 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: janlynn
Date: 2005-11-01 17:29
okay ...need some advice on how to play faster, FAST - meaning ...something that might take me 2 months to get up to speed, i would like to take 3 weeks.
is this possible?
i know how to practice with a metronome and steadily increase the speed - but at the rate im going this could take all year!
is there ANOTHER method that will speed up my passages and take less time to achieve my "goal."
Thanks, Jan
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Author: janlynn
Date: 2005-11-01 18:03
just different passages in some of my wind symphony music with maybe 3 -4 passages on each piece.not the entire piece. i have most of it up to speed. just some places need work.
tubby the tuba
toccata marziale
overture to "colas breugnon"
farandole
toccata (Frescobaldi)
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Author: A2Clarinetist
Date: 2005-11-01 18:07
Have you tried breaking it into smaller pieces to get it technically. I sometimes start with the last measure of the phrase and then the last two, etc. I also use different rhythms and slur two tongue two to get the fingers right.
Once you get it down technically it should be easier to get it up to speed. Also, try playing the scale for what key the section is in. Take into account that accidentals can change your key.
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Author: janlynn
Date: 2005-11-01 18:17
here is an example of one section im having trouble with
starting with B above the staff (key of C) all 16th notes speed - approx 104
B A# G# A# ] B A# G# F# : E F# G# A# : B A# G# F# ] E
I'm getting hung up on the side A#
another example
from the same piece - Key of C. all 16ths approx 104 bpm
Starting with C 3rd space
C Bb Ab Bb : C Eb C Ab : Bb C Db F: Db
I'm getting hung up on going from Bb to Left hand C, to Right hand Eb, back to left hand C
i hope this will help someone out there help me
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Author: janlynn
Date: 2005-11-01 18:23
one more example
key of C (Cut time) "fast" 8th notes
G Gb F Gb G Ab G Gb : G Gb F G Ab G Gb
G G# A A# B A# A G# : G G# A A# A G#: G
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Author: Tyler
Date: 2005-11-01 19:59
Practiced mixed rhythms. That means play the technical passage in dotted rhythm patterns, in eighth-three-sixteenths patterns, and reversed-- three-sixteenths-eighth-note patterns; if it's in triplets, play it in fours. If it's in fours or two's play it in triplets. Start the first note on a different part of the beat subdivided into sixteenth notes (start on the "eeh" or the "and" or the "a" of "one-eeh-and-a"). Slur everything that should be tongued. Tongue everything that should be slurred. MIX it up. These kinds of things help to build muscle memory specifically between certain notes.
-Tyler
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Author: Ken Shaw ★2017
Date: 2005-11-01 20:00
Janlynn -
If you are having troubles with these patterns in 16ths at 104, it's almost certainly due to tension in your hands and fingers. Hold your hands up, palms facing, and flap your fingers from the knuckle joints about 20 times. Then relax and feel the lightness.
Keep this feeling, pick up your clarinet and play one of the passages very slowly (maybe one note per beat at 60) Concentrate on light, effortless finger movement. You may have to go even slower, down to 40.
Each finger movement has to be "neat" and perfect. Otherwise you're just learning how to make mistakes.
Get the side of your right index finger close to the bottom side key, so that all you need to do is nudge it. Your finger movements should be as though you're trying to disguise them -- so small that they're practically invisible. Combine the smallness and lightness.
Watch yourself in a mirror, to make sure you're getting it right.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Now you know why your teacher wants you to practice scales in keys with lots of sharps and flats, and the chromatic scale. The first two patterns are part of the B major scale. The next ones are in Ab. The last ones are chromatic.
The long-term solution is to get the Baermann Part 3 and work hard, using A2clarinetist's method of breaking things up into small groups of notes. Your goal is to get these patterns into your muscle memory, so that you don't have to think about them. You simply recognize a note pattern you've seen many times and start it going.
For long-term work, see the method in http://test.woodwind.org/clarinet/BBoard/read.html?f=1&i=24907&t=24731 and http://test.woodwind.org/clarinet/BBoard/read.html?f=1&i=144658&t=144639
This is basic work, laying the foundation you will use forever. No one can promise that you'll be able to do this within a few weeks or a few months. Going through the entire Baermann book 3 can easily take a year.
However, you should be able to make significant improvements and be able to work out particular patterns within a few weeks. The method I use is in my posting on the Weber Concertino http://test.woodwind.org/clarinet/BBoard/read.html?f=1&i=14529&t=14450 :
Beginning *very* slowly, play the passage in pairs of quadruple-dotted 8ths and 128ths, repeating each pair until you have it clean and snappy. At the beginning, play just the first note; stop and take a small breath; then "snap" from the second to the third notes as quickly as possible, repeating until it is clean; stop and take a small breath; then "snap" from the 4th to the 5th note, and so on. Then leave out the breaths and work up gradually to close to performance tempo. Notice that you are working on the transition between notes 2 and 3, then 4 and 5 and so on.
