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So You Want to Play an Auxiliary Clarinet?
One of the great things about the clarinet is that it has quite the extended family. From the mighty contra-bass clarinet to the wailing E-flat clarinet, there is a veritable orchestra of clarinets at our disposal. Although each clarinet uses basically the same fingerings and similar fundamentals, each auxiliary clarinet presents its own unique challenges. Here’s everything you need to known about playing an auxiliary clarinet: Why should you play an auxiliary clarinet? To become more marketable. More clarinets = more gigs. Your band director or ensemble conductor asked you to double or switch. Most importantly: because clarinets are cool and you want to learn an auxiliary clarinet! Which auxiliary…
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The Complete Guide to Long Tones
You’ve probably heard your band director, private teacher, or other well-meaning music instructor tout the benefits of long tones at some point during your musical career. Maybe you’ve even been known to play a few long tones yourself (when the mood strikes). Better yet, maybe long tones are as integral to your daily routine as your morning coffee (#longtonesforlife). So what’s the big deal about long tones anyway? There’s a reason everybody keeps talking about long tones – they’re kind of a big deal for musicians. Whether you’re a long tone skeptic or believer, there’s no argument that long tones are super important for your musical growth and development. Much like…
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The Musician’s Guide to Overcoming Burnout and Amotivation
Being a musician is pretty awesome most of the time. You get to work with talented colleagues, play amazing repertoire, and share your art with audiences. But then there are those times when being a musician is stressful, invalidating, and downright lonely. Musicians can experience crippling anxiety, self-doubt, and constant pressure from listeners. But usually, this pressure comes from within. I’ve gotten quite a few private messages on social media the last few weeks from people who are lacking motivation and feeling burnt out: “The fire is gone.” “I’m struggling to find the same drive I had when I first started getting serious about music.” If this sounds all too…
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The Complete Guide to the Clarinet Altissimo Register
The clarinet is blessed with the largest range of the entire woodwind family. But Voltaire (and Peter Parker) were right when they warned us, “With great power comes great responsibility.” Our responsibility? To perfect the altissimo register so we don’t burst nearby eardrums or alarm any dogs in the nearby vicinity. The clarinet follows a logical fingering and keywork system. Once you’ve mastered crossing the break from the throat tone to the clarion register, all is fine and dandy until you start inching higher away from the staff. Things quickly turn from straightforward to clunky and confusing once clarinetists venture above the upper break (above high C) into altissimo-land. Then…
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Upgrading From Plastic to Wood Clarinets: A Guide for Band Parents
Clarinet parents have to put up with a lot – unrelenting squeaks, endless requests for more reeds, and seemingly never-ending equipment upgrades. The biggest and most daunting upgrade is when and how you should switch from a plastic to a wood clarinet. Unless you have previously gone through this process, upgrading from a plastic to wood clarinet can be stressful and confusing. You want the best for your child, but it’s tricky when there are so many brands, models, price ranges, retailers, and other factors to consider. Let’s start with the basics. Plastic clarinets vs. wood clarinets Plastic clarinets are great for beginners. Plastic is a resilient and durable material,…
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The Complete Guide to Clarinet Resonance Fingerings
In my experience, one of the most neglected aspects of clarinet fundamentals among students is resonance fingerings. I get it – resonance fingerings may not seem as important as articulation, scales, posture, altissimo register, or other more obvious clarinet skills – but mastering resonance fingerings will allow you to maintain a mellifluous and symmetrical sound throughout the entire range of the clarinet. Your clarinet sound is your musical voice, so it’s important to develop all fundamentals necessary to produce a beautiful sound. Let’s start from the beginning. What are resonance fingerings? Resonance fingerings (which I have also heard called covered fingerings, shading, right hand down/RHD, and other names given by…
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The Complete Guide to Making All State
All State band is the big leagues for young musicians. It’s an incredible opportunity to meet talented musicians from around the state, work with guest conductors, and perform challenging music. Since musical talent cannot be measured through statistics (as in sports), All State allows young musicians to strive for and achieve tangible goals in an otherwise subjective field. But you probably already know all of this. When I ask my students what their musical goals are each year, the number one goal is always to make All State band. I was first chair clarinet in the Alabama All State band all four years in high school, so I understand the rigorous…
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The Complete Guide to Clarinet Tuning
As if playing clarinet wasn’t already difficult enough (reeds, breathing, coordinating both hands) we also have to worry about tuning. Tuning (also known as intonation) is more than just aiming for the green light on the tuner. Tuning is a complex science with different variables specific to each instrument. The most frustrating part? You must constantly listen and make adjustments – tuning isn’t something you can do on auto-pilot. Let’s start with the basics. What is tuning? Tuning is the adjustment of musical pitches to match a reference. The reference can be a variety of things, including frequency level (A=440 Hz in the United States), or other musicians with whom…
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The Prepared Musician’s Guide to Planning for Auditions
Every musician’s favorite time of year is quickly approaching…audition season! Whether you’re preparing for college auditions, conservatory auditions, All State auditions, summer festivals, solo competitions, or some other kind of audition, it can be hard to plan the logistics of getting to and from each place (let alone play well at each audition!) That’s where I can help. You see, I have a little problem – I am an obsessive list maker. Not always a bad thing, but it can easily get out of hand. I use the following list for every audition I take to make sure that I don’t forget anything in the pre-audition preparation frenzy. For each…