 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Ajay
Date: 2008-01-11 06:23
Hi,
Tomorrow I will have to between pieces swap between my normal Bb clarinet and a Eb contralto. There is enough time, and when I am playing the contra I can easily rest my Bb on my lap, but when I am playing my Bb, how should I rest the contraalto? It is a rented contra, and it came with no stand. Is there a standard practice in this area?
Thanks
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Author: clarnibass
Date: 2008-01-11 08:55
Chair, preferably padded. That's what I do when I don't have my stands.
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Author: Lelia Loban ★2017
Date: 2008-01-11 12:37
One thing you might do is talk to the people where you rented this contra-alto about the necessity of renting a stand along with it, as a normal part of the rental. Maybe they'll rent you a stand right now, if you phone and ask. I've found that water in the tone holes really isn't a problem with a contra-alto, because the long, curved neck seems to prevent condensation from running down that far even if the instrument lays flat (as mine did in the weeks before I bought a stand for it), but even so, you need a safe place to set down an instrument that large while not playing it. It's in the store's best interest to rent a stand, since laying the expensive clarinet on the floor obviously isn't a safe way to maintain it in good condition, in an environment with other musicians trampling around. Before I bought a stand, I worried that I'd do the Two-Left-Feet Fandango over my contra all by myself here at home--and I wouldn't even want to think about leaving it naked and vulnerable to the tender mercies of drummers and trombonists! ![[tongue]](http://test.woodwind.org/clarinet/BBoard/smileys/smilie6.gif) (For my contra-alto, I bought the K&M stand, which is sturdy and collapsible for transport.)
Lelia
http://www.scoreexchange.com/profiles/Lelia_Loban
To hear the audio, click on the "Scorch Plug-In" box above the score.
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Author: LCL
Date: 2008-01-11 14:47
Lelia's advice is good. You should never lay a Contra-alto across a chair or on a floor. The stress that action places on the middle joint can damage the tenon severely, especially the rosewood model. A plastic, one-piece or locked mid joint may be more forgiving. I use a K&M BC stand too.
Regards,
LCL
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Author: David Spiegelthal ★2017
Date: 2008-01-11 17:22
If you decide to buy a stand (a good idea!), both the Blayman and K&M bass clarinet/bassoon stands work equally well with the the EEb contra-alto.
Also, depending on your height and how you're built, you might consider buying a cheap folding metal bar stool to let you sit higher when playing the contra -- more comfortable than sitting on phone books...........
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Author: Ajay
Date: 2008-01-11 17:34
Thanks for the replies. It would seem a stand is the only long term solution.
To explain in more detail the arrangement, I play in the county band. The same organisation that runs the bands provides lessons and, in addition, rents instruments.
Having auditioned in the summer, I was given a place playing my clarinet, and also playing their contra. I shall talk to our conductor tommorow, to sort out exactly what needs to be done.
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Author: BassetHorn
Date: 2008-01-11 17:48
Make sure there is plenty of room around your stand so it doesn't get knocked over by someone accidentally and consequently damaging your instrument, because all the you will get in return is a "oops, I am soooooo sorry....."
It will be purely your loss.
Big horns like bass and contras require more attention. When you rest your contra on the stand, guard it with upmost vigilance. Stay by its side, don't even take water/bathroom breaks when others do. Reason why they invented water bottles and adult diapers...
Post Edited (2008-01-11 17:58)
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Author: Arnoldstang
Date: 2008-01-11 18:07
One musician in the show I just finished made his own bass clarinet stand. He found he could make a sturdy functional stand much cheaper than the commercially available ones. Maybe there are ideas out there for a home made stand.
Freelance woodwind performer
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Author: Lelia Loban ★2017
Date: 2008-01-11 19:13
David Spiegelthan wrote,
>>
If you decide to buy a stand (a good idea!), both the Blayman and K&M bass clarinet/bassoon stands work equally well with the the EEb contra-alto.
>>
Come to think of it, my K&M stand is the bass clarinet/bassoon stand. I'd forgotten it's not specifically marketed for contra-alto clarinet. It's a good stand, but, as BassetHorn writes,
>Big horns like bass and contras require more attention. When you rest your contra on the stand, guard it with upmost vigilance. >
Yeah. I've never found a stand that doesn't feel somewhat top-heavy. Better than leaving the contra-alto lying on the floor--at least up on a stand it's more visible--but it would be all too easy for some klutz to knock it over, and an instrument that big is proportionally more fragile than a small clarinet (not that you'd want the klutz knocking over a soprano clarinet, either, but...). I even worry about the possibility of someone as short as Shadow Cat rubbing herself up against the contra if I leave her alone in the room with it--which is why I practice in the guest bedroom and close the door with Shadow Cat on the outside of it, if I have to leave the room during a session. (Much as she hates soprano clarinets, she can't quite work up the same disgust against anything with a bass voice. I'm afraid she might try to cuddle up with it. Kaboom!)
