 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: DennisCheng
Date: 2005-11-12 08:59
Merry meet everyone, i have been playing my clarinet for about 3 yrs now and i am 15 yrs old and i'm quite small in size. I can only sustain a concert C note for only 10 seconds.I'm now using a Buffet clarinet which is a few years old in school. i feel that my tone for the high notes( high G, A , B ,C notes) really suck.....sounds horrible while my other band members sound much better than me...even my juniors :(.I'm now using a Size 3 Vandoren Reed. i'm one of the softest player in the whole section......How should i practice to increase my volume, improve on my high notes and tone? How to attain a tone that sounds full like all those pros? i really want to improve alot by next year....I'm now praticing 45 minutes..playing long notes like playing my scales 8 seconds per note.My private teacher told me that in order to become a pro... one must practice at least 3 hrs a day...is it true? i need some motivation...T_T
thanks...
Post Edited (2005-11-12 09:11)
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Author: Bassie
Date: 2005-11-14 08:56
Do the other guys sound better, or just louder? Playing quiet is not necessarily a problem. Hearing yourself in a school band is one of the hardest musical exercises on the planet - playing louder is not the solution.
I'm loath to recommend new equipment to a beginner, but I will suggest you try a couple of other reeds. A harder reed can sometimes help with the high notes, and because a harder reed works with a higher pressure, you can end up with the situation of a larger sound with a smaller airflow (just find an oboist to watch). Many students, however, make the mistake of playing too hard (it's a kind of macho thing) and then either it's too much like hard work or the air can go straight past the reed without making much of a sound at all - either way you can run out of puff. If you have to go softer, keep the hard reeds for occasional practice. And trying other brands (remember, they're almost all softer than vandoren for the same grade, so aim hard when buying) can put some fun back into the game.
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Author: David Peacham
Date: 2005-11-14 10:41
"harder reeds= thicker reeds" No. If you compare Vandoren Blue Box reeds of different strengths, they are all the same thickness. If you compare Vandoren V12 reeds of different strengths, they are all the same thickness as each other - but thicker than the Blue Box reeds.
Lots of people get confused about this by talking about "size 3" reeds. They are all the same size. The number refers to how hard the cane is, not how thick it is.
....
You haven't said what mouthpiece you use. The mouthpiece that comes with Buffet clarinets has a poor reputation.
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If there are so many people on this board unwilling or unable to have a civil and balanced discussion about important issues, then I shan't bother to post here any more.
To the great relief of many of you, no doubt.
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Author: tictactux ★2017
Date: 2005-11-14 10:57
> You haven't said what mouthpiece you use. The mouthpiece that comes
> with Buffet clarinets has a poor reputation.
As everyone seems to recommend to throw stock mouthpieces away, why do manufacturers still ship a mouthpiece with the horn? Why not simply offer the mouthpiece as an optional item?
--
Ben
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Author: David Peacham
Date: 2005-11-14 12:32
Ben - I've always thought that it is particularly bizarre to include an expensive mouthpiece, as some manufacturers do.
There's a good precedent for this: manufacturers of expensive bicycles usually price their products without pedals, since these are a matter of personal choice. (Though in that case there may be some regulatory reasons as well.)
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If there are so many people on this board unwilling or unable to have a civil and balanced discussion about important issues, then I shan't bother to post here any more.
To the great relief of many of you, no doubt.
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Author: BelgianClarinet
Date: 2005-11-14 16:02
Should we really advice harder reeds for a 3yr player that already plays VD 3 ?
Ok, it depends on the mp, but my 11year old daughter is playing 3rd year too on B40 and VD 2 reeds. G,A,B no problem at all, C up to E still tricky, but getting there - bit flat, but already quite some tone. I think it has much more to do with 'air support', using the belly not the lungs.
Actually I don't think it has, I know, play also a bit on B40 (VD V12 #3 that isn't that much harder)
But honest there are quite some beginners that seem to have difficulties making these notes, but most of the time they have problems making a 'big' tone for lower notes too.
I find it very difficult to express why my notes work fine, and can't get any closer then calling it 'air support' without overdoing. I just let the air go out in a natural, relaxed way. One you did it, you'll never forget anymore.
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Author: DennisCheng
Date: 2005-11-14 16:12
i use a Yamaha 4C mouthpiece. Actually i bought a Morgan
RM-15 mouthpiece last time but i was not told not to use it first becos i sounded horrible using it.
