[mmichel]

After a long hiatus, I returned last year to practicing the soprano clarinet regularly. It's been a pretty good experience overall; I've gotten much better than I've ever been at it, and I've even performed on it a few times in my big band.

However, one nagging issue that I have is in the upper clarion range--particularly high A and Bb--I tend to get a bit of an undertone (what clarinetists call "grunt"). I can usually manage it in slurred passages, but I find that it gets really bad when I'm tounging or making large interval leaps to that range and it sometimes leads to harmonic jumps or squeaks.

I don't have any problems with the throat tones, lower clarion, or altissimo.

My question is: what typically causes this and what can I do, in terms of practice routine, embouchure adjustments, or equipment changes, to alleviate this problem?

For reference, I'm playing a pre-Centered Tone Selmer (series N) with a Morgan J6 mouthpiece and a Legere EC 2.75 reed (though the problem seems to persist across different mouthpiece/reed combinations).

 

[lllebret]

It's unlikely to be an equipment problem. Try voicing eee on the notes that grunt.

 

[jgreiner]

Interesting.... Is it evident/audible at all volumes, or only when playing softer than you normally would? A real reach might be spit accumulating in your side Bb tone hole. Every once in a while that happens to me and some interesting sounds come out......then again, that's only when actually playing Bb(3) and using the bottom RH side key. It's both A and Bb huh? I'd also be very aware of having your airstream stay consistent at all times and take notice if you do ANYTHING different embouchure-wise or with your airstream on those specific two notes.

 

[saxtek]

I have solved that problem for two world-class symphonic clarinet players this way: Push a pin about 3/8" inch long through the center of a cork pad and install the pad in the register key with the pin protruding, sharp end out of the pad. When the register key has been put back on the clarinet, the pin should protrude into the register tube even when the register key is open. The pin can be a piece of a safety pin, a needle spring, or a sewing needle.

 

[OboeGuy]

This is most often a voicing issue. Your voicing is most likely too low (ahh) rather than the high voicing that clarinet requires (eee). This probably means that you're also biting a little more than you need to play.

I would concentrate some on mouthpiece exercises, making sure you can hit a Concert C with just the mouthpiece and then add the clarinet. Keep the tongue high throughout all registers, and don't put too much pressure on the mouthpiece/reed.

 

[dirty]

It's unlikely to be an equipment problem. Try voicing eee on the notes that grunt.

I would absolutely back this. The high tongue is really important and you can get a feel for how high it needs to be by practicing slurring up to the upper clarion C (above the staff) and then releasing the register key sustaining that same C. Don't worry about it getting a little out of tune. Just try to preserve that same tone quality and try to do it without biting harder. Doing that is fairly easy. Once you can do that smoothly, slur slowly down a C major scale without pressing the register key. Go slowly and really take the time to try to lock in what it feels like to produce those notes. Make sure you maintain steady air throughout. If you have to stop to breathe, play the note with the register key and then release it.

Then go back and, using the tongue and embouchure position that allowed you to make those notes speak without the register key, do it with the register key held down.

I like to do that as a warm up, along with a "centering" exercise that I have gotten from a few clarinet teachers. Play an open G and lay your tongue flat, like you would to play a saxophone or even flatter. The sound will be kind of fuzzy and harsh. Gradually arch your tongue, moving from an "uhhhhh" vowel to an "eeeeee" and hear the tone pick up focus and clarity. Keep arching higher and higher until the tone becomes strident, then back off. That's a good "default" tongue position from which you can start. Most other notes will be voiced similarly to that, with small adjustments higher and lower.

Tongue position is super important to think about, especially for sax players whose embouchure is already fairly developed. Get this part right and you'll really unlock a lot of fun on the clarinet!

 

[saxoclese]

I have solved that problem for two world-class symphonic clarinet players this way: Push a pin about 3/8" inch long through the center of a cork pad and install the pad in the register key with the pin protruding, sharp end out of the pad. When the register key has been put back on the clarinet, the pin should protrude into the register tube even when the register key is open. The pin can be a piece of a safety pin, a needle spring, or a sewing needle.

I have done this as well. It is sometimes called a "Hasty pad". I have no idea where this name came from.

 

[whaler]

I started on clarinet and played it through high school. I was fortunate to have an excellent teacher.
Back then I had no problem playing up to a double C, now I can’t play past G without issues.
I guess I should play it more than once or twice a year.

 

[mmichel]

I have solved that problem for two world-class symphonic clarinet players this way: Push a pin about 3/8" inch long through the center of a cork pad and install the pad in the register key with the pin protruding, sharp end out of the pad. When the register key has been put back on the clarinet, the pin should protrude into the register tube even when the register key is open. The pin can be a piece of a safety pin, a needle spring, or a sewing needle.

Incredible!

I tried this first as a quick fix and it eliminated perhaps 90% of the problem. There's still a very slight undertone on high A (which I will work on voicing away), but the instability is gone.
Do you have any idea why this works?

I will note that the speaker hole on this clarinet (pictured below) is unusually large. Is it just a matter of reducing the effective size of this hole?

 

[clarnut]

I have done this as well. It is sometimes called a "Hasty pad". I have no idea where this name came from.

The name is from the great teacher Stanley Hasty. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/D._Stanley_Hasty although I have known a number of Hasty students and don't know that any have done this. Avram Galper used to a have a pad or register key with this feature.

I agree that it is usually a voicing issue. In addition to the comments posted, be sure to tongue lightly and close to the tip. Tonguing lower on the reed or heavier tonguing can make the problem worse. Fast air and eee voicing usually helps. Be sure that your reed is strong enough.

I would have other players play your instrument to see if they have the same result. I have played some instruments that tend to have this issue. Sometimes changing to a different register tube can fix this. If it persists yo might talk to a good clarinet tech. Seeing that you are in NJ, Guy Chadash http://www.chadashclarinet.com is great at dealing with issues like this. Michael Norsworthy https://reedworthy.com may also be a good choice.

 

[saxtek]

Incredible!

I tried this first as a quick fix and it eliminated perhaps 90% of the problem. There's still a very slight undertone on high A (which I will work on voicing away), but the instability is gone.
Do you have any idea why this works?

I will note that the speaker hole on this clarinet (pictured below) is unusually large. Is it just a matter of reducing the effective size of this hole?

View attachment 256360

I don't know why this works. I haven't had the problem myself on clarinet in 50 years of playing, and the register key pad on my horn is a normal cork pad with no pin. However, my repair customers who tried this experiment were VERY good clarinet players, and as far as I know, they still use the pin.
Years ago, top fuel dragsters sometimes installed a long slim cone in the openings of their exhaust headers to help scavenge the exhaust gases, kind of like a gigantic "pin in the hole" system. The 2 applications (dragsters vs. clarinets) are quite different. Air does not come streaming out of the register tube on a clarinet, but the pin may facilitate the movement of air that does take place.

 

[mijderf]

It may be that this acts like a cork in the bell of a saxophone. There may be some instability in the tones that the pin helps disrupt???

 

[jgreiner]

Or maybe it's just a mental placebo. Okay, just joking (I think) but if I ever run across this problem with my own clarinet(s) or a customer, it'll be worth a try!