- Teeth on Top of the Mouthpiece?
One of the most common things that young clarinetists hear as
they receive their initial instruction in the formation of the
embouchure is, "Put your upper teeth on the top of the
mouthpiece." The
problem with this concept is that it can cause the student to
put the
mouthpiece into the mouth at an angle more appropriate for the
saxophone than for the clarinet. When I've worked with private
students
who play with the clarinet held at too outward an angle I ask
them to
think of placing the mouthpiece behind the top teeth. This has
worked
well to encourage a proper angle. As I demonstrated at the
clinic,
having the angle too far outward or too straight up and down
can cause
pitch, timbre, and response problems. Moderation should be
exercised;
however, if the standard "teeth on the top of the mouthpiece"
method
has your clarinet students bringing the mouthpiece into the
mouth at
too severe an angle, try asking them to put the tip of the
mouthpiece
behind their top teeth.
We had a side discussion at the clinic on mouthpiece patches.
There are several schools of thought on this subject.
Generally, I find
that they help students who tend to have the mouthpiece
sliding around
in their mouths. The rubber patches also tend to give one a
better
sense of how they really sound, due to the fact that they tend
to
reduce the conduction of vibrations through the bone structure
to the
inner ear. Some clarinetists teach that not using patches
allows for
better hearing of intonation: one can actually "feel" when one
is out
of tune. I've studied with teachers of both the pro-patch
(David Hite)
and anti-patch (James Pyne) schools. They both have valid
points. The
use of a mouthpiece patch seems to be a very personal thing. I
have
seen them help my students with the sliding problem and with
comfort,
but I prefer using a naked mouthpiece, as I find that (for me)
a patch
can mask a brightness in my sound of which I become aware only
when I
play without the patch.
- Where Should the Lower Lip Go?
Give credit where credit is due, I always say. One of the
most
amazing musicians I've known is Dr. Donald McGinnis, who was
my
advanced conducting teacher at Capital University when he
filled a
one-year vacancy in the Conservatory. Anyway, Dr. McGinnis
gave a
clarinet clinic at OMEA several years ago and did something
that
provided a wonderful visualization of the optimal placement of
the
bottom lip on the reed. He took a piece of paper (clean, of
course) and
slipped it between the reed and the mouthpiece until he felt
some
tension. This clearly marked the point at which the mouthpiece
curves
away from the reed. This is the fulcrum point. Try this and
you'll be
surprised at just how far down the reed it is with most of the
mouthpieces used today. Generally, I find that students are
more apt
not to place enough mouthpiece in their mouths than the other
way
around. Listen for the infamous "undertone" sound in the upper
register, flatness in the upper register, a thin (maybe buzzy)
sound on
extremely low notes--these are clues that you should check to
see where
the student is placing the bottom lip. They could be
indicative of
other problems, but I've found that lower lip placement is
more often
than not the cause.
- But, the notes my beginners play sound fine...
Sure, if they are playing everything below the register
break,
an incorrect angle or too little or too much mouthpiece in the
mouth
will not cause huge tuning and timbre problems for the student
(or for
your ears!!!). Please don't base the embouchure on the low
register. It
works much better to develop an embouchure that produces good
sounding
second register notes and use that embouchure down low than
getting an
adequate sound down low and hoping that it transfers to the
second
register.
- Do We Attack Notes or Release Notes?
Ah, the age-old question... Without going into all the
details,
please allow me to suggest that as an OMEA adjudicator and as
a private
teacher who sometimes has to help students undo bad habits,
clarinet
students would do well to use the articulation system that my
teacher
David Hite used to teach:
- Step 1 -- Place the tongue against the reed. The concept
is
one of closing the reed against the mouthpiece tip rail.
It's like
shutting off a valve.
- Step 2 -- Build up air pressure. Since the "valve" is shut
off, the air has nowhere to go; it is just at the ready.
- Step 3 -- Open the valve, release the air.
Articulation really is more complicated than we have time or
space on this web page, but Mr. Hite's suggestions to his
students all
those years ago have helped me to help students who use
glottal
attacks, who don't tongue at all, or who ease into the starts
of notes.
