How To Play A Better B And C On The Clarinet?
November 11th, 2009 by admin | Filed under sports.I mean the middle B and C (the two just over the break with most fingers shut). I have played for a few years and I want to know what to practice to make my B and C come out more easily and so I can play them quickly.
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Breath support is usually the answer. Make sure you are sitting up straight, and breathe in deeply. Push from your diaphragm. Try putting more mouthpiece in your mouth.
its so hard to explain with typing!
I teach band, and I tutor this issue all the time. These are the things I run into.
1. make sure you are taking off the m.p and barrell for some controlled squeaking every day to build embochure.
2. Make sure your horn is in tip-top working order. If it is not oiled, leaky pads, etc this will work against you.
3. Make sure you come to the B and C from below and above in range.
4. Make sure the A you play before has right hand fingers down before you play B because half the work is done for you.
5. Practice it every day.
6. do the note without the octave key and then add the octave key.
7. if still problems after all this, get a teacher to look. It probably is a mouth-position, hand position thing that needs on-site management.
I played clarinet and bass clarinet in high school. Make sure your fingers are covering the holes all the way. Practice changing notes without playing the instrument first, and then practice slowly changing notes. Practice scales, small scales - like F, G, A, Bb (or B), C, D. It is one of those things that becomes easier with practice. Also, you’ll probably have to blow a little harder in order to play those notes. Do you also have trouble with the low E and F? Same fingering, but without the upper thumb part. Also, sit up straight, don’t slouch, breathe from your diagraphram and concentrate. Try not to take breathes from your upper chest (where your chest rises and you basically run out of air faster). Practice holding your breath so you can play at least 16 counts of whole notes. Practice going from a B, C, C#, D, Eb, with all the different fingerings, too. Scales work also. Good luck! And keep your reed in good condition, too!
None of these answers points to what is most likely your problem! You’ve played for a couple years, right? I bet you’ve never had the instrument adjusted? Take it to a good repairman and have all the pads checked for leaks. Your problem is almost certainly leakage.
As time goes on, the horn gets out of alignment. Get it fixed and many of your problems will magically go away!