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 mp and clarinet position
Author: 2cekce 2017
Date:   2011-03-24 13:53

hello pros and nonpros alike I was wondering since I didnt really see a reason on the vandoren website between profile 88 and traditional beak angles,
what position or angle would the clarinet be placed in for each of the beak angles to provide for optimum voicing. the clarinet position I'm referring to is whether the instrument is closer to you or further away. Or is there another reason they(vandoren) decided to provide a different beak angle?

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 Re: mp and clarinet position
Author: kdk 
Date:   2011-03-24 15:09

I think the Profile 88 beak was probably suggested by clarinetists who preferred the sensation of a firmer, more "focused" smaller embouchure aperture around the mouthpiece without necessarily having to take less reed length into the mouth. Whether this sensation actually equates to a different sound or level of control is completely subjective, of course.

The angle of your clarinet when you play is equally subjective and depends among other things on your dental structure, the mouthpiece/reed style you prefer and the type of sound and response you expect to come out of your instrument. Optimal voicing again depends often on situational needs. I find my instrument angle changing from one situation to another. It isn't, I don't think, dictated by the shape of the mouthpiece beak.

Karl

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 Re: mp and clarinet position
Author: Bob Phillips 
Date:   2011-03-24 16:49

I agree with Karl.

Mouthpiece positioning depends on the reed side, not the upper (teeth) side.

The angle the clarinet makes with your head and the amount of insertion determine the reed-to-lip contact position --and to some extent the way that the airstream enters the tip and sides of the mouthpiece.

The thinner beak of the 88 series requires your lower jaw to close a bit more to bring your lower teeth and lip up to the reed --so that will probably require you to "feel" for the right place to put the instrument.

If I bring the horn into my belly, the sound gets pinched. If that rocks the mouthpiece around the upper teeth contact point, it pushes the reed further up into my mouth.

With coaching, I experiment with the clarinet's position towards and away from my body WHILE fiddling with the where my lower lip sits on the reed.

It is really possible to pinch off the sound by using a bad mouthpiece position and angle.

Bob Phillips

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 Re: mp and clarinet position
Author: Paul Aviles 
Date:   2011-03-24 17:42

I find that angle is a matter of what you "get used to."

The reason for trying a tight angle (in to the body) is that the fulcrum in "on your side" for embouchure pressure. This way you also have the added benefit of not having the pressure directly down upon your lower teeth.

As for the pinching, you just need to play with it to avoid this result. Harold Wright did just fine with the clarinet in.



...................Paul Aviles



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 Re: mp and clarinet position
Author: Ed Palanker 
Date:   2011-03-24 22:07

A lot depends on the formation of your teeth. If you have an over bite or an underbite you will have to angle the instrument differently. One of the "OLD" schools of playing was to have the clarinet very close to the body, in modern times people have gotten away from that. Find what's most comfortable and gives you the best tone and control. I use a Morgan, that has a very thin long beak and it took be a little time to get used to it but I loved the tone so I stuck with it. After a few weeks it was a love affair. ESP http://eddiesclarinet.com

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