For Clarinet Players.?

Question

I Need Some Great Excersisecs to streanthen my lip. Im not like desparate but i want to get higher on the high notes uppre reigister*

Just tell me! ive benn playing for about a year and a half.
i can go from th lowest note to the the note above the upper register G( a C with the register key down.)

Answer 1

All right.

First of all, to strengthen your lip, you need to apply more pressure. Don't loosen this, for not only will you not build up strength, but you won't be able to hit the higher notes.

It hurts pretty badly at first, but like someone else mentioned, you get used to it. A way to lessen the pain is to buy denture cushions. These are pieces of a cloth-like material covered with wax. Cut off a piece that you can fit around your bottom teeth (about like, 3 cm or so long and 1.5 cm or so wide) and then fold this over your bottom teeth. This will act as a slight cushion and will help you get through this.

Exersices to strengthen? Just play every day, thinking about increasing your bottom jaw pressure. Be careful here though. The pressure should mostly come from your lips and the muscles around them. Think about pointing your jaw down and pulling the muscles in the area of your upper cheeks down. You should have some pressure from your lower jaw, but if it's too much your sound will be too small, it'll feel really resistant and you have a greater chance of squeaking (too much pressure from your lower jaw, or having your lower jaw too close of a distance from the top is what's commonly called biting).

So you might need harder reeds. If your reeds are too soft, they won't allow you to play with greater pressure; they simply stop vibrating so no sounds happen.

Also, playing higher notes doesn't just depend on the strength of your lip, or how hard/soft your reed is. If your tongue position is too low, the notes will be voiced too low. Try saying and holding "ah" and notice where your tongue is. Now try saying and holding "eee" and again, notice where your tongue is. It's much higher right?

Now try saying and holding "heee" (kind of like you're hissing like a cat). If you noticed, the back part of the tongue is a little bit higher. THIS is the optimal tongue position, for all notes, not just high ones, but you'll have a much easier time of getting higher notes with the correct tongue position. It makes your air travel faster, and you need really fast air to play high notes.

When I was learning this, every time before I stuck the clarinet in my mouth I said "ah eee hee" just to check where it should be. Then I'd play, stop after a bit, and do the "ah ee hee" bit to remind myself where my tongue should be. This is so frustrating at first, but after no time, if you're really thinking about it, it comes totally natural.

ALSO. Even more important that the tongue position is your airstream. If you're trying to play a high note, and you can't hit it, try directing your airstream higher. The way this works is to play a lower note, like perhaps the note that comes before a higher one in the music, or a 12th down can work too (this is what the clarinet overblows at... you notice yet that the fingering for low F (3 ledger lines below the staff) is the same as the one for the C on the middle of the staff? Only difference is that you're adding the register key, which forces the clarinet to overblow. Same goes for other fingerings... low E to middle of the staff B, low F to middle of the staff C, F sharp to C-sharp, G to D, etc).

Anyway. When playing the lower note, physically look at a spot that's low, like, the ground, and direct your air to this spot. Now when you go to play the higher note, physically look at a spot that's higher up, like, the picture on the wall, and direct your air there. Magically, the note should be able to sound, provided that all the other factors are good (fingers covering all the holes, sufficient pressure from your mouth, etc). Really high notes you can look at the ceiling and stuff.

The same works in reverse. It's actually really difficult to slur from a higher note down to a lower one. So if you find yourself playing a higher note than the one you're aiming for (or squeaking, as some call it), aim your air down.

All right... I think this novel covers most of the basic ideas. I'm sorry to throw this much information at you, but don't get overwhelmed. Take stuff one step at a time and you can do it. If you want anything clarified or better explained, just ask.

Answer 2

Hi! I'm a 17-month clarinetist. I take private lessons, and although I'm in band in middle school, I play at the level of a real good high school band geek.

Yeah. Before I answer your question, tell me, how long have you been playing the clarinet?

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Ah, update. I just discovered that I can't post another comment, so yeah.

If you're a very beginner, I recommend that you relax and loosen your lips. It can be a bit painful during the first months because the mouthpiece digs into the bottom of your mouth, leaving a permanent dip about two centimeters long. Not to worry, though, the "pain" comes naturally to you over time, and you won't feel anything after a while.

To loosen your lips, whether you're a beginner or you're just really tired, make the "lawnmower/helicopter" buzzing noise with your lips. Also, take your fingers and rub the area around your mouth in circular motions. This can help lower the stress you feel.

If you're not a beginner at all, my apologies. What I did to strengthen my mouth (embochure) was practice scales. They are very easy and relaxing to play, and you can focus more on your mouth than what you play.

Also, you can try to find books and sheet music at your local music store that can help your gain strength. You could ask the salesperson about the topic, and I'm sure they'd help.

I hope what I told you helped!

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ANOTHER update.

Also, don't puff your cheeks, even when you tongue. Make sure you hold your cheeks in (haha funny when I describe it), but DO NOT apply to much pressure, or else you can squeak.

The higher notes come to you over time. During the first days I played, I could not reach any notes above High G (the G above the "middle C" G.)

Now I can play an octave ABOVE the High G. Really High G. :D

Answer 3

What mouthpiece and reed combination are you playing? If it's just a stock mouthpiece that came with your clarinet, and you're playing a #2 Rico, you should try moving up to a 2.5 or a 3. Ditto if it's an intermediate/upgraded mouthpiece.

It also depends on exactly what is happening when you try to play the high notes. If it grunts, you probably need more lip pressure. If no noise comes out, and you're blowing really hard, you probably need a stronger reed as described above.

Answer 4

how high do you want to go? it's not really so much strenghtening your lips as it is knowing how much pressure to apply. If you apply too much (i.e., bite down too hard), you'll just squeak and drive everyone around you crazy. just start at a B (mid staff), and lift fingers to see how high you can go. eventually your throat (i don't really know how else to describe it) will remember the way air feels when you go that high. It helps to do exercises in those annoying lesson books you either buy or get from your instructor, because after a while they stick and you realize that you're suddenly managing to hit notes that you couldn't hit two months ago.

(I've been playing the clarinet for 7 years and the bass clarinet for 6)

Answer 5

It's a combination or reed and embrochure strength. With the amount of experience you have I'll lay odds that your probably strong enough for the higher notes but your reed is not. When you play high and increase lip pressure your reed needs to be strong enough to not shut off the air flow. First try a stronger reed.

Answer 6

long tones are the best way to strengthen your embouchure. DO NOT let your jaw move when you go from low notes to high notes. grip from the corners, flatten down your chin, use the muscles on your upper lip to grip the mouthpiece.
long tones in twelfths is one of the best exercises. play your low E, and without doing anything with your mouth, jaw or throat, just pop open the register key. if your air is supported, the note just pops out. continue same exercise upward in chromatics.

Answer 7

Ive been playing for 4 years going on five and what has helped me was just playing scales and my sisters older music. Since you've never seen it before it can help your counting and sight reading. You can also try and find this thing called Five Minutes A Day. I do this everyday and I'm seeing improvement.

Answer 8

I do not have any insights at this time. I just wanted a copy of Jessica's wonderfully thorough and excellent reply.
Thank you.