The Fingering Forum  
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Author: Sharon  
Date:   2003-06-06 14:14 
 I'm a piano teacher, who has a student (7th grade) who is learning to play the clarinet.  I've been helping her with the counting, etc., but know virtually nothing about clarinet.  She is auditioning for a band camp and they gave her a piece that has a low E flat.  None of her charts show her how to play this note.  I don't see anything that looks like her charts that would help her. 
 
Thanks.
  
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Author: Tekk  
Date:   2003-06-06 19:09 
 low e flats are only on bass clarinet and other low pitch clarinets, maybe the music is for a clarinet pitched in a different key?
  
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Author: Theboy_2  
Date:   2003-06-07 00:50 
 what clarinet are you teaching?  and which e flat?  is it an e below the staff or the one on the bottom line?  soprano clarinets can not reach notes lower then E below the staff, alto and lower can.  check the music to make sure its for the right instrument, if not send it back to get a proper one.  if it is the right music and it is the low low E flat bump it up an octave, because there is no way of hitting a note that low.
  
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Author: Gnomon  
Date:   2003-06-09 08:47 
 Standard Bb soprano clarinets can play down to the note which is written E below middle C. In fact because the clarinet is a transposing instrument, this is actually the D below middle C. 
 
Some of the more expensive clarinets have an extra key which allow them to play one semitone lower, down to Eb, but this is unusual and a trial piece should certainly not include this note.
  
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