Give the three-step process a try not just to solve problems
but to
help avoid them in the first place.
- Should We Use the Tip of the Tongue Against the Tip of the
Reed?
I took an unscientific, strictly informal poll at my OMEA
session on tips for advancing clarinetists on this question. A
large
number of non-clarinetist band directors have learned this and
teach
it. I find that if I try to articulate this way, my tongue
position
suffers, I have to put too little mouthpiece in my mouthpiece,
the
articulation gets "clicky," etc. My suggestion is to use a
point on the
tongue that feels comfortable, a little ways back from the tip
and aim
for a point a few millimeters away from the tip of the reed.
- What Would Rampal Do?
Who? Jean-Pierre Rampal, the great French flutist? Yes. One
of
the common left-hand position problems I see as a teacher and
as an
adjudicator is keeping the left wrist too straight. While the
right
fingers should be roughly perpendicular to the body of the
clarinet,
the same is not true of the left fingers. A wrist that's too
straight
will tend to draw the left index finger away from the "A" key,
causing
problems negotiating the register break and doing things like
slurring
from throat-tone F-sharp to A. Cal me irresponsible, but I
actually
(VERY LIGHTLY) rest my index finger against the G-sharp key
and use a
flute-like left hand position. Many teachers and books insist
that one
never lean against the keys; however, I find that for me, the
spring
tension is such that I can "get away with it" on the G-sharp
key. I
never teach students to lean against the key, but I do try to
get them
to adopt a more flute-like left hand position: look at your
watch when
you're playing; hold a tray in your left hand like a
waitperson in a
restaurant--all of those standard images. Again, call me
irresponsible,
but if a student does touch the G-sharp key I don't "correct"
them, as
long as they aren't opening the key.
I also recommend using the concept of a waiter or waitress
holding a tray as a way of getting some bend into the wrist:
As your younger students work on left-hand technique, I
suggest
that you have them slur carefully from throat F-sharp to A,
keeping it
smooth, even, and without blips or unintended "grace notes."
Also the E
to A and E to B-flat intervals are helpful. Careful
preparation on
these intervals will pay off when the student works on the
register
break.
- How Firm Should My Finger Action Be?
The point of this question at the clinic was that I tend to
see
(and hear!) young students underfingering much more than
overfingering.
I usually ask my students to drop their fingers with weight.
Listen for
lack of connection between slurred notes or mini-glissandi. if
you hear
these, ask your student to speed up and maybe firm up the
finger action.
One of the questions that came up at the clinic revolved
around
problems younger students--and particularly smaller
students--have with
the right-hand ring finger sliding off the hole when the
player tries
to use the four pinky keys. I suggest making a box with the
pinky while
concentrating on continuing to cover the third hole with the
ring
finger (G, F, G, E, F-sharp, G, G-sharp, etc. and then making
the box
in the reverse direction). I like to use the analogy of
geletin with
kids. If you have a plate with a square of Jello and slightly
move the
plate from side to side, you will see the top of the Jello
move or
undulate a little, but the Jello won't be sliding around on
the plate.
The ring finger can be like this: the top part will move a
little as we
use the various pinky keys, but don't let the Jello slide off
the plate!
- Slurs Are your Friends When Practicing
I try to keep this in mind with my beginners and with
advanced
students, and in my own practicing. Slurring can expose a host
of
technical problems (weak finger action, lack of finger
coordination,
and uneven playing). I believe that sometimes teachers do a
better job
of keeping this in mind when working with more advanced
students than
with the younger players. Why not, though, get our students
started off
using the slur as a practice device?
- Rule No. 1: Different brands of clarinets and different brands
of
mouthpieces tune differently.
Although I am a clinician for Conn-Selmer, I fully respect
all
the reasons people cite for using Yamahas and Buffets, just to
name two
prominent non-Selmer brands. The fact is, though, that each
manufacturer and really each model of clarinet will have
slightly
different tuning tendencies. The same is true of mouthpieces.
