Hi again dear Michelle, just wanted to share some good news with you. Very excited to say that I'm now playing my clarinet and sometimes the oboe too without the neck strap, and on the clarinet there are far less squeaks!! My hand and therefore finger position is improving, and I'm getting on a little better with crossing the break. Thank you for all you are teaching here, cos you have really helped me loads!! I have also bought a Rovner ligature and a Yamaha 4C mouthpiece for my clarinet, and the difference in tone is absolutely incredible!! I'm thrilled to say that every time I get my clarinet out now, I'm able to really play more and enjoy it!! In fact after I've swabbed it out and put my clarinet away, I find myself pining for it and wanting to start playing again just minutes later!! Such a beautiful instrument the clarinet truly is, and I'm thoroughly looking forward to my practice again tomorrow. God bless you dear Michelle, and I would love to join your mentoring community, it would be lovely to play with other clarinettists, it would be the icing on the cake for me!! 🤩

As a new clarinet player in my senior years 70's I really appreciate your lessons. Thanks so much

@andybuehler7063

4 жыл бұрын

You mention music sheets etc. "BELOW" which I look for bud I can't find them. A hint on this would be very valuable to me..

@nickkarimi

Жыл бұрын

Are you still alive?

I don't know why, but virtually every clarinetist ever born will instinctively move their fingers and thumb way too much. We need to train them to move less, and to stay closer to the holes. The good news is that is pretty easy to do by looking in a mirror, and just bringing more awareness into our fingers. Now that you have noticed it, you'll likely start changing it, and soon you will have much better habits, that make playing easier! - Michelle

@bloubear2557

7 жыл бұрын

Clarinet Mentors (Michelle Anderson) i think this is because a close distance to the holes will make the notes flat

As I clarinetist, I envy the "octave key" of the saxophone! However, given that we are stuck with a twelfth key, we just have to make do! Good luck with the clarinet. - Michelle

@freshlysqueezedaesthetics2942

6 жыл бұрын

Clarinet Mentors (Michelle Anderson) I play tenor sax and clarinet and I wish that crossing the break on the clarinet was as easy as it is on the saxophone.😂😂😂

@crabestapler

6 жыл бұрын

Clarinet Mentors (Michelle Anderson) what is the octave key on a saxophone

@ak_samv

6 жыл бұрын

As a flute/clarinet player I completely understand

@kawaiitoy

6 жыл бұрын

On a sax, you play a low C fingered like a low F on the clarinet. On a sax, you just go up to middle C, and then play everything again with an octave key. It's super easy - just pressing that key (and adjusting your embouchure a little) makes you go up an octave. I've just started clarinet, and I'm having real trouble with reading the lower register as my brain is telling me that I'm playing the wrong notes - and the break is very tricky still! :D

I appreciate your love for this instrument. I played last 50 years ago. I pulled my clarinet out and decided to get it refurbished. It is now in the shop getting a complete work over. I love playing. I’ll be learning everything I can from you. Thank you for what you’ve created on this channel.

Oh, and we flutists don't have ANY register key, we have to manage it all by the embouchure and try to survive that...however I find playing the flute easier than the clarinet. But your videos help a great deal and they elicit a lot of aha-effects! Thank you again!

Thoroughly enjoy and learn from all your videos. Indeed for me, as a beginner, the A to B to A register change is the most vexing of the moves so far and your exercises are very helpful. THANKS!

This video is great, I started to play clarinet two weeks before, and playing A -> B , A -> C was like a nightmare to me, but with this video and practising half an hour the exercises , it solved my problem with this finger movement. Thank you very much. I will go for other videos soon.

I love Michelle, these videos are so helpful, I was making all these mistakes. You are awesome.

@ClarinetMentors

8 жыл бұрын

+Dr. Tarrin P Lupo I'm glad these are helping you!

What a service to the clarinet community. Thank you for your contributions!

@ClarinetMentors

6 жыл бұрын

Thanks for the kind words, James.

Best free lesson you can get! Thank you for the proper thumb left thumb and forefinger positions. I haven't played a clarinet in 24 years and have lost a lot of technique like this.

@ClarinetMentors

5 жыл бұрын

Thanks for the kind comment. I've seen many people come back to clarinet after years away, and usually within about 3 months, many of their former skills returns. It does help to have the proper good habits in mind as you come back to it.

I'm beginning to think that my piano training makes playing clarinet easier for me in many ways, including fingering.

Thank you so much, Michelle. I am learning to go over the break, and running into all the usual troubles. These videos have helped me stay optimistic, and I have noticed a huge difference from your helpful and practical advice.

