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The
clarinet is a
musical instrument in the
woodwind family. The name derives from adding the suffix -et
meaning little to the Italian word clarino meaning a
particular
trumpet,
as the first clarinets had a strident tone similar to that of a trumpet.
The instrument has an approximately cylindrical
bore, and uses a single
reed. (See
Characteristics of the instrument.)
Clarinets actually comprise a
family of instruments of differing sizes and pitches. It is the
largest such instrument family, with more than two dozen types. Of these
many are rare or obsolete, and music written for them is usually played
on one of the more common size instruments. The unmodified word
clarinet usually refers to the B♭
soprano clarinet, by far the most common clarinet. (See "Clarinet
family").
A person who plays the clarinet is called a
clarinetist, sometimes spelled "clarinettist".
Tone
The clarinet has a distinctive
timbre,
resulting from the shape of the cylindrical bore, whose characteristics
vary between its three main
registers: the chalumeau (low), clarion or clarino (middle), and
altissimo (high). It has a very wide compass, which is showcased in
chamber,
orchestral, and
wind
band writing. The tone quality varies greatly with the musician, the
music, the style of clarinet, the reed, and
humidity. The
German
(Oehler
system) clarinet generally has a darker tone quality than the French
(Boehm
system). In contrast, the French clarinet typically has a lighter,
brighter tone quality. The differences in instruments and geographical
isolation of players in different nations led to the development, from
the last part of the 18th century on, of several different schools of
clarinet playing. The most prominent of these schools were the
German/Viennese traditions and the French school, centered around the
clarinetists of the
Conservatoire de Paris. Increasingly, through the proliferation of
recording technology and the internet, examples of many different styles
of clarinet playing are available to developing clarinetists today. This
has led to decreased homogeneity of styles of clarinet playing. The
modern clarinetist has an eclectic palette of "acceptable" tone
qualities to choose from, especially when working with an open-minded
teacher.
The A clarinet sound is a little darker, richer, and less brilliant
than that of the more common B♭ clarinet, though the difference is
relatively small. The tone of the
E♭ clarinet is quite a bit brighter than any other member of the
widely-used clarinet family and is known for its distinctive ability to
cut through even loud orchestral textures; this effect was utilized by
such 20th century composers as
Mahler,
Copland,
Shostakovich, and
Stravinsky.
The
bass clarinet has a characteristically deep, mellow sound. The
alto clarinet is similar in sound to the bass, and the
basset horn has a tone quality similar to the A clarinet.
Range
The bottom of the clarinet’s written range is defined by the keywork
on each particular instrument; there are standard keywork schemes with
some variability. The actual lowest concert pitch depends on the
transposition of the instrument in question; in the case of the B♭,
the concert pitch is a
whole tone lower than the written pitch. Nearly all
soprano and
piccolo clarinets have keywork enabling them to play the E below
middle C as their lowest written note.
Written range of soprano clarinets.
Most alto and bass clarinets have an extra key to allow a low E♭.
Modern professional-quality bass clarinets generally have additional
keywork to low C. Among the less commonly encountered members of the
clarinet family, contra-alto and contrabass clarinets may have keywork
to low E♭, D, or C; the basset clarinet and basset horn generally go to
low C.
Defining the top end of a clarinet’s range is difficult, since many
advanced players can produce notes well above the highest notes commonly
found in method books. The “high G” two octaves plus a perfect fifth
above middle C is routinely encountered in advanced material and in the
standard literature through the nineteenth century. The C above that is
attainable by most advanced players and is shown on many fingering
charts. Many professional players are able to extend the range even
higher. Less advanced players may have great difficulty making these
notes sound "in tune" without very good technique, even if they can
produce a pitch with the proper fingering.
The range of a clarinet can be divided into three distinctive
registers. The lowest notes, up to the written B♭ above middle C, is
known as the 'chalumeau
register' (named after the instrument that was the clarinet's immediate
ancestor), of which the top four notes or so are known as the 'throat
tones'. Producing a blended tone with the surrounding registers takes
much skill and practice.
The middle register is termed the 'clarion' register and spans just
over an octave (from written B above middle C, to the C two octaves
above middle C). The top or 'altissimo' register consists of the notes
from the written C♯ two octaves above middle C and up.
Construction and acoustics
The Construction of a Clarinet
Professional clarinets are usually made from
African
hardwood, often
grenadilla, rarely (because of diminishing supplies)
Honduran
rosewood and sometimes even cocobolo. Historically other woods,
notably
boxwood, were used.
