[Dixielandjazz] Clarinet Newbie

Tue Jul 10 20:59:34 PDT 2007

Please, above all get a teacher.  The clarinet is full of pitfalls for the 
beginner that is trying to teach himself.  I know because I did it.  Russ 
alludes to the cross fingerings and there are alternate fingerings that 
sometimes beginners try to use that just aren't good such as using the 
sliver keys.  It's easier to learn it right in the first place.

For heavens sake do not take up the Soprano sax as someone suggested until 
you have about 20 years in on the saxes and then probably not.  Even Sidney 
Bechet quit the first time he attempted soprano because he couldn't play it 
in tune.    That vibrato he had would mask the intonation problems of the 
instrument and that may be the reason he had such a wide vibrato.

The soprano sounds like a duck in the low register and something entirely 
different in the high and unless you are an accomplished player it will stay 
that way.  Unless you have good chops and a very good ear do not attempt the 
Soprano.

One time I opened a sax book and the very first sentence in the forward was 
"The saxophone is the easiest instrument to play badly."  That is the truest 
thing I ever read and it has stuck with me.

I find that you need much stronger chops to play Soprano than Clarinet.  The 
clarinet will play a pretty good sound even for a beginner and other than 
some intonation problems that are inherent in the thought tones (G,A, Bb) is 
pretty good until you get above the staff.  There the clarinet is like a 
trombone.  I can slip to any note between A and C above the staff, fingering 
C, using lip only so intonation can be a real problem for some people up 
there.  Some of my high school students never learn to play up there.  They 
are often a whole tone flat because their chops aren't strong enough to play 
in tune.  Then they try to compensate by biting which ruins their tone and 
makes the lip sore.  Fortunately there is the third clarinet chair.

The Soprano has a whole different angle of attack and because of the angle 
requires more muscle power than clarinet.  The lower lip on clarinet is 
supported by the teeth but the soprano because of the more straight in angle 
gets the sharp edge of the teeth.  So to have a good tone and keep the lip 
from getting sore you have to have chops that are strong and can support the 
reed / mouthpiece without biting.  By the way that's true on clarinet too. 
That monster vibrato that Bechet had also would have the effect of releasing 
the pressure if he was using a chin vibrato but I think he may have been 
using a thought vibrato which is ordinarily a very bad practice.

Let me repeat, get a teacher and for heavens sake stay away from the 
soprano.  It just isn't a beginner instrument.  It's true the Clarinet is 
more complex but don't be mislead by the easier fingerings of the sax.
Larry
St. Louis
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Russ Guarino" <russg at redshift.com>
To: "Larry Walton" <larrys.bands at charter.net>
Cc: "Dixieland Jazz Mailing List" <dixielandjazz at ml.islandnet.com>
Sent: Tuesday, July 10, 2007 3:00 PM
Subject: Re: [Dixielandjazz] Clarinet Newbie

> The clarinet is more complex with respect to fingering than the flute and 
> I would recommend a teacher rather than a book to learn how
> to play the horn. For maximum efficiency, certain fingering patterns are 
> used under one set of circumstances while different
> fingerings are used under other circumstances.
>
> Russ Guarino
>
> Russ Guarino
>
> Bob Loomis wrote:
>
>>    Just rented a Bb clarinet from a local music
>> store to try out as I'm hankering to play some
>> trad/Dixieland but flute just doesn't quite cut
>> it for that genre. Picked up a 2-CD set of Benny
>> Goodman trios and quartets yesterday, too. Have
>> some Bechet CDs.
>>    So far it seems possible I might in time learn
>> to actually play clarinet fairly well. I have a
>> beginner's book with CDs and already have learned
>> a few notes in lower register (A, G, F, E, D, C,
>> Bb) but thought maybe someone on this very
>> knowledgeable list knows of worthwhile
>> Web/self-educational resources ... Thanks in
>> advance!
>>
>> Bob Loomis
>> Concord CA
>>
>>
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