how to play the clarinet

As your mouth muscles get stronger, you will start needing harder reeds. Begin by playing a B♭, on the second line of the staff. Some notes and I found them here. See the section “Posture” for a refresher. Cover your bottom teeth with your bottom lip gently. Follow these clarinet fingerings to begin learning notes on your instrument. If you squeaked, don't be discouraged. Play with a Pro is a revolutionary website that hooks up potential clarinet students with a wide network of professional players. Grease your corks regularly. The keys to playing altissimo notes are a well-formed embouchure, proper breath control and lip pressure, and lots and lots of practice. We use cookies to make wikiHow great. Your teacher will also tell you if you need a softer or harder reed. Playing in a windband, in a duo with a flute and in a trio with another clarinet and a bassoon. Don't put the reed higher than the mouthpiece, which makes it extremely difficult to produce a note. The clarinet should be held with your right hand on the bottom stack, your thumb on the thumb-rest on the back of the stack. The first thing that you will focus on is the shape of your bottom lip. If sitting while playing, don't relax against the back of the chair, even if it is straight. Try loosening your mouth while playing this note to, and try to bring it down a major second interval to A♭. An example would be in the Chaconne movement in Gustav Holst's First Suite in Eb, in which there is an eighth note (quaver) run in the clarinet part that is essentially an Eb scale. If you're a more advanced player, you may want to upgrade to a higher quality wooden clarinet. Bought a brand new great clarinet. One end should have a string attached, which you use to pull through each section of the horn. Origins. However, make sure your cheeks aren't puffed out. Every day at wikiHow, we work hard to give you access to instructions and information that will help you live a better life, whether it's keeping you safer, healthier, or improving your well-being. There are many different ways to practice the glissando technique. These interactive, mobile-friendly pages feature large pictures of a clarinet. These are made of rubber and make the contact with the rest gentler on your thumb. Any advice? If you really can’t stand to see another ad again, then please consider supporting our work with a contribution to wikiHow. Method 1 of 4: Forming a Good Embouchure. It is great for beginners and even better for kids. {"smallUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikihow.com\/images\/thumb\/6\/63\/Play-the-Clarinet-Step-1-Version-6.jpg\/v4-460px-Play-the-Clarinet-Step-1-Version-6.jpg","bigUrl":"\/images\/thumb\/6\/63\/Play-the-Clarinet-Step-1-Version-6.jpg\/aid5790-v4-728px-Play-the-Clarinet-Step-1-Version-6.jpg","smallWidth":460,"smallHeight":259,"bigWidth":728,"bigHeight":410,"licensing":"