Buffet-Crampon's Greenline professional clarinets are made from a
composite mixture of plastic resin and wood chips — such instruments are
less affected by humidity, but are heavier than the equivalent wood
instrument. Student instruments are sometimes made of
composite or plastic
resin,
commonly "resonite", an
ABS resin. Metal soprano clarinets were popular in the early
twentieth century, until plastic instruments supplanted them; metal
construction is still used for some contra-alto and contrabass
clarinets.
Mouthpieces are generally made of
ebonite,
although some inexpensive mouthpieces may be made of
plastic.
The instrument uses a single
reed made from the cane of arundo donax, a type of grass. Reeds may
also be manufactured from synthetic materials. The
ligature fastens the reed to the mouthpiece. When air is blown
through the opening between the reed and the mouthpiece facing, the reed
vibrates and produces the instrument's sound.
While a few clarinetists make their own reeds, most buy manufactured
reeds, though many players make adjustments to these reeds to improve
playability. Clarinet reeds come in varying "strengths" generally
described from "soft" to "hard." It is important to note that there is
no standardized system of designating reed strength. Beginning
clarinetists are often encouraged to use softer reeds. Jazz clarinetists
often remain on softer reeds, as they are more suitable for bending
pitch. Most classical musicians work towards harder reed strengths as
their embouchures strengthen. The benefit of a harder reed is a sturdy,
round tone. However it should be noted that the strength of the reed is
only one factor in the player's set-up; the characteristics of the
mouthpiece are also critical, and indeed the reed strength should be
matched to the mouthpiece. The major manufacturers of clarinet reeds
include Gonzales, Rico,
Vandoren, and
many others.
The body of a modern soprano clarinet is equipped with numerous
tone
holes of which seven (six front, one back) are covered by the
fingertips and the rest are opened or closed using a complicated set of
keys. These tone holes allow every note of the chromatic scale to be
produced. (On bass and larger clarinets, some alto clarinets, and a few
soprano clarinets, some or all of the finger holes are replaced by
key-covered holes.) The most common system of keys was named the Boehm
System by its designer
Hyacinthe Klosé in honour of the
flute
designer
Theobald Boehm, but is not the same as the
Boehm System used on flutes. The other main system of keys is called
the
Oehler system and is used mostly in
Germany
and
Austria (see
History). Related is the
Albert system used by some
jazz,
klezmer,
and eastern European folk musicians. The Albert and Oehler systems are
both based on the earlier
Mueller system.
The hollow bore inside the instrument has a basically cylindrical
shape, being roughly the same diameter for most of the length of the
tube. There is a subtle
hourglass shape, with its thinnest part at the junction between the
upper and lower joint. This hourglass figure is not visible to the naked
eye, but helps in the
resonance of the sound. The diameter of the bore affects
characteristics such as the stability of the pitch of a given note, or,
conversely, the ability with which a note can be 'bent' in the manner
required in jazz and other styles of music. The bell is at the bottom of
the instrument and flares out to improve the tone of the lowest notes.
A clarinetist moves between registers through use of the register
key, or speaker key. The fixed reed and fairly uniform diameter of the
clarinet give the instrument the configuration of a cylindrical
stopped pipe in which the register key, when pressed, causes the
clarinet to produce the note a
twelfth higher, corresponding to the third
harmonic. The clarinet is therefore said to
overblow at the twelfth. (By contrast, nearly all other woodwind
instruments overblow at the octave, or do not overblow at all; the
rackett
is the next most common Western instrument that overblows at the twelfth
like the clarinet.) A clarinet must therefore have holes and keys for
nineteen notes (an octave and a half, from bottom E to B♭) in its lowest
register to play a chromatic scale. This fact at once explains the
clarinet's great range and its complex fingering system. The fifth and
seventh harmonics are also available to skilled players, sounding a
further sixth and fourth (actually a very flat diminished fifth) higher
respectively.
The highest notes on a clarinet can have a piercing quality and can
be difficult to tune precisely. Different individual instruments can be
expected to play differently in this respect. This becomes critical if a
number of instruments are required to play a high part in unison.
Fortunately for audiences, disciplined players can use a variety of
fingerings to introduce slight variations into the pitch of these higher
notes. It is also common for high melody parts to be split into close
harmony to avoid this issue.
Since approximately
1850,
clarinets have been nominally tuned according to
12-tone equal-temperament. Older clarinets were nominally tuned to
meantone, and a skilled performer can use his or her
embouchure to considerably alter the tuning of individual notes.
Components
of a modern soprano clarinet
A Boehm system soprano clarinet is shown in the photos illustrating
this section. However, all modern clarinets have similar components.