Then begin again with a 128th followed by a quadruple-dotted 8th. This isolates the transitions you skipped, between notes 1 and 2, 3 and 4, and so on.
Work up both versions slurred and tongued.
When you finish, you will have isolated and cleaned up the transition between each note and the next. Then, go back to straight 16ths, which will be almost magically smooth.
Good luck. Everyone goes through this, and you can too.
Ken Shaw
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Author: janlynn
Date: 2005-11-01 20:28
thank you everyone. i will take all your advice seriously. i do not a clarinet teacher. havent for quite some time. but i just got (on saturday) a "music teacher" who is a brass player. retired school teacher (36 years) who can help me with phrasing and musical expression and such, but not with any clarinet techical stuff. but i will show him these messages and maybe he can help me thru the suggestions. also - i do have the baerman book 3 edited by david hite. i think its gonna take me all my life to get thru that. lol
thanks again, jan
also ... ken ... i want to remark that when i did have a clarinet teacher (student of kal opperman) I think the last lesson i had with him was about moving my fingers in the manner in which you described. but that was my last lesson about 4 years ago ...or so.
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Author: ohsuzan
Date: 2005-11-01 20:37
Ken's suggestions, as usual, are right on!
Another technique that has worked for me is to "play" the passage mentally, when you are away from the instrument. Visualize the score in your head, or even look at the score, and *think* the passage. Even hold your hands as if you were playing, and let your (relaxed) fingers twitch a little as you mentally play it through.
If you find you cannot do this without stumbling, it probably means that your mind is not really comfortable yet with the passage -- and if your brain isn't on top of it, your fingers won't be, either!
Susan
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Author: Paul Aviles
Date: 2005-11-01 23:26
Just a couple of quickies:
Try playing a three note pattern as fast as you can cleanly (usually three notes can go FAST). Then add the fourth of the group you're working on until that's fast....then the fifth, etc.
Also, don't be afraid to look for sliding opportunities on the pinky keys. You can get really creative with this!
...........Paul Aviles
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Author: redwine
Date: 2005-11-01 23:52
Hello,
You can also practice the passage by elongating the first sixteenth note in each beat. Do that several times, then elongate the second sixteenth note, then the third, then the fourth.
Memorize the passage.
Change the rhythm as Ken suggests, then do it backwards, with the short note first.
Tongue the entire passage slowly.
Repetition.
Ben Redwine, DMA
owner, RJ Music Group
Assistant Professor, The Catholic University of America
Selmer Paris artist
www.rjmusicgroup.com
www.redwinejazz.com
www.reedwizard.com
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Author: allencole
Date: 2005-11-02 14:12
You're getting lots of good specific advice here, but I would add one very general piece.
DON'T GET IMPATIENT!
Feeling pressured to get to quickly to too great a speed has a lot of consequences that have already been mentioned including tension and uneven rhythm.
But the biggest thing to remember about technical practice is that you are programming your fingers. If you keep it to a speed where you can avoid mistakes, your fingers develop a tendency to hit the right notes consistently. If you are making many mistakes during your practice runs, your fingers become confused and hesitant.
Even if you're under a lot of pressure for speed, practice in a way that will accurately program your fingers for what you need to play--even at a lower speed. That way, when you're forced into a higher speed, they'll at least be AIMING at the right notes.
Also, make sure that you don't 'mumble' when you practice--that is, playing really soft because you don't want others in the house to hear you. Play out loud, just like you would in performance. This will make you more focused, more rhythmic and more acclimated to the conditions that you are preparing for.
B and F# can be funny keys because some passages may force you to play the dull-sounding throat A# (left thumb & index finger). Some folks have a reaction to the change in sound and texture brought on by that note, and that makes the discipline in your fingers even more important.
Allen Cole
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Author: janlynn
Date: 2005-11-03 12:21
sorry allen - i tried to post to you 3 times yesterday to thank you for the added advice and for some reason it wouldnt post.
patience is not my best virtue
i live alone so i dont mumble when i play, but i sure do jumble lol
thanks again everyone .. i have another question about this but i think it requires a new post.
jan
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Author: allencole
Date: 2005-11-03 17:40
Maybe you should try practicing your toughest stuff first thing in the morning or after a heavy meal, perhaps? <g>
Allen Cole
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