07-20-2019, 05:07 AM
As a clarinetist, I used to claim that the clarinet is possibly the most finicky instrument in the orchestra, but then I made the mistake of saying that in front of a bassoonist. I was promptly informed that double reed instruments are twice as finicky as instruments with a single reed. So I'm not sure that I can ever again complain in the presence of somebody who plays oboe, cor anglais, or bassoon.
With that said, there are a few tuning problems inherent in the design of a clarinet.
One problem is a matter of a trade off between the lower register and upper register. The difference in playing in these two registers is usually just a matter of embouchure and a single key difference: opening the register hole generally encourages the instrument to sound a twelfth interval higher. The problem with this is that given the natural harmonics of the instrument, the twelfth interval higher is exactly three times the frequency, but in the modern system of equal temperament, a twelfth interval is only approximately 3x the frequency. So as a clarinetist, if you are trying to play in tune with an equal temperament scale, either the high register will tend to play a bit sharp, or the low register will tend to play a bit flat, or some compromise between the two.
Then there is the matter of temperature. A cold clarinet will play a bit flat, but after playing for a few measures it will warm up and tend to be a bit sharp. It is fairly common for clarinetists to dread coming back in after having several measures of rest, because it is hard to know how the instrument will respond. During one performance I took to blowing air through the instrument softly enough that it didn't engage the reed, with the hope that it would keep it warmed up enough to not sound horrible when I started playing my part. Of course that would probably look really goofy in a more formal performance.
Embouchure can have a big impact on playing in tune. A really good clarinetist will use this to compensate for all of the above, but I can't claim that I am very good at this. Under many circumstances I find that my playing can suffer from what my high school band teacher called "wobblies"; if a clarinetist doesn't have extremely good control of embouchure, the tune can go all over the place, which I would guess is a big part of the problem that Mattias describes.
Shameless plug - I would love to try recording a live clarinet track for anybody here. If you're inclined, it would probably be best to try it out on an experimental piece, something that you're not too serious about. I can't make any promises as to how well it would turn out, but it would be fun to try.
With that said, there are a few tuning problems inherent in the design of a clarinet.
One problem is a matter of a trade off between the lower register and upper register. The difference in playing in these two registers is usually just a matter of embouchure and a single key difference: opening the register hole generally encourages the instrument to sound a twelfth interval higher. The problem with this is that given the natural harmonics of the instrument, the twelfth interval higher is exactly three times the frequency, but in the modern system of equal temperament, a twelfth interval is only approximately 3x the frequency. So as a clarinetist, if you are trying to play in tune with an equal temperament scale, either the high register will tend to play a bit sharp, or the low register will tend to play a bit flat, or some compromise between the two.
Then there is the matter of temperature. A cold clarinet will play a bit flat, but after playing for a few measures it will warm up and tend to be a bit sharp. It is fairly common for clarinetists to dread coming back in after having several measures of rest, because it is hard to know how the instrument will respond. During one performance I took to blowing air through the instrument softly enough that it didn't engage the reed, with the hope that it would keep it warmed up enough to not sound horrible when I started playing my part. Of course that would probably look really goofy in a more formal performance.
Embouchure can have a big impact on playing in tune. A really good clarinetist will use this to compensate for all of the above, but I can't claim that I am very good at this. Under many circumstances I find that my playing can suffer from what my high school band teacher called "wobblies"; if a clarinetist doesn't have extremely good control of embouchure, the tune can go all over the place, which I would guess is a big part of the problem that Mattias describes.
Shameless plug - I would love to try recording a live clarinet track for anybody here. If you're inclined, it would probably be best to try it out on an experimental piece, something that you're not too serious about. I can't make any promises as to how well it would turn out, but it would be fun to try.
