Crash Course 2005

Clarinet

Step By Step…

This guide will help you to keep your instrument healthy.

This guide will lead you to producing good clarinet sounds.

This guide should make practice easy.

Start smart! Establish a quiet, secure place to assemble your instrument and begin to practice.

Put the case on the floor.

Put the reed in your mouth.

Take care of the corks

After following these steps, you are ready to put the reed on the instrument.

Grease all of the other corks, too. Wipe your fingers on your pants (if they are

washable). We will assemble the other pieces in a moment.

Grease cork of MP(mouthpiece)

Twist MP and Barrel together

Place ligature loosely onto MP

“Squeegee” the reed it needs to be moist, but not too wet

Where does good tone come from?

MP and Barrel

Ligature

The Reed and YOU

•Embouchure

•Ictus (tongue release)

•Air speed

•Air temperature

Reed Alignment What to do…

Lift the ligature with your left pointer finger

Put the reed butt onto the face of the MP

Slide the reed down using your right thumb

Wiggle the reed using your thumbs until there is a tiny black line of MP at the top of the reed

Reed Alignment…What NOT to do Don’t touch the paper thin edge

of the reed Don’t leave a big black space on

the side of the MP face beside the reed

Don’t make the reed stick up over the top of the MP

Don’t leave a big black stripe above the tip of the reed

Don’t tighten the screws too much

Don’t scrape the reed on your shoulder or arm and break the tip

Don’t use too many reeds, they cost money!!!

Add the Mouthpieceand Barrel

With the upper joint secure in your left hand, pick up the pre-assembled MP and barrel

Twist and push the two parts together

Avoid touching the rods that the arrow indicates

Assembling the Clarinet Body

Pick up the upper & lower joints

Put your hands on the instrument just like the picture

Twist (only a little) and push the parts together

Watch the key that the arrow is pointing to, the metal needs to align and not bend.

The Bell Keep the right hand on the

lower joint Pick up the bell in the left

hand Twist and push the bell onto

the lower joint Be sure that your fingers are

not on or bending the rods that the arrow points to

Playing your first “good note”… Hold the half-clarinet at the barrel

with your right hand Form an embouchure (mouth

formation for making musical sound)

Embouchure

Top teeth touch MPBottom lip stretches

over bottom teethSeal corners of mouth

With the left hand ready to cover holes, blow cool, fast air through the instrument

The note “G”!

Practice playing the note G on any rhythm pattern you can create. Write some patterns down. Play each pattern in one breath.

The note G

Practice playing the note F on any rhythm pattern you can create. Write some patterns down. Play each pattern in one breath.

The note F

Practice playing the note E on any rhythm pattern you can create. Write some patterns down. Play each pattern in one breath.

The note E

Practice playing the note D on any rhythm pattern you can create. Write some patterns down. Play each pattern in one breath.

The note D

Practice playing the note C on any rhythm pattern you can create. Write some patterns down. Play each pattern in one breath.

The note C

Playing combinations of notesUse the notes C, D, E, F, and/or G to create short melodies

Create your own melodies

Try to use every note that you know Use different rhythm patterns

When you are done practicing… If you need to stop for

a moment, then place your clarinet in a safe location. Teachers put their instruments on a peg stand or rest them on the case. Remember to keep the keys “up”.

Clean the clarinet, put in its case

Remove reed, dry it. put it in

it’s caseSwab in

Swab through

Sw

ab

ou

t

Dissemble the clarinetRemove Bell

Place lower joint into case

Finish putting the clarinet away

Place upper joint in case Place barrel in case

Finally, put the mouthpiece away and latch the case securely.