The Clarinet

Listen to the sound of a Clarinet

The clarinet is a woodwind instrument with a single reed and long cylindrical body.

The clarinet produces a fluid sound when air is blown between a single reed and the mouthpiece. Up and down the surface of the body are holes through which air can escape when left uncovered. Using levers and keys mounted on steel rods, the player covers and uncovers different sets of holes to produce all the tones of the scale while blowing air through the clarinet.

The clarinet family comprises of a number of similar instruments but of differing sizes such as the piccolo, soprano, alto, bass and contrabass clarinets. There are also instruments of the same size which have tubes of different length. For example, there are various types of soprano clarinet in use including the Bb and A soprano clarinets (the most common types seen today).

Clarinets come apart into five pieces: mouthpiece, barrel, upper joint, lower joint and bell. These pieces must be fitted together in precise alignment for proper playing to be possible.

Mouthpiece

The Mouthpiece is placed partly in the player's mouth and the reed is attached to this. It provides an opening through which air enters the Clarinet at one end of an air chamber to be set into vibration by the interaction between the air stream and the reed. The player's breath causes the reed to vibrate, which in turn causes the column of air inside the Clarinet to vibrate.

Reed

The Reed is a thin strip of material fitted on the mouthpiece which vibrates to produce a sound on the Clarinet. Although all single reeds are shaped similarly, they vary in size to fit the appropriate mouthpiece. They come in different strengths - soft, medium and hard.

Ligature

The ligature is a device which holds a reed on to the mouthpiece of the Clarinet. It must allow the reed to vibrate freely, the screws must therefore not be done too tightly.

Barrel

The Barrel may be used 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 pulling out the barrel and thus increasing the instrument's length.

Speaker key

The speaker key is the left hand thump key at the back of the clarinet that changes the clarinet register. The clarinet has 3 registers - low, medium and high.

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Keys & tone holes

Keys and tone holes are the openings in the body of the clarinet which when covered, alters the pitch of the sound produced. They allow every note of the chromatic scale to be produced.

Upper joint

The upper joint is played with the left hand. It has 4 holes which are covered by the thumb and three fingers, plus 12 keys/levers operated by various fingers and parts of the hand to produce different pitches.

Lower joint

The lower joint is played with the right hand. It has 3 hole covered with fingers of the right hand plus 5 keys/levers.

Bell

The Bell improves the uniformity of the Clarinet's tone for the lowest notes in each register. It also helps the tuning of the lower notes.

A clarinet body is usually made of grenadilla wood or plastic, though other materials are used as well in specialty instruments such as hard rubber, metal, plastic and more.

Mouthpiece

The mouthpiece is the top part of the clarinet that holds the reed and allows air to be blown into the clarinet. The mouthpiece also shapes the instrument's tone through its interior shape and, to a limited extent, from the materials used in it's construction. The space between the reed and the mouthpiece tip where air passes through is called the tip opening, which will also vary the clarinet's tone depending on the width of the opening.
The flat area where the reed sits on the mouthpiece is called the table. The clarinet's ligature fastens over the table to hold the reed in place. Inside the mouthpiece is a small narrow resonating cavity where sound waves pass through from the tip opening out into the barrel and body of the clarinet to deliver sound out of the bell.

The best way to keep your mouthpiece clean is to dry the mouthpiece every time after you play. In addition, it is a good idea to rinse it with lukewarm water and wipe it dry every one to two weeks. Cleaning your clarinet mouthpiece is also recommended before you store the instrument for a period of time. Observe good habits with keeping your mouthpiece clean and it will last for years. If you put your instrument away wet and don't open the case for a month, you could have a difficult cleaning job on your hands

Reed

The reed is a thin strip of cane mounted on the mouthpiece that vibrates to generate the clarinet's sound. A clarinet reed is shaped like a long thin rectangle with one thinly tapered end flaring out slightly in a rounded shape that matches the upper edge of the clarinet's mouthpiece. This end is the playing end and the other is where the reed is held fast against the clarinet by the ligature.

Reeds are manufactured in five levels of rigidity ranging from soft to hard. Playing is easier with a soft clarinet reed but players generally graduate to harder reeds as their technique and ability progresses.

To position the reed correctly, place it under the ligature and move it down until you can see a tiny line of black behind the top just below the tip of the mouthpiece. Then tighten the ligature screws to hold the reed firmly and test the instrument to see if they are at an ideal tension for the sound you are trying to produce.

Ligature

The ligature is an adjustable metal band that holds the reed in place on the clarinet's mouthpiece. When the clarinet is assembled, the ligature is first slipped loosely over the mouthpiece into position and the reed is placed underneath. After lining up the tip of the clarinet mouthpiece with the end of the reed, the player tightens the ligature screws to hold the reed in place. Be careful not to tighten the ligature screws too much, as the reed must be able to vibrate freely.

Barrel

The clarinet barrel connects the instrument's mouthpiece and body, shaping and directing sound through the instrument.

Minor tuning adjustments can be performed by pulling the barrel away from the upper joint a tiny amount. This will lower the overall pitch of the instrument, making it more flat. Unfortunately, you are limited to this direction of fine tuning only: there is physically no way to adjust the clarinet to make the tone more sharp than it is when all the sections are connected snug against each other.

