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Re: Anti-gurgling protocol

Author: kdk ★2017
Date: 2017-09-20 23:25

Bottom line, water condenses from your breath as you play and eventually (or sooner) runs down the bore. If it goes toward a tonehole, it collects in the hole and causes gurgling. The most effective way of preventing the gurgles is to swab often. It doesn't take very long to swab a clarinet - the biggest headache is having the reed move when you take the mouthpiece off, so keep the mouthpiece cork well-lubed.

You don't need a routine of "every 4th song." Some songs are longer than others, and if you're actually playing a solo piece or other material that isn't just a 32 or 48 bar song form, the number of pieces becomes irrelevant.

You'll get more condensate in the bore at the beginning of your practice session when the clarinet is cooler - your breath still goes in at 98+ degrees. You may need routinely to swab after the first four or five minutes. After that not as much.

You'll get more condensate in the bore if the environment is chilly - the air inside the clarinet will be cooled, keeping the clarinet walls cooler. Your breath is still going in at 98+ degrees. You may need to swab at every opportunity in an air-conditioned room and not wait for 4 songs to go by.

You can use a brush if you want to. I don't think they have as much surface contact with the bore as a cloth swab of the right size and my experience with brushes is that they move water around more than they absorb and remove it.

Whenever you swab, if there's already gurgling going on, you have to blot the water that's already there out of the hole. You can work a cloth swab under most pads, close the pad on it to wick out the water and take it out after you've swabbed the bore. Many people use cigarette paper, which is very thin so it goes under even hard-to-reach pads and very absorbent.

I would never recommend tilting the mouthpiece. Unless you're also twisting your head, you're probably putting more pressure on one side of the reed.

If (as I remember you were earlier) you're using Légère reeds, my experience with them is that they shed more water, leading to bubbling toneholes sooner than with cane, so I have to swab more than I do with cane.

If what you're doing works, then it works given what you're playing and where you're playing it. But it isn't useful IMO as a general prescription for others to follow.

Karl

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