When i'm practicing long notes, i always have the tedency to use my abs not my diaphragm to play after sustaining a note for some time.....what should i do?
Post Edited (2005-11-14 16:14)
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Author: David Peacham
Date: 2005-11-14 16:46
I wonder whether playing long tones is a good way of solving your problem. If you are thinking "I must play this note for at least ten seconds" maybe you are rationing the amount of air you use.
Try playing shorter notes, just two or three seconds. Try playing a rapid crescendo on each note. Don't force it so it sounds horrible, start nicely and try to get louder during each note. Take a breath between notes, but don't breath in more air than you can blow out; you don't want to feel you're going to burst from too much air.
As for practising three hours a day - yes, it's true. But it has to be good practice. Playing the same thing over and over, when you're tired, making the same mistakes over and over, won't help you progress.
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If there are so many people on this board unwilling or unable to have a civil and balanced discussion about important issues, then I shan't bother to post here any more.
To the great relief of many of you, no doubt.
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Author: susieray
Date: 2005-11-14 19:53
"i use a Yamaha 4C mouthpiece. Actually i bought a Morgan
RM-15 mouthpiece last time but i was not told not to use it first becos i sounded horrible using it."
It might be worth experimenting with a softer reed on the Morgan. It really is a much better mouthpiece than the Yamaha. I have an RM-15 which I use occasionally, and since it has a more open tip than my usual mouthpiece I find I need to use a #2 1/2 Vandoren reed on it. It is a very nice sounding mouthpiece but it doesn't like stiff reeds.
Sue
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Author: Bassie
Date: 2005-11-15 08:41
You're right, BelgianClarinet (et al.), harder reeds are unlikely to be the solution in this case - I just thought I'd include them in my amateur reedology explanation.
I know from personal experience that no.3 vandoren is a hard reed for a young player with a middle-of-the-road mouthpiece. Sure, you can reach those high notes easily, but playing the instrument is just demoralising. Really, like breaking rocks to make a railroad. What a relief it was, in those halcyon days, to discover what Rico thought a '3' should be. Then I could relax... and after a bit, went back to VD2.5 when I realised just how awful my tone had become. From there, VD3 suddenly came back in sight... Such is the tortuous path of the student: all path to high place is by winding stair.
It's catch-22 for the beginner: the reed and mouthpiece stand between the player and the instrument, and the player must be able to play the instrument to judge the reed and mouthpiece...
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Author: DennisCheng
Date: 2005-11-15 09:35
"Try playing a rapid crescendo on each note. Don't force it so it sounds horrible, start nicely and try to get louder during each note. Take a breath between notes, but don't breath in more air than you can blow out; you don't want to feel you're going to burst from too much air."
ok, i will do this during my practice.thanks.
Now, my high notes are getting more in tune...so should i still change to a softer reed??
My teacher told me not to change mouthpiece first as my embrochure is not good yet .....so i think i will have to stay with Yamaha and plus i will have a concert next 2 weeks.
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Author: bawa
Date: 2005-11-16 08:14
Apart from all the above excellent advice, I see from your original post that you are worried about your being smaller in height etc being a handicap compared to others.
I don't think thats an issue; my daughter is in her 6th year of playing and is still short of 5 feet at 13, very slim and pretty asmatic!! All that doesn't stop her from playing the clarinet rather nicely (and sometimes verrry loudly!). I think it is more a question of practising correctly/lessons/good teacher etc. and it will come to you over time if you carry on. By the way she uses V12 3.5 with a Vandoren B45 mouthpiece, and is happy with that for the moment.
Good luck and enjoy your playing.
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Author: Bnewbs
Date: 2005-11-17 02:13
If you are playing a Buffet my best recommendation (based on my own personal experience) is to try a Vandoren M13 or M13 lyre mouthpiece and Vandoren Rue Lepic 56 #3.5 reeds (a harder reed should definately help with the sound up top). I found that my tone was much more centered and I could play out a little louder using that set up on my old clarinet (a Buffet E12 master model).
When I was trying to get better at holding notes out, I would spend about half an hour a day working on that, and then work on scales and practice pieces ect. It did work out though. And if you do want to be a pro practice, practice and then practice some more. I am in college as an Architecture major, not a music major partly for that reason, but I do still play. The Clarinet performance majors I know spend about 8 hours a day between practicing on their own and group rehersals, so if you really love music its about the best job in the world, but it takes a lot of work to get there.
Ben Newby
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