The
reed is attached to the
mouthpiece by the
ligature, and the top half-inch or so of this assembly is held
in the player’s mouth. (German clarinetists often wind a string around
the mouthpiece and reed instead of using a ligature.) The formation of
the mouth around the mouthpiece and reed is called the
embouchure.
The reed is on the underside of the mouthpiece, pressing against the
player's bottom lip, while the top teeth normally contact the top of the
mouthpiece (some players roll the upper lip under the top teeth to form
what is called a ‘double-lip’ embouchure). Adjustments in the strength
and configuration of the embouchure change the tone and intonation
(tuning). It is not uncommon for clarinetists to employ methods to
soften the pressure on both the upper teeth and inner lower lip by
attaching pads to the top of the mouthpiece or putting (temporary)
padding on the front lower teeth, commonly from folded paper.
Barrel of a B♭ soprano Clarinet
Next is the short barrel; this part of the instrument may be
extended in order to fine-tune the clarinet. As the pitch of the
clarinet is fairly temperature sensitive some instruments have
interchangeable barrels whose lengths vary slightly. Additional
compensation for pitch variation and tuning can be made by increasing
the length of the instrument by pulling out the barrel,
particularly common in group playing in which clarinets are tuned to
other instruments (such as in an
orchestra). Some performers employ a plastic barrel with a
thumbwheel that enables the barrel length to be altered. On basset horns
and lower clarinets, the barrel is usually replaced by a curved metal
neck.
Upper Joint of a Boehm-System Clarinet
The main body of most clarinets is divided into the upper joint
whose holes and most keys are operated by the left hand, and the
lower joint with holes and most keys operated by the right hand.
(Some clarinets have a single joint. On some basset horns and larger
clarinets the two joints are held together with a screw clamp and are
usually not disassembled for storage.) The left thumb operates both a
tone hole and the register key. Interestingly, on some models
of clarinet, such as many
Albert system clarinets, and increasingly some higher-end
Boehm system clarinets, the register key is a 'wraparound' key, with
the key on the back of the clarinet and the pad on the front. As well as
the slightly exotic look this lends to the clarinet, advocates of the
wraparound register key advocate improved sound, as well as the benefit
that it is harder for condensation to accumulate in the tube beneath the
pad.
The cluster of keys at the bottom of the upper joint (protruding
slightly beyond the cork of the joint) are known as the trill keys
and are operated by the right hand. These give the player alternative
fingerings which make it easy to play ornaments and
trills that would otherwise be awkward. The entire weight of the
smaller clarinets is supported by the right thumb behind the lower joint
on what is called the thumb-rest. Basset horns and larger
clarinets are supported with a neck strap or a floor peg.
Lower Joint of a Boehm-System Clarinet
Finally, the flared end is known as the bell. Contrary to
popular belief, the bell does not amplify the sound; rather, it improves
the uniformity of the instrument's tone for the lowest notes in each
register. For the other notes the sound is produced almost entirely at
the tone holes and the bell is irrelevant. As a result, when playing to
a microphone, the best tone can be recorded by placing the microphone
not at the bell but a little way from the finger-holes of the
instrument. This relates to the position of the instrument when playing
to an audience: pointing down at the floor, except in the most vibrant
parts of certain styles of music and when called for specifically by the
composer in the music (for example, in the music of
Gustav Mahler). On
basset horns and larger clarinets, the bell curves up and forward,
is usually made of metal.
Bell of a Bb soprano clarinet
The reason that the most popular soprano clarinets are in B♭, A, and
E♭ has to do partly with the history of the instrument, and partly with
acoustics and aesthetics. Before about 1800, due to the lack of airtight
pads (explained below - see History),
practical woodwinds could have only a few keys to control accidentals
(notes outside their diatonic home scales). Because clarinets overblow
at the twelfth rather than the octave, they need keys to control more
notes in each register than
oboes,
flutes,
or
bassoons do. Therefore clarinets with few keys cannot easily play an
in-tune chromatic scale, limiting any such instrument to a few closely
related key signatures. For example, an eighteenth century clarinet in C
could readily be played in B♭, F, C, G and D (and their relative
minors), but not (easily) keys outside this range. As key technology
improved and more keys were added to woodwinds, the need for instruments
in multiple musical keys was reduced. For octave-overblowing instruments
a single instrument in C can readily be played in any key. For
clarinets, the use of more than one instrument in different keys
persisted, with instruments in B♭ and A used in addition to the C
instrument in the lower soprano range.
Because the acoustics of the clarinet mean that the deeper the
instrument is in pitch, the more "mellow" (less bright) it sounds, the C
clarinet - being the shortest and therefore brightest instrument of the
three - eventually fell out of favour, as the other two clarinets could
play its range of keys between them and their sound was considered
better. As more technical improvements were made, and the clarinet
became equal tempered, the need for two clarinets itself reduced.
