How to get best tone quality on a clarinet?

Question

when you play upper register noteshow do you change your embesure so its more in tune?

Answer 1

You shouldn't really have to change your embouchure in order for the tone to sound better. Of course you have to make sure that your chin is straight and that you are not biting the reed and that there is not too much jaw pressure around the reed. Remember, the reed needs to vibrate as much as it can so the notes can resonate. Good tone in the upper register takes time and patience--learning to listen to other professional recordings and listening to yourself. You should buy a tuner if you do not already have one. You should do long tones in the upper register every single day before you play so you can warm up your mouth and clarinet. The more practice and patience you have, the better your tone will get over time. Tone isn't something you have overnight....the best players in the world had to start out working on their tone and technique. Much love babe♥

Answer 2

Hey, well, most of what has been said is correct.  There are different schools of thought when it comes to tone production and embouchesure.  With me, with the upper register, you keep the same exact setting that you had in the lower register in order to keep tone consistency and quality.  Now this brings up what is the ideal setting.  Here is where I disagree with the person above :) (no offense :) ).  You keep your chin flat and pointed, thus brining your jaw down, which leaves room in your mouth for the reed to vibrate more.  Now, instead of bringing your corners back as in a small smile, bring them foward towards your lips as in a small pucker.  This forms a small cusion to help produce a more rounded, deep sound.  The upper lip should have a strong "hold" on the top of the mouthpiece to help with this.  The tongue should be places as HIGH as comfortably possibly.  This allows for more focused air, thus a more focused sound.  At first when you try to achieve a high tongue position, you get tired easily.  This is solved by long tones.  Now there are many long tones, such as those suggested by the person above. If you would like more, don't mind messaging me.  As far as intonation, if you do all thse right, you will find the clarinet and even your individual one has its own tendencies, which you will have to learn how to deal with.  Hope this helps!

Answer 3

The three basic things you can do to get it more in tune is:

1) Make sure your posture is ok. If your posture isn't correct, then your breath support won't be very good and it will definitely affect not only the tuning but the sound.

2) Use not necessarily more are, but try to push it out faster. If the instrument has more air to work with, the sound will be much better.

3) Try rolling your bottom lip a bit when you get up into the higher register. This will tighten the reed a bit and definitely make it more in tune. It takes a while to get used to, but it helps a lot

Answer 4

The other poster was right in a lot of ways... but there are a couple things you can do with your tongue and throat position that help with those high notes...

First, you should have a good embochure to begin with... slight bottom lip pulled over teeth, corners of your mouth pulled back towards your ears, chin flat.  When you tongue, do so while looking in a mirror... if your jaw is moving, your lips are too loose or you are biting too hard... either way, fix it before you try to play the upper octaves.

Once that is good and settled, try this...

Play long tones in your low octave.  Pay attention to how your throat feels... it should be nice and open.  The back of your tongue should be ever so slightly raised, as if you were saying the "eh" sound (like net).

Now go to the throat tones (first space "F" to middle line "Bb")... to play these in tune and add some body to them, you should add extra fingers (all of the right hand and the right pinky f/c key).  Once you do that, pay attentiion to what your throat and tongue are doing... your throat should still be fairly open, but your tongue will be raised just a bit more... like the "ey" sound (like the end of "day").

Over the break, you just need to support and make sure your embochure is solid.  Usually, when you squeak going over the break, it's because the tendancy is to relax on throat tones... then when you try to play over the break, it is VERY hard.  Your throat will close up just a TAD more, but don't over do it- this "D" and "E" run a bit sharp anyways, so no need to help it out!

Go to the top of staff "G"... from here up, your throat will begin to get a bit tighter.  While this is good, don't make it too tight.  Try to think about relaxing it or else you'll make it sound like your clarinet is choking.  Now with your tongue, think about a hard "eee" sound (like the "i" in the word "sing").  Push this forward in your tongue just a little bit... this should help direct the airflow so that it is faster (you still need good support!) and it will help you get it into tune easier.  

Be aware also, that high "F" is a pain... it is naturally unstable.  If you can't pop this out after some practice, try alternate fingerings.  Here's a chart:

http://www.wfg.woodwind.org/clarinet/cl_...

You don't ever want to bite your way to the high notes.  This will only give you a horribly weak sound, make you play out of tune, and hurt your face.  If you find that the notes hit, then choke out, try using a harder read.  It you are biting and your jaw aches after a 30 minute practice, go a half strength softer.

Like the first poster said, make sure you have good support and posture, and definitely work with a tuner... this will be INVALUABLE to you for years to come.  Otherwise, it just takes practice...

Have fun making noise! :)

*EDIT: (To Steven... no offense taken! :)) There ARE many schools of thought on this issue, and many different ways to approach altissimo on any instrument.  For clarinet, much of it has to do with mouthpiece, embochure, and just setup in general.  I have been taught many different ways, and this is what finally worked for me... you may find that a different technique will work for you- and that's ok! We all do what we have to to sound good... so try one technique, and if it works, great! And if it doesn't, try the next one on the list! In the end, it all comes down to how much time and effort you put into it! :)