years in terms of musical expression and basic finger control.
Never too late to start, however--and well worth the effort. Just start with scales in thirds, played very slowly (mm=60, each note) and concentrate on slow--but accurate--finger motion (no "slapping")and steady breath control (no "popping" on the higher tones). Then go to fifths and octaves. Then, pick a Rose study (or any favorite etude) and play it at half tempo (or slower) concentrating on note connections rather than speed. Every note, seamlessly attached to the next. Torture--yes, but "it is good for you". Enjoy!!!!
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Author: Kat
Date: 2002-10-03 20:46
Rose 40 number 1 is the classic legato study. Particularly when played sloooooowwwwwwwwlllllllyyyyyyyy!!!
Try it! You'll like it! (or not...hehe)
But slow finger motion is crucial to studying this etude slowly. Like Robert says, do not under any circumstances, BANG your fingers when trying to play legato!
Katrina
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Author: diz
Date: 2002-10-04 00:38
Legato is fine and developing a nice legato is a must. A legato style of playing is not suitable for all genres in music - make sure you play stylistically.
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Author: Suzanne
Date: 2002-10-05 03:19
What I notice in legato playing is that we clarinetists tend to way overcompensate in our adjustments for voicing intervals. We overcompensate by using too much muscle and movement everywhere--throat, soft palate, embouchure, etc. This especially true over the breaks. The intervals are always "closer" (in my teacher's words) than think they are. I second whoever mentioned Rose 40, #1. By the way, just a side discussion, with clarinetists, the true master is also displayed in clean, light staccato, don't people agree? This is one of the most difficult things to master on clarinet, esp. at slow tempi... My two cents.
Suzanne
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