However the difficulties for the player playing in remote keys remains
and thus the A has remained a useful orchestral instrument.
Similarly there have been E♭ and D instruments in the upper soprano
range, B♭, A, and C instruments in the bass range, and so forth; but
over time the E♭ and B♭ instruments have become predominant.
Usage and repertoire of the clarinet
Clarinets have a very wide compass, which is showcased in chamber,
orchestral, and wind band writing. Additionally, improvements made to
the fingering systems of the clarinet over time have enabled the
instrument to be very agile; there are few restrictions to what it is
able to play.
Classical
music
A pair of Boehm-System Soprano Clarinets - one in B♭ and one in
A.
In
classical music, clarinets are part of standard
orchestral instrumentation, which frequently includes two
clarinetists playing individual parts — each player usually equipped
with a pair of standard clarinets in B♭ and A. Clarinet sections grew
larger during the 19th century, employing a third clarinetist or a bass
clarinet. In the 20th century, composers such as
Igor Stravinsky,
Richard Strauss and
Olivier Messiaen enlarged the clarinet section on occasion to up to
nine players, employing many different clarinets including the E♭ or D
soprano clarinets,
basset horn,
bass clarinet and/or
contrabass clarinet.
This practice of using a variety of clarinets to achieve colouristic
variety was common in
20th century music and continues today. It is quite common for
clarinet parts to alternate between B♭ and A instruments several times
over the course of a movement. However, many clarinetists and conductors
prefer to play parts originally written for obscure instruments such as
the C or D clarinets on B♭ or E♭ clarinets, which are of better quality
and more prevalent and accessible.
The clarinet is widely used as a solo instrument. The relatively late
evolution of the clarinet (when compared to other orchestral woodwinds)
has left a considerable amount of solo repertoire from the
Classical,
Romantic and
Modern periods but few works from the
Baroque era. A number of
clarinet concertos have been written to showcase the instrument,
with the concerti by
Mozart,
Copland and
Weber being particularly well known.
Many works of
chamber music have also been written for the clarinet. Particularly
common combinations are:
- Clarinet and piano (including
clarinet sonatas)
- Clarinet, piano and another instrument (for example,
string instrument or voice)
-
Clarinet Quintet, generally made up of a clarinet plus a
string quartet,
-
Wind Quintet, consists of flute, oboe, clarinet, bassoon, and
horn.
-
Trio d'Anches, or Trio of Reeds consists of oboe, clarinet,
and bassoon.
-
Wind Octet, consists of pairs of oboes, clarinets, bassoons, and
horns.
- Clarinet,
violin,
piano
- Clarinet,
viola,
piano
Concert
bands
In
wind bands, clarinets are a particularly central part of the
instrumentation, occupying the same space (and often playing the same
parts) in bands that the strings do in orchestras. Bands usually include
several B♭ clarinets, divided into sections each consisting of 2-3
clarinetists playing the same part. There is almost always an E♭
clarinet part and a bass clarinet part, usually doubled. Alto,
contra-alto, and contrabass clarinets are sometimes used as well, and
very rarely a piccolo A♭ clarinet.
Jazz
The clarinet was a central instrument in early jazz starting in the
1910s and
remaining popular in the United States through the
big
band era into the
1940s.
Larry Shields,
Ted Lewis,
Jimmie Noone and
Sidney Bechet were influential in early jazz. The B♭ soprano was the
most common instrument, but a few early jazz musicians such as
Louis Nelson Deslile and
Alcide Nunez preferred the C soprano, and many New Orleans jazz
brass bands have used E♭ soprano.
Swing clarinetists such as
Benny Goodman,
Artie Shaw, and
Woody Herman led successful and
popular big bands and smaller groups from the
1930s
onward. With the decline of the big bands' popularity in the late 1940s,
the clarinet faded from its prominent position in jazz, though a few
players (Buddy
DeFranco,
Eric Dolphy,
Jimmy Giuffre,
Perry Robinson, and others) used clarinet in
bebop and
free
jazz.
During the 1950s and 60s, Britain underwent a surge in the popularity
of
traditional jazz. During this period, a British clarinetist named
Acker Bilk became popular, founding his own ensemble in 1956. Bilk
had a string of successful records including the most popular,
Stranger on the Shore, a tune now synonymous with Acker Bilk
himself.
Back in the U.S., the instrument has seen something of a resurgence
since the 1980s, with
Eddie Daniels,
Don
Byron, and others playing the clarinet in more contemporary
contexts. The instrument remains common in
Dixieland music;
Pete Fountain is one of the best known performers in this genre.
