 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Spuogle
Date: 2022-10-28 06:01
So I have been playing clarinet more often and I didn’t have a mouth pad till recently.I’ve tried putting on the pad but a bubble is formed from the teeth mark dent.Plus,where the teeth mark dent is is white stuff and I’ve tried leaving my mouthpiece in vinegar but it does go away.How do I get rid of the teeth dent and get rid of the white stuff?Note:moth piece is a wooden one
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Author: Paul Aviles
Date: 2022-10-28 16:16
The idea of the mouthpiece patch is to minimize wear over the long haul......a divot. I would not try anything else other than cleaning with warm water and a cloth. A mark is just a mark and won't degrade the performance of you mouthpiece.
I was SOOO glad to read that your mouthpiece is made of wood after you mentioned the vinegar. Vinegar is an acid. The use of vinegar on a hard rubber mouthpiece is to clean off the white mineral deposits that can develop around the corners where the mouth makes contact with the mouthpiece (this doesn't happen with wood). Even when you use this on a hard rubber mouthpiece, you should use a dilute solution (three parts water to one part vinegar) and even then only leave it in there for about thirty seconds at a time. You don't want to disintegrate your mouthpiece with acid over a "spot."
.............Paul Aviles
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Author: Ken Lagace
Date: 2022-10-28 18:01
You are biting way too much. The embouchure and air need to do more of the work in producing a good sound. Try playing by lifting the upper teeth off the mouthpiece. It won't be comfortable, but you probably will notice a much better sound when you get used to it. Many of the finest clarinet players in history played double lip - with the upper lip covering the upper lip, Ralph McLane, Harold Wright, Richard Stoltzman and so on. Once all the parts are in place, you will play single lip without damaging the mouthpiece.
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Author: Paul Aviles
Date: 2022-10-28 18:10
I agree with much of what Ken says here. I too have had better experiences more recently in life with LESS energy in the embouchure than more.
Of course there are plenty of great players who use single lip and perhaps more energy than one would recommend. Karl Leister glues a leather patch to the top of his mouthpiece. Clark Brody said in a lecture at the end of his career with the Chicago Symphony that he often wished he'd started with double lip but it was too late for him. And the current principal clarinet of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra makes frequent public statements regarding how much "work" he puts into his playing.
Suffice to say, if you have the option, you would want to work easier than harder with your embouchure, keeping in mind that the real effort is creating a steady air stream by working your mid-section muscles. Generating the proper air is where there is no option.
................Paul Aviles
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Author: kdk
Date: 2022-10-28 22:56
Ken Lagace wrote:
> You are biting way too much. The embouchure and air need to do
> more of the work in producing a good sound. Try playing by
> lifting the upper teeth off the mouthpiece.
Paul Aviles wrote:
> I agree with much of what Ken says here. I too have had better
> experiences more recently in life with LESS energy in the
> embouchure than more.
It might be worth some care in the use of the word "embouchure" here, since on their face these two quotes from Ken and Paul are in a way contradictory, even while Paul says he agrees with Ken.
A tooth dent in the mouthpiece suggests that you're biting - using a lot of jaw pressure. Embouchure pressure in the sense Ken is using the term means using the mouth/lip/facial muscles to support and control the reed, not pressure from the jaw. Playing with only the lips to support the reed can be a fair amount of work, too, but you certainly won't put (or worsen) a dent in the mouthpiece if your teeth are not in contact with it.
Double lip is a compromise. The upper teeth still support the mouthpiece but more gently with the lip covering them. The lips tend to take a rounder shape, the soft palate tends to rise and the pain of actually biting up against your upper lip discourages strong jaw pressure.
But, in fact, you didn't ask how to avoid making or worsening a dent in your mouthpiece. You asked about getting rid of the one that's already there. Since it's a wooden mouthpiece, you might try to fill it with a good, solid wood filler, sand it smooth and flush to the rest of the mouthpiece beak, and then cover the repair with a rubber patch to protect it.
After that, you might consider embouchure changes that can prevent causing a new dent to develop.
Karl
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