Clarinet Fingerings

(F.Y.I.) The span of Alternate Fingerings for the clarinet is one of the reasons why someone (I do not know who, but it was not me) nicknamed the instrument "The Misery Stick".

"E1" (the lowest note) uses both little fingers, as does "B2" (the first note of the second register). However, on both these notes the right-hand little finger is not strictly necessary. A lot depends upon how well your instrument is set up - spring tensions and pad-seatings etc. I use the additional little finger more or less as a failsafe fingering...just in case! This, because I have spent a goodly chunk of my professional life playing venues/countries/shipboard where music shops were in short supply - and you cannot carry spare everything with you in a suitcase.

The other alternate fingerings are there for important practical purposes and should be studied seriously. Some note sequences will require a certain fingering, another sequence will require a different one.

The actual range of the clarinet is slightly higher than shown here; it is possible to reach "Super C". However, if and when you arrive at a time when you really need to play these notes...you will already know how to finger them.

For many notes the right-hand little finger rests on the G#-Eb key as added support (see G2). It is not important for production of the note per se, but it is a habit worth cultivating. I am a bit selective in my use of that support key, but that's just me.

The Right Hand Trill Keys

The keys pictured here allow you to "trill" over the break - (between the first and second register). In the Classical world the ability to trill every note - (Move rapidly to a note a semitone above, and back again)- is very important. Trills are less important in jazz improvisation, but these keys do allow you to embellish notes that might otherwise be left alone.

Tone/Timbre is the big limiter here. "B2" - the first note in the second register - for example, and when played with its usual fingering ie; All Down, will give you a full-bodied note that can be held. The same note when played with trill key "3", is thin and reedy; fine for an embellishment, but not so fine as an integral melodic note. The same applies to key "4", which will produce "C2" - the second note in the second register.

There are actually several types of clarinet. Hit the following Wiki link; I guarantee you'll be surprised! The WIKI

The most widely used is the Bflat instrument...if you already own a clarinet, this is what will be in the case (probably!). In my career I have played (owned!) the "Bb", the "A". the "Eb", and the "Bass" clarinets. They each have their different uses, and they each have their different places in my heart.

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