Filmmaker
Woody Allen is a notable jazz clarinet enthusiast, and performs New
Orleans-style jazz regularly with his quartet in New York.
Klezmer
Clarinets also feature prominently in much
Klezmer
music, which requires a very distinctive style of playing. This folk
genre makes much use of quarter-tones, making a different embouchure
(mouth position) necessary. Some klezmer musicians prefer Albert system
clarinets.
Groups of
clarinets
Groups of clarinets playing together have become increasingly popular
among clarinet enthusiasts in recent years. Common forms are:
-
Clarinet choir, which features a large number of clarinets playing
together, usually involving a range of different members of the
clarinet family (see
Extended family of clarinets). The homogeneity of tone across the
different members of the clarinet family produces an effect with some
similarities to a human
choir.
- Clarinet quartet, usually three B♭ sopranos and one B♭ bass, but
also sometimes four B♭ sopranos.
Clarinet choirs and quartets often play arrangements of both
classical and popular music, in addition to a body of literature
specially written for a combination of clarinets by composers such as
Arnold Cooke,
Alfred Uhl,
Lucien Caillet and
Václav Nelhýbel.
Extended family of clarinets
- Main article:
Clarinet family
Clarinets other than the standard B♭ and A clarinets are sometimes
known as harmony clarinets. However, there is a
family of many differently-pitched
clarinet types, some of which are very rare. The following are the
most important sizes:
Experimental EEE♭
octocontra-alto and BBB♭
octocontrabass clarinets have also been built.
History
The clarinet developed from a
Baroque instrument called the
chalumeau. This instrument was similar to a
recorder, but with a single reed mouthpiece similar to that of the
modern clarinet and a cylindrical bore. Lacking a register key, it was
played only in its fundamental register, so it had a limited range of
about one and a half octaves. It had eight finger holes, like a
recorder, plus two keys for extra notes.
Around the end of the 17th century the chalumeau was modified by
converting one of its keys into a register key and produced the first
clarinet. This development is attributed to a German instrument maker
named
Johann Christoph Denner. This instrument played well in the middle
register with a loud, strident tone, so it was given the name
clarinetto meaning "little trumpet" (from clarino + -etto).
Early clarinets did not play well in the lower register, so chalumeaux
continued to be made to play the low notes and these notes became known
as the chalumeau register. As clarinets improved, the chalumeau
fell into disuse.
The original Denner clarinets had two keys, but various makers added
more to get extra notes. The classical clarinet of
Mozart's day would probably have had eight finger holes and five
keys.
Clarinets were soon accepted into orchestras. Later models had a
mellower tone than the originals. Mozart (d. 1791) liked the sound of
the clarinet (he considered its tone the closest in quality to the human
voice) and wrote much music for it, and by the time of
Beethoven (c. 1800-1820), the clarinet was a standard fixture in the
orchestra.
The next major development in the history of clarinet was the
invention of the modern pad. Early clarinets covered the tone holes with
felt pads. Because these leaked air, the number of pads had to be kept
to a minimum, so the clarinet was severely restricted in what notes
could be played with a good tone. In
1812,
Ivan Mueller, a Russian-born clarinetist and inventor, developed a
new type of pad which was covered in leather or fish bladder. This was
completely airtight, so the number of keys could be increased
enormously. He designed a new type of clarinet with seven finger holes
and thirteen keys. This allowed the clarinet to play in any key with
near equal ease. Over the course of the 19th century, many enhancements
were made to Mueller's clarinet, such as the Albert system and the
Baermann system, all keeping the same basic design. The Mueller clarinet
and its derivatives were popular throughout the world.
The final development in the modern design of the clarinet used in
most of the world today, was introduced by
Hyacinthe Klosé in
1839. He
devised a different arrangement of keys and finger holes which allow
simpler fingering. It was inspired by the Boehm system developed by
Theobald Boehm, a flute maker who had invented the system for
flutes. Klosé was so impressed by Boehm's invention that he named his
own system for clarinets the
Boehm system, although it is different from the one used on flutes.
This new system was slow to catch on because it meant the player had to
relearn how to play the instrument. Gradually, however, it became the
standard and today the Boehm system is used everywhere in the world
except Germany and Austria. These countries still use a direct
descendant of the Mueller clarinet known as the
Oehler system clarinet. Also, some contemporary Dixieland and
Klezmer players continue to use
Albert system clarinets, as the simpler fingering system can allow
for easier slurring of notes. At one time the reed was held on using
string, but now the practice exists primarily in Germany and Austria,
where the tone is preferred over that produced with the ligatures that
are more popular in the rest of the world.
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