 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: conrad
Date: 2021-03-15 15:10
Any advice on making high notes mellow rather than shrill
Conrad
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Author: kilo
Date: 2021-03-15 21:46
You can make them sound better but I think there will always be an element of shrillness, especially when played at volume. Here's a tip from Langenus, Part II:
Quote:
Many players are under the impression that it is necessary to use lip pressure to make high notes on the clarinet; while in fact the less pressure used the easier the high notes respond. To prove this play this G ![[G5]](http://test.woodwind.org/clarinet/BBoard/smileys/g5.gif) Sustain it for two beats and, without changing the embouchure, turn the index finger downward so that it uncovers half the hole and the high E will come out, not only with great facility but with nice quality and smoothness of tone.
This partial uncovering of the hole has many advantages and should be patiently studied, for it enables one to slur from a lower interval to many of the high notes with the greatest ease and as softly as you wish.
Of course, regular practice really helps — you need to be certain of your altissimo fingerings to maintain the flow of your musical line and avoid any unseemly hesitation.
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Author: Philip Caron
Date: 2021-03-16 23:02
Hi Conrad. The Langenus tip above is good: it should lessen any unnecessary embouchure changes. It could also improve voicing. In the example, when slurring from G5 to E6, you need to make zero change in tongue position, because tongue position would be set beforehand to voice both notes.
Some advise to arch the tongue toward the roof of the mouth to voice altissimo notes, and that's roughly right, but you can maintain that arch full time without "unvoicing" any other notes. You want the tongue lightly tensioned for it's entire length. That will serve to reinforce resonance all along your internal air column. Arching produces part of that tension, though to my mind supportive tongue positioning is a little more complicated than simply arching. The idea is that the instrument's whole normal range, including altissimo, is voiced by supporting muscles, including the tongue, all the time. Then, any interval will speak smoothly and well. Further, sound quality note-to-note will tend to match.
Routinely practice altissimo. Extend scales and scale patterns. Practice intervals like octaves, trying to make the sound "match" without changing anything besides fingers. Work on articulation - that's a pretty important way to tell how well you're supporting resonance. (Plus, you need to be able to do it without altering the tongue's supportive function.) None of this requires complicated manipulations or any strain whatsoever. It's about maintaining light tension and good positioning.
Note, the above is just my opinion, and I am just a guy online.
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Author: kdk
Date: 2021-03-16 23:31
conrad wrote:
> Any advice on making high notes mellow rather than shrill
>
At a much more basic level, you need a responsive reed. Not a hard reed and certainly not one that closes too easily (too soft), but one that vibrates without much effort from you and is well balanced.
Karl
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Author: EbClarinet
Date: 2021-03-25 02:03
notes in the altissimo register have 2 b voiced
I do this all the time on Eb clarinet which has made me much better on Bb
https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/mbtldsongministry/
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