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Re: Overblow on 12th

Author: kdk ★2017
Date: 2016-08-13 22:21

mmatisoff wrote:

>BTW, I have
> problems going from Bb to F and coming down from F to Bb.

Have you tried the closed F fingering (TR xxxAb | xxx)? It tends to speak easier than the regular fingering in leaps.
regarding overblowing A5 to F6,

> I find that I'm changing my embouchure ever so slightly to
> make the jump. I find the same to hold true going from Bb to D.
> Do some notes require changes in embouchure?

Ideally, no, at least not a conscious one. If the reed is responsive and your air stream is continuous, Bb to D shouldn't need any change and A to F6 using either your fingering or the closed one would only need one to control the intonation. BTW, I tried that fingering last night and was surprised to find that it did produce a slightly sharp F6 - much closer to F than to F# as I had expected. Still, to use it on my clarinet, I'd have to find a way by either a change inside my mouth or some mechanical method (closing a key somewhere farther down the instrument) to bring the pitch down a smidge. And it doesn't slur easily. I should have realized that A would overblow close to F because one of the alternate fingerings for F#6 is to overblow Bb5, so it's consistent with clarinet idiosyncrasies, if not with the harmonic series that's involved.

Coming down, in my experience, is usually a problem for my students because they do make a significant change in embouchure or they reduce their air stream (or both) to coax the lower note to speak. I find the best result comes from not slackening my embouchure at all (and certainly not tightening it). The reed seems to need that stability to remain under control. I'm sure there are players with other approaches, so in the end you may need to experiment a little.

Karl

Post Edited (2016-08-13 23:11)

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