 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: DavidR
Date: 2008-09-02 19:09
Newbie here, so here's my question. why are the clarinet and other instruments tuned differently? Why does a piano C sound like a B-flat on the clarinet? why aren't all the instruments tuned the same?
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Author: NorbertTheParrot
Date: 2008-09-02 21:42
"Why does a piano C sound like a B-flat on the clarinet?"
Only if it is a clarinet in D, a rare beast these days.
On an ordinary Bb clarinet, a piano C corresponds to a D on the clarinet; a paino Bb to a C on the clarinet.
But - as well as getting your facts wrong - you are thinking about this in the wrong way. The instruments are tuned the same, to concert A=440 Hz. What is different is the conventional way in which music is written for the instruments. Piano (and flute, oboe, violin etc etc) music is written so that concert C is written as C. Clarinet (and trumpet, tenor sax etc) music is written so that concert C is written as D. Horn (that is to say, "French" horn) music so that concert C is written G. Alto and baritone sax music so that concert C is written A.
This is all to do with notational conventions, not with anything intrinsic to the instruments.
But why? I've restated your question, but not answered it. It has, I think, been discussed many times before on this board. You might want to do a search on transposing instrument, or look at the Wikipedia page http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transposing_instrument. Just bear in mind that (as Wikipedia points out) "transposing instrument" is a thoroughly misleading term. A better (if more verbose term) would be "instrument conventionally notated in a transposed key".
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Author: Ed Palanker
Date: 2008-09-03 01:45
There is a clarinet in C, just like the piano, flute etc., it just isn’t used much except in older music and most of us transpose it from a Bb clarinet. When the clarinet was first invented it had very few keys so it could not play many sharps and flats so they developed a clarinet in different keys to compensate. Over time the Bb and A become the most popular due to their warmer tone quality. There is a clarinet tuned in D, Eb, F, and I believe there was even one in G at some time. If the C clarinet became the most popular we won’t be having this conversation, sort of. ESP www.peabody.jhu.edu/457 Listen to a little Mozart
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Author: Noqu
Date: 2008-09-03 10:15
Maybe it helps to view the question from a different angle. As Ed pointed out, there was a time when you just needed a couple of different clarinets in order to be able to play in all keys. The question was how to make it easy for clarinetists to play all these different clarinets.
Let's assume you have a C-clarinet and a Bb clarinet. When you leave all tone holes open on the C clarinet, you will hear the tone G. On the Bb clarinet, you will hear the tone F.
Imagine you have to play both instruments - would you like to learn different fingerings depending on which instrument you play? Rather not, that's why the notation was adapted instead. All clarinets are notated in a way so that the notated tones correspond to the same fingerings. When I see the tone G notated, I know I have to leave all tone holes open, regardless whether I play an A, Bb, C or Eb clarinet.
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Author: marshall
Date: 2008-09-04 04:10
Noqu wrote:
> As
> Ed pointed out, there was a time when you just needed a couple
> of different clarinets in order to be able to play in all keys.
These days, you just need one clarinet to be able to play in all keys.
:p
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Author: mrn
Date: 2008-09-04 17:39
marshall wrote:
<<These days, you just need one clarinet to be able to play in all keys.>>
Although you sometimes need more than one clarinet to play different ranges. The A clarinet can play one note lower than the Bb.
And keys with sharps in them are still easier to play on the A clarinet than the Bb, while flat keys are easier on the Bb. Generally, speaking you need only a Bb clarinet if you're playing in a band (and most solo works are written for the Bb clarinet). Orchestra musicians usually carry both A and Bb clarinets (mainly because string players like to play in keys with sharps in them). (Orchestral trumpet players do a similar thing with Bb and C trumpets, while band music is pretty much all written for Bb trumpet.)
(BTW, I know you know this, Marshall--I'm not really responding to you, even though I quoted your post. I just thought I'd throw this in for the benefit of the original poster).
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Author: Philcoman
Date: 2008-09-04 20:13
OK. So why don't we call the "D" on a Bb clarinet the "C," etc?
"If you want to do something, you do it, and handle the obstacles as they come." --Benny Goodman
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Author: davidsampson
Date: 2008-09-05 02:10
Because then you would have to relearn fingerings every time you swapped to a clarinet in a different key. To go to an A clarinet, you would have to relearn 3-finger D from "C" to "Db".
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