Bass Clarinet

DISCLAIMER: The quality of equipment (instrument, reed, mouthpiece, ligature) has a very big impact on intonation. If the equipment is not in working order, the information and techniques on this webpage will not be as effective.

Embouchure Check!

Your embouchure formation can either help or hurt your pitch accuracy. Here is a brief reminder about how you should form your embouchure:

Make an exaggerated, facial 'A' sound. This causes the lower lip and tissue covering the chin to become very flat. Another way to achieve this is to imagine that you are applying Chapstick to your lower lip.
Set the mouthpiece (with reed) onto the lower lip at the point where the mouthpiece facing and the bottom of the reed touch.
Place your top teeth directly on the mouthpiece.
While maintaining this 'A' formation, add a facial 'Q' on top of it. This will bring the top lip and corners in and around the mouthpiece with even pressure.
Adjust the stick height to ensure that the weight of instrument is not resting on your bottom lip.

Correct Bass Clarinet Embouchure

Mouthpiece Alone

To check for embouchure correctness, it is helpful to play on the mouthpiece alone. When you do this, the instrument should sound a concert F#. Only adjust your embouchure, vowel shape, and airspeed to change pitch during this process.

How To Tune the Bass Clarinet

Once you have reviewed and practiced your embouchure formation, tune your bass clarinet using the procedure listed below:

1) Play your bass clarinet for a few minutes to warm up your embouchure muscles and the instrument.

2) Play up to 2nd line 'G' diatonically several times. If this note is sharp, adjust the neck of the instrument by pulling out slightly and then playing the pitch again. Continue this until this note is in tune.

3) Play up diatonically to 'C' below the staff several times. If this note is sharp, adjust at the middle joint by pulling it out slightly and then playing the pitch again. Continue this until this note is in tune.

4) Play up to 3rd line 'C' diatonically several times. If this note is sharp, adjust at the bell by pulling out slightly and then playing the pitch again. Continue this until this note is in tune.

Best Notes for Tuning the Clarinet with Band (Concert Bb and F):

How To Adjust Pitch While Playing the Bass Clarinet

Even after tuning our instrument, there will still be notes that are naturally out-of-tune for various reasons. This makes it necessary for us to adjust, or manipulate, the pitch while playing. Here are some simple ways to adjust pitch:

Embouchure Tension
("Lipping" the note up or down)

Increase embouchure tension and use the vowel 'EE' to sharpen the pitch.
Decrease embouchure tension and use the vowel "OH" to flatten the pitch.

Alternate Fingerings/Resonance Fingerings

For notes that are naturally out-of-tune, alternate fingerings and resonance fingerings are often available to adjust the pitch.
Different brands of clarinet will require different alternate fingering usage.
Alternate fingerings can also help you navigate difficult technical passages.

Other Factors Effecting Bass Clarinet Pitch

Breath Support and Posture

When playing, sit as if you are standing from the waist up.
Poor breath support will lead to an unsupported, out-of-tune sound.

Dynamics

When you play louder on the bass clarinet, the pitch tends to go flat.
When you play softer on the bass clarinet, the pitch tends to go sharp.
To counteract these tendencies, the player needs to adjust their embouchure tension and oral cavity size (raising and lowering the soft palate).

Pads and Keys

When pads and keys become displaced and move closer to the instrument, the pitch of those notes will flatten.
When pads and keys become displaced and move away from the instrument, the pitch of those notes will sharpen.
Leaky pads and keys will create weak and unstable notes.
Have your bass clarinet adjusted by a professional at least once per year.

Temperature

When the temperature is hot, the pitch will be sharp.
When the temperature is cold, the pitch will be flat.
Playing the bass clarinet at room temperature will give you the best chance of being in tune.

The Reed

If your reed is too soft, pitch will be flat.
If your reed is too hard, pitch will be sharp.

Pitch Tendencies

Every instrument has notes that are naturally out of tune. Here is a list of common naturally out-of-tune notes for the bass clarinet. These notes are the written notes for the instrument, not the sounding concert pitches:

MODERATELY SHARP

SLIGHTLY SHARP

SLIGHTLY FLAT

Alternate Fingerings

Listed below are alternate fingerings for many of the naturally out-of-tune notes on the bass clarinet. The alternate fingerings listed on the clarinet page can also be used on the bass clarinet. This is not a complete list, however, these fingerings will be helpful.

Note

Common Fingering

Alternate Fingering

Comments

To adjust this note, experiment with the keys in red until you find a combination that puts the note in tune.

This note tends to be moderately sharp on the bass clarinet. Like other 'throat tones,' this can be adjusted by putting down extra keys.

This note tends to be moderately sharp on the bass clarinet. Like other 'throat tones,' this can be adjusted by putting down extra keys. Experiment to find which fingering works best for you.