 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: bristollexx
Date: 2006-02-20 17:32
I am thinking of taking up a musical instrument and have been told by a friend that its reasonably easy to start with either the flute or the clarinet and wondered what your opinions are.
I have never played an instrument and am 31 so was wondering if I am a bit to old to learn!
My friend is a bit biased toward the flute as she loves it !
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Author: Tyler
Date: 2006-02-20 17:54
Clarinet is NOT an easy thing to start unless you begin learning it THE RIGHT WAY. Otherwise, bad habits tend to build up quickly on this instrument, and this will cause you a large amount of frustration several years down the road. Don't let me scare you, though; I love the instrument. It has one of the sweetest sounds of the orchestra or band, and it is extremely flexible as far as dynamics and styles, and it feels good to fly through fast passages with all the keywork under your fingers.
It will take a lot of practice, like anything else would, and I would recommend that before you even PURCHASE whatever instrument you choose to learn (I like the flute's sound too, by the way), find out as MUCH information as you can about playing that instrument. Read all about it online (on this bboard if you choose clarinet), in any books you can find (I can tell you three great books about clarinet that you should read first), and anywhere else that you can find out about the instrument and how it is correctly played. These endeavors will make your practice time more effective because instead of figuring out how to play the instrument, you'll be getting better at technique and music.
Good luck with the beginnings of what could be a magical experience for you! BTW, you're definitely not too old to learn. There are people in their 50's and 60's who come to the BBoard and ask if they're too old to learn to play again. The answer is always no.
Just remember to 1) Read up 2) Now choose equipment 3) Now get playing. (Let me know if you need the titles of the books I recommend).
-Tyler
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Author: David Peacham
Date: 2006-02-20 19:27
The flute, clarinet and sax have the reputation as being the easiest orchestra/band instruments to make a start on. The downside is that they are among the most popular, so tend to be oversubscribed. If you plan to join a band down the line, the clarinet is probably the best bet of the three, since bands usually contain more clarinets than flutes or saxes.
No instrument is easy to play well.
Tyler omits to mention that it is a very good idea to find a teacher at the outset; all the more so if you have never played any instrument before. If you can't read music, learn the basics first; no point wasting the teacher's time on that.
Make sure you buy a decent student-quality instrument, not some horror off EBay. Yamaha and Buffet are the usual choices in England. Best to buy from a local music shop, if you can find one that stocks a reasonable number of wind instruments. Avoid shops that stock one clarinet and 101 electric guitars. If there is no local shop, there are several reputable mail-order dealers in England: for example, www.myatt.co.uk and www.dawkes.co.uk. The point of buying locally is not so you can "try before you buy", which is pointless if you're a complete beginner. It's so you have some assurance of help if the instrument requires adjustment.
An adequate clarinet will cost you upwards of £300. An adequate teacher is likely to cost upwards of £20 an hour, so you can see that lesson costs rapidly outstrip instrument costs.
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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: 2006-02-20 20:09
> I ... was wondering if I am a bit too old to learn!
No you're not.
Do get a teacher (even if ony for a year or so) - the start is crucial.
--
Ben
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Author: Don Poulsen
Date: 2006-02-20 20:42
As far as what instrument to play, which would you most enjoy making music with? Which sound do you like the most? (Would you prefer to listen to Jean-Pierre Rampal, Richard Stoltzman, Benny Goodman, or someone else?) The more you enjoy the instrument, the more you will be willing to put effort into learning to play and the better you will play.
(For those who think my list of performers above may not be complete or may not have some of the players they would prefer to listen to, you are right. I was listing a few that are more generally well-known.)
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Author: 3dogmom
Date: 2006-02-20 23:23
I second what Don said. Play what speaks to you the most, or you will always regret it. If you really love it, you'll do what it takes to make it work for you. Tyler gave good advice, too.
Sue Tansey
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Author: Tyler
Date: 2006-02-21 01:13
Yes, definitely make sure you're going to ENJOY whatever you choose to do. Otherwise, what's the point? And yes, get a teacher, but only by selecting one AFTER you have studied some literature and some backgrounds of different teachers in your area.
-Tyler
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Author: Chelley
Date: 2006-02-21 05:51
You are never too old to learn to play an instrument. There's a fellow in our Community Orchestra who learned to play the trumpet at 89 years old including learning to read music. He's now 92 ane thoroughly enjoying playing. It's truly a wonder!
Just do it and enjoy!
Chelley
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Author: Bassie
Date: 2006-02-21 07:22
If you're in Bristol, as your tag suggests, then get thee to John Packer in Taunton - amazing specialist shop, should be able to get you started with equipment whatever you choose.
Obviously I'm going to recommend clarinet on this forum ;-D
The instrument is a voice. What do you want to say?
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Author: BobD
Date: 2006-02-21 10:54
Learning the piano first offers many advantages and an electronic keyboard is probably an even better route for even more reasons. If later you decide to tackle the flute or clarinet or, heaven forbid, the oboe your piano/keyboard experience will help immensely. In time you could even accompany your friend ......to places beyond a restaurant.
Bob Draznik
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Author: D
Date: 2006-02-23 22:26
I play both flute and clarinet, but the flute simply doesn't do it for me - clarinet I enjoy playing even the scales! I don't think there is much difference in difficulty level between the two, a lot will depend on your own physical strenghts and weaknesses.
You could try seeing if a local music store will let you hire one of each for a month, you might find you hate both and would prefer a trumpet! Or you could buy both on your credit card and return whichever you like least. It's worth looking at an ex-rental or second hand reputable student model from a reputable dealer as a cheap way to start. And yes, lessons are an absolute must if you can afford them. Even every two weeks would be great.
The other thing to do as soon as you can (as soon as you can sort of read music) is find an easy adults/community band or orchestra that is happy to let you come along and try and play one note per bar. It makes a massive difference in your playing, sight reading and confidence to learn to play with other people. It's also jolly good fun, and a great way to make some new friends and contacts. Lots of these types of group only meet once a month or so, so it is not a great time commitment. Playing days are also great as they are infrequent enough that they don't interfere with the rest of your social life!
If you want something to play in a band/orchestra seriously, then pick oboe, basson or uphonium as these always seem to be in demand.
Whatever you end up with have a brilliant time.
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The Clarinet Pages
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