Hi there Michelle, thank you so much for your very helpful video. I've recently got a neck strap for my clarinet, and that helps me with playing. I had been struggling to cover the holes with my fingers, but hopefully now it will get easier as my hand position seems to be better, the instrument is easier to hold. I've been struggling to cross the break, still get squeaking notes, but determined to persevere!

This is REALLY helping me out as a beginning band director. Thank you SO SO SO MUCH for this video and the printout!! I'm eternally grateful!

Fantastic instructions. Thanks a lot for taking the time to record them. I'm adding clarinet to my "family" (I'm guitar and percussion player) and it is my first time in woodwinds. You are basically my guide tour :). Truly appreciate your generosity.

Thank you so much for this video. You probably already forgot about it, but it is still here and helping people. Such a trail of good deed. Thank you!

SO HELPFUL THANK YOU SO MUCH

Your videos are so helpful for directors! Thank you for these videos! Never stop!

I really appreciate this video. I've been playing saxophone for 15 years and I have started learning clarinet. The most obscure thing about it is the break. I will be practicing these exercises and staying tuned to your videos

Thanks! Glad you are enjoying them! - Michelle

Thanks Michelle, this video has made playing so much easier !

OMG thank you so much. It really helped me with the transition from A to #G at the beginning of Turkish March for my clarinet solo.

This will make my life so much easier...thank you!

Excellent. Thank you ! All your videos are outstanding.

Very good exercises. And good explanation. Thanks for the video! Bless you!

That's the video I've been looking for fort so long !!! Thank you so much !!

Thank you for this video, this has made my clarinet playing a whole lot easier!

Your teaching is clear and helpful. Thank you 😊

thanks Michelle, I am a real beginner without a teacher and got really stuck 'crossing the break'. I am not there, but seeing this video encourages me to not give up. thanks for your good advise, and for speaking so clearly. congratulations! Lukas (from Belgium)

Thank you so much. I've been teaching sectionals in my band and have been asked to teach the beginning students how to cross the break. And I've had a really hard time explaining that to them.

You’re a saint! This helped me so much, thank you.

Hello, Michelle! Thank you so much for all your videos. You're awesome!

@ClarinetMentors

10 жыл бұрын

Thanks! I'm glad you are enjoying the videos.

Superb video.

thank you very much michelle , very helpful lesson. Truly appreciate your generosity . send you hey from syria

Thank you so much! This honestly saved me and my homework :)

I am a saxophne player who recently got myself a clarinet to add to the arsenal. The sax is quite logical in terms of lower and higher registers. Also, when I switch from alto to tenor, all I have to do is think in Bb instead ot Eb. The rest is the same. With the clarinet, the key changes from lower to the higher register. I feel my brain heating up while practicing :))) I'll definitely follow your exercises though. Thanks...

I love how you clearly explain everything! Thanks for your help! =)

This was extremey helpful!!

This is so helpful

You are a real instructor. Thanks alot

@ClarinetMentors

10 жыл бұрын

I'm glad you enjoy this video!

Great stuff, thanks for posting :)

U are awesome , ur videos really helped me

thank you for helping me really helps🤗

@Ankita Singh: Odds are if you are having trouble with those notes, your fingers may not be covering the holes all the way (or your left thumb might be leaking at the bottom of the hole). Can you move from low Bb (the one with all of your left hand and the first finger on your right hand) to a high F by simply blowing quickly and adding the register key?

Thanks for the feedback Peter. I know that some people find the "what-not-to-do" comments helpful, because it helps them to recognize bad habits. Others like to cut right to the "what-to-do". I'll be trying out a new video system next week that should allow me to index these much better so that each listener can pick the sections that they want more quickly. (It should help with the volume issue too.) Hopefully it will make future videos even better. - Michelle

Thank you! Just picking up clarinet again after a while of playing trumpet and saxophone. Why are clarinet fingerings different depending on the octave?! It is nice that the notes are the same on the saxophone not depending on the octave.

I don't want to move the students too quickly. But I have found air support may also be a factor in getting the higher register to come out, properly. Maybe they could experiment with playing the higher note, first. This would show them it requires strong air support they should maintain for all notes. The air column becomes much longer for the B than it does for the throat tone Bb.

Hi, great video. Can you make a video about moving from high notes to low notes, because sometimes I can play the high notes without pressing the register key, and sometimes I unintentionally play the high notes when I want to play the low notes, especially when I'm moving from high notes to low notes.

