TheClarinet

What does a clarinet look like?The clarinet is a narrow tube that you hold vertically, like a recorder. It looks quite similar to the oboe but instead of a double-reed it has a single-reed attached to a mouthpiece. Most modern clarinets are made out of a black wood such as African Hardwood, with a reed made out of cane and a mouthpiece made out of hard rubber. The clarinet has five parts; the mouthpiece, the barrel joint, the upper joint, the lower joint and the bell. A system of keys and tone holes runs down the length of the instrument.

Embouchure in clarinet terms describes the

formation of the player’s mouth around the

mouthpiece and reed.

All wind and brass players have an embouchure, but in instruments without a reed (such as the flute or

trumpet), the embouchure is simply the formation

of the mouth on the mouthpiece.

Changes to the strength or shape of a player’s

embouchure affect the sound or tuning

(intonation) of their instrument.

Repertoire that features the clarinetThe clarinet has been popular as a concerto instrument and in chamber music. Famous clarinet concertos include those by Mozart, Weber and Copland. There are many great clarinet chamber pieces, such as the Clarinet Quintets by Mozart and Brahms.

A bit of clarinet historyThe clarinet developed quite late in the history of the orchestra. It wasn’t until Denner turned the chalumeau into the clarinetto in the 18th century that the clarinet had the versatility to work as an orchestral instrument. Denner’s advances saw the clarinet grow in pitch range (see classroom task about pitch) and in its ability to jump between different notes quickly. The modern clarinet has three basic registers, known as chalumeau (after the clarinet’s historic predecessor), clarion and altissimo. The actual sound each clarinet makes can vary hugely though, depending on the player, the mouthpiece, the temperature and of course the type of music it is playing.

Different countries have developed quite different styles of playing the clarinet, with the prominent ‘schools’ those of Germany and France. Modern clarinets have developed so far since the early days of the chalumeau that really advanced clarinettists can make the clarinet do pretty much anything you can imagine!

The modern clarinetThe clarinet has been incredibly popular in the last 100 years, mainly through its use in jazz. It was an important instrument in early jazz from about the year 1910 and featured often in big band jazz and in dixie-land jazz. Classical clarinet music remains popular as well; whenever radio stations put together charts of the world’s most popular classical music, you can bet that Mozart’s Clarinet Concerto will be in the top ten!

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NZSO Music for Schools - Rachel Hyde ©2011 nzso.co.nz/education

Research Task...Another type of music that features the clarinet is Klezmer. Can you find out what Klezmer music is?

The clarinet family is the largest family within the woodwind section. There are over 12 different types of modern clarinet, ranging from the contrabass clarinet (the lowest) to the sopranino clarinet (the highest). One of the most frequently used types of clarinet in the symphony orchestra is the bass clarinet. The bass clarinet has a very characteristic deep and mellow sound. It looks different to

a B-flat clarinet as it usually has a silver bell and a long curved neck. It is quite a heavy instrument and so you will notice that bass clarinettists often have a neck strap or a peg which supports the clarinet on the floor. Composers who used the bass clarinet a lot in their orchestral writing include Berlioz, Ravel and Wagner. Mahler used the bass clarinet in all of his symphonies and wrote some famous solos for the instrument. Listen to Mahler’s Symphony No. 6 for an example of a bass clarinet solo.

Auxilliary Instruments

What Is... embouchure

Mouthpiece

petty

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NZSO Music for Schools - Rachel Hyde ©2011 nzso.co.nz/education

The clarinet in the orchestraComposers use the clarinet in many ways as it is such a versatile instrument. It can play very high and very low; it can be extremely acrobatic or it can play long and winding melodies; it can sound bright and cheerful or desperately sad. Although in the classical era you would usually only see two clarinets in an orchestra, in modern times the clarinet section has really expanded, allowing composers to exploit all the characters of the clarinet. Composers such as Mahler and Stravinsky would often use at least two normal B-flat clarinets, plus an E-flat clarinet, a bass clarinet, an alto clarinet or even a basset horn.

Can you find out how many clarinettists are in the NZSO?

Classroom

Task...• Try singing your lowest note and then your highest note. Now find a piano and work out what those notes were that you just sang. Ask your teacher to help if you are not sure what the notes on the piano are.

• Compare your range to that of the clarinet family.

TheClarinet

Research Task...When was the classical era of music? Use the internet to find names for the periods of music from 1500 to the modern day.

The clarinet family has the largest pitch range of any woodwind instrument. A contrabass clarinet can play a C three octaves below middle C and a soprano clarinet can play an A-flat three octaves above middle C.

bass

oboe

Clarinet Bassoon

Trombone TUBA

percussion

2ndViolin

trumpetfren

ch

horn

Viola

double

Cello

harp

1st

Violin

timpani

flute

• Understanding range

An example of the clarinet family range: