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ok, Clarinet teacher here. Here's a bit of background on the instrument: The clarinet was built with agility in mind, we're one of the fastest wind instruments (about even with the flute) and the 4th or so fastest instrument in the symphony (the four being piano, violin, flute, and clarinet). We're a color and harmony instrument. This means in a large group, we aren't able to be heard over 4 trumpets, 4 trombones, percussion, and a full string section (15-40 people). That means if you want us to play a solo, you have to knock some instruments out or write pp on everyone else's part.

Clarinet work very well together when moving in harmony (similar motions, but not on the same notes. If you have one clarinet play G-F-E-D-C and another play E-D-C-B-A (above the G, not below it) you'll hear a harmony created by the wide open interval is rather pleasing to the ear. A great deal of music uses 2-3 clarinet parts to make use of this harmony. When in a full symphony of concert band, the clarinet are often paired with the flutes and oboes to make their part ring out stronger against the more powerful sections. Clarinets also are tasked with being near the top of what you might call the sound pyramid. Imagine the lowest sound in the ensemble at the bottom and the highest sound at the top, clarinet are often two steps below the top of the pyramid. There's a good reason for this, in physics high pitched sounds are easier to hear (that's why you usually see only 1 piccolo in a concert band or a symphony, they don't need numbers, they have frequency). That said, if your major melody is way up in the tonal stratosphere, you only need your 1st clarinet part to be up there. If you want to give it more power, you simply add the second clarinet part one octave lower.

As four the pitch issue you encountered on your tuner, I want to elaborate a bit on what /u/Distort_ said and give you some context. Clarinets are designed to play different notes than the ensemble because we had to do it like that. These days, there are two primary keyed clarinets: A and B-flat (the other survivors are used occasionally). We use them for one simple reason: They sound better than the others. We have clarinets that match pitch with the orchestra, but they are very shrill and nasal sounding Like this listen from there to about 3:00. That is either the E-flat or the C clarinet, a very unique and distinct sound, but absolutely horrid with blending with a full symphony or other ensemble types. B-flat and A clarinets are the best at blending into a larger group and offer a transposition advantage depending on the ensemble type. Symphonies love to use sharps, clarinets don't, so we use the A clarinet to negate some of those sharps and make our lives easier. Concert bands love flat keys, we do too, but not that much, so the B-flat clarinet negates some of the flats to make our lives easier.

I would recommend A Treatise on Instrumentation: By Hector Berlioz, annotated by Richard Strauss, Translated by Theodore Front Its dated, but it very clearly explains the limitations of clarinets (and all other instruments) along with providing visual examples and ranking individual note combos by difficulty (some are harder than others). I'd recommend looking at a physical copy so you can actually see the images clearly. I teach music theory online, if you'd like to ask some questions, PM me and I can get you started on the right path.

R13s are still considered a great intermediate/professional-level clarinet, but they have plenty of competition now! Yamaha is their main competitor, and Backun (Ricardo Morales backs them) is getting pretty successful, too.

You might have to find new reeds... D'Addario bought Rico, so what used to be Rico Reserve is now D'Addario Reserve. They still make the orange box Ricos and blue box Rico Royals, though. My favorite reeds are theD'Addario Reserve Classics, but they just started making a new line called D'Addario Evolution that a lot of my friends are playing now. Vandoren V12s and v21s are popular, too.

Thumb supports have gotten really popular, like the Ridenour Thumb Saddle and this Kooiman thing that transfers a lot of the weight to your hand rather than just your thumb. I have the Ridenour, and I love it because it makes your hand more open, like a c shape rather than a pinch.

Good luck and have fun! It might be worth bringing your clarinet into a shop to have the pads checked out, and after you've gotten into the swing of things, maybe take a lesson or two and get some pointers to stop bad habits from forming.

I'm actually at a similar point... I just graduated college (not for music), and I'm hoping to find an ensemble to play in now so I keep my skills up. I loved being in the wind ensemble at my school!

There are different ways to look for leaks. Clearly something is wrong, you need a second opinion. Find a small tube light - like this but with someway to plug it in and it needs to be thin enough to fit in a clarinet. I recommend a hardware store - you can check size and employees might have suggestions. You want it to be as bright as possible. They are usually pretty cheap.

Drop it into your clarinet like a cleaning swab, turn it on, and finger a problem note. Look for a leak. Better yet, get your pro friend to join you, check their clarinet to see what normal looks like, then check yours. Fancy machine not required.

Or just find a different repairperson. You need a second opinion. And check the register key anyway. Just because you couldn't see it the first time doesn't mean it isn't there. Hell, I'd take it off, change the pad, and put it back on again. Ditto for the A/G# keys. If you can't find the leak, I'd do that.

Bright light inside the clarinet is how the best repairperson I know checks for leaks.

If you're looking for a good Klezmer transcription I suggest Mel Bay's Klezmer Collection for Bb Instruments (There should be a cheaper version but it might be out of print now). These are transcriptions from actual Klezmer artists.

Stay away from well known performers. Martin Frost and co. are amazing players but they aren't amazing Klezmer players. If you want to understand klezmer playing don't listen to them at all.

So where should you find good klezmer recordings? Youtube! Stay away from those Martin Frost thingies and delve into the dirty of youtube and you'll find gems like this. Klezmer is international so really look away from standard and get into the 710 views of crazy recordings cause that's where the good stuff is.

I really suggest studying klezmer too. Go around to your local Synagogue and really understand the underlying idea of Klezmer.

If you NEED a 'professional' musician for recording David Krakauer is the only guy I could recommend. Even then most of his stuff is more 'new klezmer' rather than the fun traditional stuff. He's a very interesting guy though video

Hope this helps!

I'm probably the worst person that you can ask about reed maintenance, but I'll give it a shot.

First of all keep your reeds in custom cases, like these (I just got a random example. Plenty of cheap ones out there). ROTATE YOUR REEDS. My high school band director told us that we should never use the same reed two days in a row. Reeds usually last about two weeks of regular playing, so be sure to throw out the old ones.

Secondly, make sure you understand that each reed is made differently, and if you need to feel free to sand down the reeds if they are too hard to play on(use very fine sandpaper). Oh and when you are trying out reeds mark on them with a pencil a little note about it. If it is relatively easy to play on or not, whether it has a good sound or not.

That's all I remember for now, sorry if I couldn't be of more help.

Welcome back to clarinet! In terms of clarinets, I really think you should just see what you can get for your budget and seriousness of returning to clarinet. You definitely don't need to drop $5k on a new Buffet if you're just looking at getting your toes wet again, so look on used sites for some clarinets.

As for reeds, since you haven't played in a while, the muscles that form your embouchure aren't as strong as they used to be, so start out with maybe a 2.5 Vandoren blue box reed , or 3 Vandoren V12 reed. Since you played for 8 years previously, I think you won't take long to get those muscles back up to strength so you can use stronger reeds that you likely were using. In my experience the V12s play a little softer compared to the blue box reeds, so it might be a good stiffness for you. If you're just looking into getting back into playing, check out the Yamaha 4C mouthpiece (I find that many students actually play pretty well with it) and maybe a simple ligature.

I'm always hesitant to give gear advice, so that's just my two cents. If anyone else has anything to add or change, please do!

Again, welcome back to clarinet!

I don't have experience with the Vandoren Hygro Reed Case (which I assume your son wanted), but I have at least never heard of putting reeds in the refrigerator lol. If your son wants a reed case with a humidifier then I recommend the Rico/D'addario Reed Case which uses humidity packs instead of straight up moisture, and works really great in my opinion. Also you should know that the humidifier isn't just for reducing wetting time of the reed but in fact keeps them in a more stable environment to prevent warping or general changes to them due to the weather.

Hope this helps!

In my case I have four:

• Luyben
  
• Peter Spriggs
  
• Original Harrison
  
• Charles Bay Baroque "Covered"
  
  I use the Bay most of all, followed by the Harrison. The Spriggs I love, but the size precludes most mouthpiece caps except those little tip-only ones, so I don't use it very often. The Luyben isn't my day-to-day anymore but it was all through college and I'm honestly not sure why I switched (and it's like $13!).
  
  One thing they all have in common is they are all very light. I'm not a big fan of heavy leather like Rovner or heavier metal ones like the Vandoren Optimum. In my opinion, they tend to muffle the richness of sound, especially in the lower octave.

Here to second this as well!!!! It's a super stable stand, fits inside the bell nicely (my clarinet case even has a little indentation for the stand for the bit that sticks up through the top of the bell), and will last forever. I've had mine for nearly 6 years now and it's just as good as the day I bought it. I feel like you could probably stand on one of these things and they wouldn't break.

Edit: I have this one, not the one linked below. Not that there's much difference.

https://www.amazon.com/Soloist-Folio-Hal-Leonard-Corp/dp/1458426831

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This is one of my favorite intermediate soloist books. It is super affordable and has a lot of great pieces including a slightly reduced version of Weber's Concertino, which is one of my absolutely favorite standard solo pieces.

You're not going to find a playable B12 for $300.

I own a Buffet E11 and my first clarinet was a Jean Paul CL-300. Please believe me when I say the JP seriously impressed me, and that the only reason I upgraded was because I am self taught, and didn't know whether certain problems were me, or my instrument. (They were me).

It's $180 and plays and sounds just as well as my $1500 Buffet. It's made out of ebonite, and the build quality was incredible for the cost. The keywork is not overly thin, but rough handling will put it out of adjustment over time. Think maybe 2 adjustments for every 1 of an E11. What you're saving money on is materials, and what it's going to not be as good as the buffet is staying in adjustment for years at a time. That's really it.

I 'got into clarinet' just like you're planning and knowing what I know now, all you need is The JP Clarinet and spend the last $120 on the Vandoren mouthpiece of your choice, a good silk swab, and some Vandoren reeds.

For mouthpieces I recommend the Vandoren M15 or Blackdiamond 5 although many people swear by the B40. And get yourself a single screw ligature of your choice. Metal or leather. I suggest the Rovner leather ligatures.

Here’s what I’d recommend:
-Opperman Elementary Velocity Studies https://www.amazon.com/dp/0825833337/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_WEKBCbVBNYPNY

-Rose 32 etudes https://imslp.org/wiki/32_Etudes_for_Clarinet_(Rose,_Cyrille)

-Rose 40 studies https://imslp.org/wiki/40_Studies_for_Clarinet_Solo_(Rose,_Cyrille)

-Baerman Complete method for clarinet https://www.amazon.com/dp/0825801702/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_cEKBCbHPQ40J3

One more thing,
Especially when you are starting out, try different reeds.
These are a great thing to buy.

Good luck!

When was the last time you cleaned your tone holes?

Take the A key off and use a Q-tip and some water to wipe out any crap that's there. Also, check the pad on the A key to see if it's intact. Sometimes bladder pads can tear and the flap will vibrate as the note is played. Might as well check the register tube as well. You'll need a pipe cleaner for that one.

You can easily do this yourself with a precision screwdriver, just make sure not to lose the screws, and make sure to reattach the spring on the A key when you're done. If you really don't feel comfortable with it, take it to a tech.

Do you have humidity controls for your reeds? If not, drop $20 and grab one of these bad boys. That will help with reeds starting out ok and then becoming not ok. Your reeds are probably warped, which is why they're not responding. You can check it this way: Assemble the mouthpiece, reed, ligature as usual. Use the palm of your hand to seal the bottom of the mouthpiece, and suck all the air out with your mouth. The reed should maintain the seal for several seconds. If it can't, it's warped.

As for your loaner. If the instrument is new, it's likely to have bad pads that don't seal. That would explain the fuzzy sound, squeaky notes, and tough altissimo. It could be the mouthpiece you're playing on is crap. I don't think you're going to wear out a mouthpiece in three weeks, but the mouthpiece pad is a good idea. You can always clean it with some cotton balls and apple cider vinegar afterwards. You could try contacting the shop and seeing if you can get your usual mouthpiece back if you left it there.

http://www.stewartellis.com/#!ID.php?page=32551

This clarinet looks exactly like my Allora, only with a different logo. The case is even the same! The fact that they say "spacer" instead of barrel says that they know nothing about clarinets. Chances are you will need to get the instrument repadded and tuned by a professional if you want it to play well, and thats a $200+ job alone.

A cheap instrument may be good in the short term, but if you plan on playing clarinet for awhile you are only hurting yourself buy buying an inferior instrument. A used brand name instrument will last far longer than a Chinese instrument.

One thing I forgot to mention, a good mouthpiece makes a HUGE difference. This is what I usually recommend to students:

https://www.amazon.com/Clark-Fobes-Student-Clarinet-Mouthpiece/dp/B0002HLKKK

If you have had nothing but a cheap beater mouthpiece, save your money and make the first step to a Clark Fobes Debut: https://www.amazon.com/Clark-Fobes-Student-Clarinet-Mouthpiece/dp/B0002HLKKK

It is an fantastic mouthpiece for $30 with the same kind of dimensions as Fobes' professional models, comes in a middle-of-the-road facing that works well with many reeds, and is acrylic so if you drop it, it won't chip/break as easily as hard rubber.

Reed strength is actually more dependent on the mouthpiece than on you. If you have a close mouthpiece(orchestral), you need a higher reed strength. If you have an open mouthpiece(jazz) you need a low reed strength.

It's harder to play the really high notes with a low reed strength.

Also, if you're going for an orchestral tone, try Gonzalez reeds. And bump up the strength to a three at least - you can get singlets if you go to good(not chain) music store.

Arbans is recommended for clarinet students as well, but it doesn't cover the highest and lowest registers - you should grab Baermann's III as well.

Art of Clarinet Playing talks a lot about the mechanics and embrochure without treating you like a five year old who can't tell a treble clef from a curlicue.

That's pretty much your problem. Ricos tend to warp easier than Vandorens in my experience, and without a case they are more easily exposed to humidity and temperature changes. I use this reed case and it works well for me. You can also buy little humidity control packs to insert into it.

https://www.amazon.com/DAddario-Multi-Instrument-Humidity-Clarinets-Saxophones/dp/B001SN7VGO

D'Addario Multi-Instrument Reed Storage Case with Humidity Control Pack for all Clarinets and Saxophones https://www.amazon.com/dp/B001SN7VGO/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_t.wIybP5KTK9C

This is the reed case I have. It's fits 8 reeds of all sizes. It fits Bari Sax and Bass Clarinet reeds very well. I have never put a contra reed into my case but I figure it's not too much different from either Bari or Bass.

Hope this helps :)

https://www.amazon.com/Hisonic-Signature-2610-Orchestra-Clarinet/dp/B000BOQYCS I believe this is the link to my current clarinet. Cork is coming off and some buttons are pretty sticky. When I play certain notes of a lower register, it just squeaks because a piece is missing/the buttons are misaligned. I've had it since I was in elementary school, currently in college.

Backun MoBa Grenadilla Clarinet Bell - $675

Silverstein Works Cryo4 Gold Ligature Small Clarinet - $200

Ridenour Clarinet Thumb Saddle - $15 X 2 clarinets = $30

Vandoren V.12 3 1/2 Reeds - $30 X 3 = $90

Hodge Clarinet Silk Swab - $10

675 + 200 = $875

30 + 90 + 10 = $130

875 + 130 = $1005

=)

I've used this one for years, it works great.

https://www.amazon.com/K-M-15222-000-55-Clarinet-Stand/dp/B000NTEVKS

I prefer to use Yamaha powder paper. It's got a fine dust that covers the stickiness: https://www.amazon.com/Yamaha-YAC-1112P_144068-YAC-1094P-Powder-Paper/dp/B0002F58SM

I personally use this reed case.
https://www.amazon.com/DAddario-Multi-Instrument-Humidity-Clarinets-Saxophones/dp/B001SN7VGO
And inside the reed case there is a spot for a moisturizer pack 72%.
http://www.bovedainc.com/store/music/reeds/

I never have any problems with my reed after switching to this. You should try it out!