@ClarinetMentors

6 жыл бұрын

Usually this is caused by putting a little bit of "biting" pressure on the reed during the high notes. We then tend to skip up to the higher register by accident. The antidote is to really round the corners of your mouth in, and try to drop your jaw a bit when you move back down. In the long run, we want to have firm corners developed so that we don't need to accommodate this, but that can help as you figure it out. I have some other videos here that are available as samples from my Mastering Clarinet High Notes course that might give you more ideas: members.clarinetmastery.com/p/mastering-clarinet-high-notes-sign-up

I enjoy all of your videos, but this one was especially helpful, particularly the positioning of the left index near the A and G# keys. What I find the most difficult are the passages which involve successive pinky keys, especially when one must use the right pinky alone to play the B (and even more so if I'm coming from the throat tones.) I often get a pronounced hesitation, and I wonder if it's because stretching the pinky over pulls the 4th finger slightly off of the D tone hole? Is there some exercise which might help out with that? (Thanks for any advice...)

@ClarinetMentors

9 жыл бұрын

Stanley Alama That delay on the B key is because something is not sealing well. It certainly could be your finger (likely the 4th one) in which case practising those notes in front of a mirror may help. However, you should rule out mechanical challenges since that note is probably the most likely to be out of adjustment on clarinet. This may help you to determine that: kzread.info/dash/bejne/YpWIlKemgqbZldI.html

@stanleyalama5740

9 жыл бұрын

Clarinet Mentors (Michelle Anderson) Yes, the C pad had just the slightest bit of a gap when the B key was depressed! I made a delicate adjustment myself, but will bring it in to an expert when I get the chance. Thanks so much for the (on target) advice!!

At time index about 12:00 , it looks like the contact of your pinky on the E/B key for the right hand is opposite the first knuckle, rather than on the finger tip? I have a lot of trouble with response of this fingering, and my hand feels tense. Can you comment on the position of the pinky in that fingering?

Thank you so much for this video. Have been struggling getting from A to B and A to C this should help a lot. Thank you!

This video is really helpful for a beginner clarinetist like me but i still can't play anything "over the break". Are there any more tips or it there the problem with me or the clarinet? I really need to learn fast because almost in all my music there's something over the break.

Hello I’m new to your channel. Do you have a video that recommends clarinets for beginners? I don’t wanna buy a cheap one that’s going to make it hard to learn. But I don’t know where to start

Your videos are really helpful. I'm teaching my self and was thinking of getting a hands on teacher but your videos are so good I'm rethinking it. The hand position you mentioned where the left index finger is rolled upwards and the thumb is pointing up...are those two fingers supposed to be like that at the same time at default position?

@realtime1134

9 жыл бұрын

It just feels so awkward.

@ClarinetMentors

9 жыл бұрын

Samuel Ackerman It does feel awkward, but should not feel restricted or painful. The idea is to always have our fingers as close to their regular keys as possible. Your arm/wrist position also affects this. You might want to check this video as well: arm/wrist position: kzread.info/dash/bejne/mJ57qbOJaMXZdbg.html left thumb position: kzread.info/dash/bejne/X5Z91saim8zUnZc.html

@realtime1134

9 жыл бұрын

Thank you so much. :D

I'm not sure if it's me but the link to the resource is not there. Do you have the link to it? Thanks!

Oh I know what you mean about the rigtht thumb changing low to high I did exactly as you pointed out I shouldn't do . How did you know?

I just picked up a clarinet. Last time I played was back in the late 70s or early 80s. Not been able to get a B natural. Playing for just a week now. Not sure why. While watching this, I found that I could get the B from A. But only with the bottom the my clarinet pressed against my seat.Seams that I need to force the reed away from my lower lip. Really backwards from what I recall. Wish I had my original clarinet. Playing on a Yamaha YCL-255 now. The more I bight down on it, the higher it squeaks.

@natashapotter4089

3 жыл бұрын

Hi Richard. When you bite down on a reed, the reed can't vibrate, so it can either be you putting too much mouthpiece in your mouth, or you're biting down on the reed, which will cause the reed to not vibrate = no sound. Let me know if any of these work!

TIP: Focus on your left thumb-where it is, pressure on its pad, the little tingle it gets from whatever it's touching, etc.-AT ALL TIMES, no matter the note you're playing. (At least until this mental awareness is automatic. A month or two or three, maybe.)

A problem came up for me when I was doing this. When I was going from b to each of the lower notes, there were some notes that were staying in the higher register. The register key was still doing its job after I let go of the key. Each of those notes had a delayed reaction and didn't become accurate until a half-second into the note. Is that a keywork issue?

I have difficulties when I go from that A to the B, even I have al my fingers closing all at the right position, the B delay 1 second to give the sound after I blow. Can you recommend something to improve that B?

@ClarinetMentors

5 жыл бұрын

Hi Julian, first of all, you need to make sure that your fingers are covering the holes completely. The exercises in this video (and looking in a mirror) will help. You should also be aware that many "B" keys are out of adjustment and could be contributing to the delay. This video will help: kzread.info/dash/bejne/YpWIlKemgqbZldI.html

hi there i cant access the link!

