 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Ed Lowry
Date: 2012-01-20 01:40
I have always played with my fingers only slightly curved, with the holes of the clarinet leaving impressions on my finger pads nearly in the center of the last finger joint. Recently it was suggested to me that I should curve my fingers much more so that the tips of the fingers should be closing those holes at a significantly more acute angle -- probably between 30 and 45 degrees, and much further out on the length of the finger. Given the length of my fingers, this seems very cramped.
My question is this: is there a "preferred" or "optimal" angle and place on the 2-3-4 fingers of each hand where they should seal the tone holes of the clarinet during play?
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Author: Claire Annette
Date: 2012-01-20 01:57
I can't address angle, since it sounds like your fingers might be longer than mine, but I teach my students to seal the holes with the "squishiest" or fattest part of the finger pads. On my fingers, that isn't near the top finger joints. It's roughly located between the top joints and my finger tips.
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Author: kdk ★2017
Date: 2012-01-20 02:49
Optimal is the shape of your finger and the contact area between fingertips and holes that gives you the most control over the instrument. I find that a flexed finger shape with the "crown" of each fingertip in the holes for me produces the most control - the most even scale, the cleanest connections between notes that involve moving more than one finger, and the smoothest legato. I have short, somewhat pudgy fingers. I have students, generally with longer fingers relative to their hand size, who can't function with the curvature that I try to maintain. I've seen major players in major orchestras with fingers nearly straight out. Bagpipers, who have to cover smaller holes without metal rings, nearly always play with their fingers straight.
I don't think it's a good idea to lock your knuckles if you play with straighter fingers - I imagine that could slow you down as you need first to unlock the finger before you can move it.
The rings do make some difference. I have observed that, regardless of the shape of the fingers or the part of the finger that closes the hole, the result is better when the finger approaches the hole from directly above, so the motion of the fingertips is as vertical toward the hole as possible. The hole needs to close all at once, not gradually, and the ring needs to go down at the same time the hole is covered. Approaching from a sideways angle tends to result in closing the hole from back to front and pushing the ring sideways against the finger stack, which can make the ring's reaction sluggish.
My experience and observations only.
Karl
Post Edited (2012-01-20 12:56)
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Author: Barry Vincent
Date: 2012-01-20 03:54
Concerning the right hand fingers , if you have your thumb at the thumbrest too far down, that is , too far down from the tip of the thumb, almost off the thumbnail, you are not going to have good finger 'placement' on the tone holes. You will have to curve your fingers too much in order not to 'overhang' the rings. Bad technique. The thumbrest should be mostly against the thumbnail. The longer your fingers , the more important this is. The finger movement should be directly 'downwards' , the pads of the fingers making contact with the rings evenly. A good way of seeing what curvature the fingers should be is to hang your arms down in a relaxed way and observe the natural curvature of the fingers there. Then translate that to the instrument. But you must start with the correct thumb placement. The left hand fingers should have the same curvature.
Note, that quite often , the thumbrests on many clarinets are slightly too low. It's good to have an adjustable thumbrest and then you can try out various postitions. I also like Tom Ridnenours` thick rubber thumbrest that fits over the original. This opens up the hand more and makes for a more comfortable feel.
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Author: clarnibass
Date: 2012-01-20 04:47
>> My question is this: is there a "preferred" or "optimal" angle <<
Yes, 27.2 degrees... C of course...
The fact is, some players believe there is a "correct" way to play... and some, possibly equally good or better players, do it differently from that "correct" way. Playing with curvier fingers can be good sometimes, for more relaxed fingers (but not always). I've tried for years to change to curvier fingers but at some point decided I just play with straight fingers.
It's the suggestions that thumb rests are too low. Yes, for players who find them too low. Some players have tried to raise them and realized that the lower position is more comfortable to them.
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Author: Ken Shaw ★2017
Date: 2012-01-20 13:50
Here's a picture of Stanley Drucker http://www.google.com/imgres?um=1&hl=en&newwindow=1&safe=off&client=firefox-a&rls=org.mozilla:en-GB:official&biw=1652&bih=885&tbm=isch&tbnid=cuqxIV-DYhH_WM:&imgrefurl=http://entrepreneurthearts.wordpress.com/tag/lisas-clarinet-shop-hosts-stanley-drucker/&docid=vPMB5-AeDSxRJM&imgurl=http://entrepreneurthearts.files.wordpress.com/2009/10/stanley-drucker-2009-5-28-18-21-9-1.jpg&w=415&h=480&ei=NHsZT9C9KuHL0QHatvy4Cw&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=549&vpy=175&dur=1183&hovh=241&hovw=209&tx=115&ty=187&sig=113542304749999254205&page=1&tbnh=165&tbnw=140&start=0&ndsp=31&ved=1t:429,r:2,s:0.
Notice how straight his wrists are -- not cocked back -- and how his fingers touch on the pads, below the fingertips. Also, despite the visible tendons in his right hand, his fingers are incredibly relaxed.
If you subscribe to The Clarinet, or can find an issue in a library, look at the photo of Michael Webster, who writes a column in each issue. His hand position is ideal.
If you get circles impressed on your fingertips, you're pressing too hard. Alexander Williams (my teacher and principal in the NBC Symphony) said that when he was playing his best, his fingers felt weightless. Experiment with how lightly you can rest your fingertips on a hole and still get a good tone. Hold the clarinet out at 45 degrees and play low D. Then let your left ring finger plop down just by gravity, with no muscle assistance, so that it rests on the hole with no pressure. Then go from low C to Bb, where you use the absolute minimum pressure to get the rings down.
Ken Shaw
Post Edited (2012-01-21 19:05)
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Author: Paul Aviles
Date: 2012-01-21 18:57
Yes, actually finger pressure or lack of it is probably much more important. The idea is being able to move nimbly from one position to the other.
One other thing I'd like to mention somewhat related is that I had used sliver keys (and side key) a lot (started with the chromatic scale) for most scale scenarios but now come to find after ALL these years that sticking with the standard cross fingerings (ie F to F# throat notes) keeps the hands (fingers) IN POSITION better throughout the clarinet technique. All ya'll probably already knew that.
.................Paul Aviles
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Author: Ed Palanker
Date: 2012-01-21 20:49
Different players have different opionons of this subject. Here are my thoughts as I've always tought. Shape your fingers as if you are picking up a baseball. Your fingers will be nicely rounded. Then place your fingers on the holes on the soft fleshy part of the fingers, known also as the "balls" of your fingers. Depending on the size of your hand and fingers you may have to deviate slightly from the rounded shape a bit but try not to straighten your fingers out. Keep in mind that your fingers should not move by individual joints but as if each finger was only one piece lifting them from the knuckels not by the invidual joints. That's the best way to coordinate all your fingers, moving them from the same place. ESP eddiesclarinet.com
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