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Re: High flow/Low flow

Author: kdk ★2017
Date: 2016-04-30 19:52

bassclarinet101 wrote:

> High flow and low flow mouthpieces is probably referring to the
> way Arthur Benade discusses the clarinet mouthpiece in his book
> on Musical Acoustics. A high flow mouthpiece-reed combination
> will allow a lot of air through the instrument at one time,
> while a low-flow mouthpiece-reed combination will only allow a
> little air through the instrument at a given time.
>

OK. Does the flow rate directly affect the acoustical result or only the player's physical reactions needed to produce the result he/she wants? Can a musically educated listener hear the difference or is it another of those things that players feel but audiences don't notice? Were (or are, to the extent they still exist) specific "schools" of clarinet playing dependent on one or the other type of mouthpiece for their characteristic styles?

Although Mondie in the video is discussing (Vandoren) mouthpieces and reeds, he refers not to "high" or "low" flow mouthpieces or mouthpiece/reed combinations, but to the clarinet system as a whole. So how does the explanation you've suggested extend to the rest of the system?

And one other question occurs to me, as I think about it. We often discuss (argue about?) fast air/slow air. To the extent that we're actually talking about the forward velocity of the air we blow through the mouthpiece and into the instrument, how does that interact with the flow rate? Greater flow = less pressure = less velocity? I would expect a more restricted airway (closer tip opening, higher tongue position, smaller instrument bore) to result in higher pressure, greater velocity and lower flow rate throughout the system. Presumably, the converse would also be true.

I find this engaging mostly because it deals (I think or at least hope) in a physical property of fluids (e.g. air) and not a folkloric psychological concept or a set of terms relying on visual parallels (you know the words I mean). I will go back and look at Benade again.

Karl

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