Lelia
http://www.scoreexchange.com/profiles/Lelia_Loban
To hear the audio, click on the "Scorch Plug-In" box above the score.
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Author: nahoj
Date: 2008-01-11 20:48
I got the K&M contrabassoon stand for my paperclip, it's got wider 'arms', which is more convenient for this instrument. And I'm very happy with it: very durable and heavy stand, yet foldable and quite compact for transport.
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Author: Ken Shaw ★2017
Date: 2008-01-11 21:23
A straight contra is top-heavy and fatally easy to knock over, even in a contrabassoon or double bass stand. A single fall or even a bang on the floor while vertical can mess up the entire mechanism.
The band will probably have a drum cabinet -- a waist-high rolling table with carpet on top so cymbals and tambourines can be put down without making noise. Get that and put it behind you for the contra. You could even lay the case on the table and put the contra on that, or put the case on the floor covered with a couple of towels for padding.
I lay my BBb paperclip and Selmer Eb on the floor on a blanket, putting them down very carefully. As long as nobody kicks it, this should be OK. In my opinion, and with all respect to LCL, the center joint is plenty strong enough for that.
Ken Shaw
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Author: Jaysne
Date: 2008-01-11 22:43
When I had to do this, the only thing I could think of was to put the contralto on the floor.
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Author: clarnibass
Date: 2008-01-12 06:56
Leila, have you ever heard of a case where a bass clarinet was ruined by lying on a chair (and not by someone knocking it)?
For years I use a stand or a chair when I don't take my stand, and I never had any problems. I know others that use only a chair, and never have any problems. After using a chair as a stand many times, my bass clarinet only needed one adjustment in the last two years - screwing one screw a little more.
I have K&M stand and I think it is very good. Whether you obssesively guard it depends on who you are playing with I guess. Ususally (but not always!) I play with people who I trust not to knock the clarinet. I think the K&M stand would be fine for contra alt clarinet.
Post Edited (2008-01-13 05:41)
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Author: Lann
Date: 2008-01-12 20:25
Hire an assistant to hold it for you.
I did bass and contralto, and I couldn't find a practical way, as the stands that my contralto fit, my bass clarinet didn't like, and vice versa. I only have two hands, and know that a big clarinet takes both hands to carry. So, I laid mine on the floor, which was ok, and if you're conscious about it, it shouldn't be a big deal.
But, since one of your clarinets is bite size, I'd say giving a stand a try isn't a bad idea.
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Author: Ajay
Date: 2008-01-13 09:27
Again thanks for all the advice. In the end yesterday when playing my Bb clarinet I took the contralto apart at the middle joint, and rested the two sections next to each other so that they were under my chair and between my feet. Then when we had a break I put it back in its case, and came back a bit early to set it up again. This seemed to work well as the contra was safe all the time, took up less space than just lying it complete on the floor, and in addition the middle tenon wasn't under any stress.
While this is fine for practices, is taking apart and putting together an instrument on stage between pieces considered ok? We don't have a concert for another few weeks, so at least my immediate problem is solved.
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Author: Lann
Date: 2008-01-13 16:27
Ajay--
You're brilliant! Why did I never think of that?
I don't think you'll offend anyone. If the director gives you enough time, and no one on stage thinks it's a big deal, I'm not so sure that anyone will even notice.
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Author: Lelia Loban ★2017
Date: 2008-01-14 12:44
Ajay, that sounds like a good solution for you, since apparently you don't have to make quick switches back and forth between instruments, but you must have bigger, stronger hands and longer arms than mine! (Well, that's not saying much. I'm 5'3" tall and almost any contra player's arms are longer than mine.) My contra's case is the type that holds the clarinet connected at the center joint. I never take it apart at the center because putting the instrument back together again is so awkward and difficult for me that I'm terrified I'll crack the tenon.
>>Leila, have you ever heard of a case where a bass clarinet was ruined by lying on a chair (and not by someone knocking it)?
>>
I wasn't the one who posted that message about the danger to the center joint, although it does make sense to me that laying a contra on a chair often would eventually put too much stress on that joint. I did let myself in for a repair bill once by knocking my own alto sax off a chair (bent the neck). Leila's my invisible evil twin, btw. Aha--I'll blame *her* for knocking that sax off the chair!
Lelia
http://www.scoreexchange.com/profiles/Lelia_Loban
To hear the audio, click on the "Scorch Plug-In" box above the score.
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