And, the
issue is not just with intonation, but also with timbre, which
is a
function of the overtone structure and wave shapes.
Differences in
intonation and timbre have a huge effect on blend within the
clarinet
section. No matter what your personal preferences are with
regards to
clarinets and mouthpieces, if your students are using the same
equipment--all other things being equal--I believe that they
will blend
and tune better. I suggest working with the local music
retailer
closely when structuring a rental program for your beginners.
If the
students are all using the same equipment, you can be more
confident
that you are comparing apples with apples (to use a tried and
true
cliche) than you can if your clarinet section is a mix of
Vito, Yamaha,
Bundy, Buffet R-13, and Selmer whatever.
- Clarinets
At the clinic, I did not make specific recommendations about
clarinets. Yamaha, Selmer, Buffet, and Leblanc all make nice
wooden
student and "step-up" clarinets that work well. I tend not to
be super
thrilled with plastic clarinets, but the plastic clarinets of
those
brands listed above work fine. Just keep in mind the
all-important
"Rule No. 1" above, though...
- Mouthpieces and Reeds
I will make two specific recommendations with regards to
mouthpieces: the David Hite Premiere and the James Pyne
student
mouthpiece both work very well and are very cost effective.
But, don't
mix them -- they have different timbre and tuning tendencies.
Try to
figure out which matches your concept of what a young
clarinetist's
sound should be and do try to have all your beginners use the
same
brand/model of mouthpiece.
Reeds need to be matched to the mouthpiece and the player, so
there's not a general rule of thumb I use with regards to
"start on a
2-1/2, progress to a 3 in six months," etc. And, keep in mind
that reed
strengths vary a great deal even within one manufacturer.
Here's an
example: I play on Rico's Grand Concert Select Thick Blank #4
reeds on
my Dan Johnston mouthpiece. I can't use the Rico Grand Concert
Select
Regular Blank reeds, nor can I play on the Rico Grand Concert
Select
Evolution #4 reeds. All three of these come from the same
company, have
the same basic generic name, but all three have quite
different
measurements and playing tendencies.
- Ligatures
After the clinic, I was talking with one of our Mount Union
College alums who told me that for his Masters thesis he did a
study of
ligatures. He found that ligatures affect intonation far more
than we
might typically suspect. I know that they also affect
response, feel,
and timbre. My recommendations are the following: Rico's new
Harrison-style ligature, the inverted Bonade ligature (when I
use these
I cut the middle out, but that's another story and certainly
is not
necessary for your beginners!), or the Rovner ligature. A high
school
band director friend of mine outfitted his entire clarinet
section with
Rovners and found an immediate improvement in high register
response
and a dramatic decrease in the amount of "grunt" or
"undertone" on high
A, B, and C. They are also much more difficult to smash or
otherwise
destroy than other ligatures. There are a few disadvantages,
but the
biggest one is that it is more difficult to get a Rovner
adjusted
exactly the same way twice in a row than it is with metal
ligatures. I
think that for most of our students, though, the advantages
outweigh
the disadvantages.
- Barrels, to "Click" or Not to "Click"
Adjustable clarinet barrels at one time had the reputation
for
producing a bright tone. the current generation of adjustable
barrels
don't seem to have this problem. Some band directors swear by
them --
the barrels can help get the section in tune when used
properly. Some
band directors, however, swear at them -- there's nothing
worse than
having your clarinet players clicking up and down at random
while you
are working with the trumpets and them listening to the
intonation of
the clarinets when you put everything back together. I think
that the
barrels work fine, but only you know to what extent random
adjusting of
the barrels might spell disaster in your band. I have not
clearly
identified a trend, but it seems to me that more band
directors have
decided that taking the chance is not worth the risk.
Link to Dr.
Perone's
home page. You will find a mail-to link there if you'd like
to e-mail
questions or comments. You will also find a link to notes
from my 2001
OMEA clinic on clarinet tone and a link to my February 5,
2005 clinic
that addressed the needs of advancing clarinetists.