Bell

The bell is the flared section at the end of the clarinet from which the sound projects.

Upper and lower joints

The body of the clarinet splits into two halves called the upper and lower joints. When the two parts are brought together, the bridge key connects the key mechanism from the upper to the lower joints. When you are assembling the instrument, be careful to handle the upper and lower joints gently and raise the bridge key so the key on the lower joint can fit underneath the bridge key.

The upper and lower joints come together in assembly to form the body of the clarinet. By pressing different combinations of keys, the player can adjust the pitch of the note being blown. The clarinet has an approximate four octave range, though more advanced players can go even higher still.

Keys and tone holes

Traditionally, the keys and tone holes on the upper joint are mostly played with the left hand. The holes and keys of the lower joint are usually played with the right hand.

Cut into the body of the clarinet, tone holes can be covered or uncovered by the player's fingers, altering the resonant properties of the enclosed air being blown and resulting in changes to the pitch of the sound (creating different "notes").

Clarinet keys are small, round padded metal rings, covers or levers that are mounted on metal rods. They alternatively cover and uncover the tone holes in the sides of the clarinet when combinations of fingerings are made. They change the flow of air through the clarinet and thereby raise or lower the pitch.

Levered keys are depressed with a finger and press down combinations of padded metal covers over selected tone holes. The fingers might also press down keys that are solid or hollow in the centre ("ring" keys) to cover tone holes.

The register key lifts the pitch of the clarinet up by an octave plus a fifth.
Located at the rear (player) side of the clarinet on the body area, the register key is a small lever that causes the instrument's pitch to jump up an octave plus a fifth when it is pressed. This interval is also known as a "twelfth." It is one of the defining features of a modern era clarinet. The register key is played with the left thumb.

The clarinet has four cork-covered tenons to hold the five pieces together in playing configuration. Each tenon protrudes from one end of a section and is shaped perfectly to fit firmly into the next section, making an airtight connection. As you begin to put the instrument together, you might notice that the parts are may be resistant to being put together. This is likely the result of changing humidity and a small amount of cork grease applied to each cork should allow the instrument to be put together again without much difficulty. Be very careful when you assemble your clarinet. There is a tendency to grasp the clarinet too tightly and incorrectly by the keys and when it is a tight fit the keys can become bent or even broken when twisted with pressure.

Corks compress gradually over time and, eventually, replacement is the only option to maintain a proper air seal.

A person who plays the Clarinet is called a Clarinetist

History
Learn more about the history of the Clarinet through various time periods

Accessories
Take a look at the different accessories a Cello has and what they are used for

Buying a Clarinet
The instinct is normally to buy the best and probably the most expensive clarinet

Faults & Repairs
Guidance on some common faults and repairs for Cello owners

Types of Clarinets

Piccolo Clarinet
The Piccolo clarinet is pitched in A♭ key and is now rare. They are usually used for Italian military music and some contemporary pieces for its sonority
Sopranino Clarinet
The Sopranino clarinet comes in 2 forms. Those constructed in E♭ key and D Key. The E♭key has a characteristic timbre, used in concert band repertoire because its tonality is considered compatible with other instruments, especially those in B♭. The D Key Sopranino is seen to be obscure because of its limited repertoire in Western music.
Soprano Clarinet
There are 3 forms of the Soprano clarinet constructed in B♭, C and A keys. The B♭ Soprano clarinet is the most common and used in most styles of music. The Soprano clarinet constructed in the A key has a sound richer than that built in B♭and is frequently used in chamber and orchestral music. The C key Soprano clarinet is rare because its sound quality is considered to be too bright.
Basset Clarinet
The Basset clarinet is a clarinet in A extended to a low C. It is used primarily to play classical-era music. The Mozart's clarinet concerto was written for this instrument, though it is frequently played in a version for the ordinary A clarinet. Basset clarinets are also built in Bb.

Basset-Horn
The Basset-Horn though looks like the alto, it is different. It is pitched in F, has an extended range to low C, and has a narrower bore on most models. Mozart's clarinet concerto was originally sketched out as a concerto for basset horn in G. The Basset-Horn is rarely used today.
Alto Clarinet
The Alto clarinet is pitched in E♭ and is used mainly in chamber music and wind ensembles
Bass Clarinet
The Bass clarinet is pitched in B♭. It is used mainly in contemporary music, concert band and jazz. It is sometimes also used in orchestral music
Contra-Alto Clarinet
The Contra-Alto clarinet is EE♭ pitched and is also known as the E♭ Contrabass clarinet. It is mainly used in clarinet Choirs.
Contrabass Clarinet
The Contrabass clarinet is a EE♭ pitched instrument. It is used mainly in clarinet choirs but sometimes in orchestras and wind ensembles

Other related Instruments

Oboe
Saxophone
Chalumeau
Tarogato

Learn

The clarinet (like the flute) is a very good follow on instrument from the Recorder. It is easy for children from the age of six upwards to learn. Some people use the Clarinet as a stepping stone to paying the Saxophone.

The best way to learn to play the clarinet is to find an experienced and patient teacher in your local area. Sometimes, lessons can also be arranged via your child’s school where they may have a visiting teacher. If you cannot find a local teacher, another option is to use online tutorials. There are many such resources available on the internet.

Below are just a few examples of what is available : -