Does a cheap clarinet ever make this more difficult? I can't seem to find a way to go from low to high register without adjusting my embouchure. I can't find a single amount of pressure and contact point that works everywhere.

Hi the videos are helping but i need help with some sheet coppies for the clarinet and how to get them its a problem for example this sheet accompanid by clarinet solo " come to the savivour.

@ClarinetMentors

10 жыл бұрын

There are several places to download or buy music online. I'm not familiar with a good source for that hymn, but if you are playing by yourself, it doesn't need to be a clarinet-specific version. You could read from a vocal part. I suggest you Google it and see what comes up.

@ghadymweete2595

10 жыл бұрын

hi if you can send me one of materials i can appreciate so much

so in band i am 1st chair clarinet and we are playing a piece called Encanto, during a flute solo we have transitions from low a to high c, and other ones like that. there are to much space between the notes, how can i fix this??

@ClarinetMentors

8 жыл бұрын

+mj r That is a tricky note combination. The key is how you hold your left hand and thumb. These videos may also help: arm/wrist position: kzread.info/dash/bejne/mJ57qbOJaMXZdbg.html kzread.info/dash/bejne/lYJsy9drndvAh7Q.html left thumb position: kzread.info/dash/bejne/X5Z91saim8zUnZc.html Looking in a mirror to see if your fingers are staying close to the keys can help too.

@marissajackson4652

8 жыл бұрын

thankyou!😊

Please help me understand that B bar you did at 13:25 . I don't understand the fingering.... and can't read notes... just trying to copy visually and by ear.

@ClarinetMentors

10 жыл бұрын

Hi John - I am playing the A in the middle of the staff to the B above it. You might want to look at these notes in a fingering chart so that what I am playing makes sense. Here's a good one: www.clarinetcloset.com/clarinet-fingeringchart.html

@aaronmcgee

10 жыл бұрын

Thank you!!! I'm practicing and using the chart to help :) You're great!

I caught my fingers flying way up and the padded keys don't fly way up they barely show themselves . It like they are just peeking up But you know I figure I rise them sop uch is because I'm signalling my thinoing that I got the right fingers up and the right fingers down some . I can see that a whole lot better than feel it. .

I really need your help... When I play E and notes above E over the break all the notes from E up rattle. Its the E above the break. It is missing pads but we are getting new ones but I dont think pads will fix it...its over 30 years old and hasn't been played since now

@natashapotter4089

3 жыл бұрын

Hi David! I'm not an expert on clarinet, but I have 2 suggestions. A) what type of reed are you using? B) are you using fast enough air? Let me know if any of these work!

@davidwinfrey2861

3 жыл бұрын

@@natashapotter4089 thank you. I have enough air and I use a vandoren 4.

@natashapotter4089

3 жыл бұрын

@@davidwinfrey2861 Hmm have you tried a softer reed?

@davidwinfrey2861

3 жыл бұрын

@@natashapotter4089 I got a vito resotone 3 cause the plastic on the artley was coroding cause its 50 years old so thanks for helping

@natashapotter4089

3 жыл бұрын

@@davidwinfrey2861 Anytime! Have a good day!

its like the clarinets Kreutzer 9 it will correct your fingering

Should I use double lip or single lip people say double lip is better

@ClarinetMentors

9 жыл бұрын

Pioneers They are both accepted as good embouchure choices on the clarinet. The double lip seems to produce a more even tone quality throughout the registers, and helps to prevent "biting". Some people report finding fast articulation trickier with double lip than single, but it remains very much an individual choice.

Going from bassoon to clarinet... I can play low and high, but never in the middle too well :P

I don't see the handout; has it been taken down?

@ClarinetMentors

10 жыл бұрын

Hi Thom, please try this link: www.clarinetmentors.com/resources/FingerWorkout.pdf. I think it was lost in the KZread description. Sometimes you need to click "see more" to read the whole thing. I believe this should have the worksheet that you are looking for. I hope you enjoy it!

@thomfoy2375

10 жыл бұрын

Clarinet Mentors (Michelle Anderson) Duh, there it is. Thanks for your quick response. BTW, I watched two videos yesterday for the first time and I am already seeing/hearing improvement. Keep up the good work!!

@ClarinetMentors

10 жыл бұрын

Hi Thom, I'm glad the worksheet worked for you. You too, keep up the good work! It is fun to realize how quickly you can improve, especially when you know the best systems.

This looks like a really useful video but I'm struggling to hear what you're saying. The subtitles help, but I can't read those and watch what you're doing at the same time.

a bit long & repetitive, perhaps you could reduce the length of the vid. by only showing what should be done and eliminating what should not be done. Also your mic. is a bit soft. I have to turn the sound up all the way just to get a medium volume.

@staceyknechtful

5 жыл бұрын

Do you have anything *nice* to say, Peter?