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Clarinet Basics
What is a clarinet?
The clarinet is an expressive and versatile wind instrument. Due to its penetrating, overtone-rich tone, the clarinet is very well suited as a solo instrument, but also finds its place in classical chamber music or in larger orchestras. The clarinet belongs to the family of woodwind instruments. For many it is even the quintessential woodwind instrument, since it is in most cases made entirely of dark grenadilla wood. However, this obvious characteristic alone does not make it a woodwind instrument. For that — similar to the saxophone — the reed is responsible, which is traditionally made of wood and is fastened to the clarinet mouthpiece with the ligature.
The 5 parts of the clarinet
Besides the mouthpiece, the clarinet consists of four further parts: the barrel, the upper and lower joint, and the bell. When these individual parts are fitted together at their tenons, a cylindrical bore — and thus a sound chamber of constant diameter — is produced inside the clarinet over almost its entire length. At the mouthpiece and the bell you can notice similarities to the saxophone and its conical design. Here the bore widens.
Sound production when playing the clarinet
Another similarity the clarinet shares with the saxophone is found in sound production. The clarinet, like the saxophone, is a transposing musical instrument. This means that the sounding pitch does not correspond to the written pitch, i.e. the player must transpose the notes into the appropriate key. Thus the clarinet part in notation differs, for example, from accompanying instruments. The range of the various clarinet models always appears the same in the sheet music, from E to c''''. Due to the different tunings, however, B-flat, A, E-flat and bass clarinets sound in very different registers. The clarinet's range is much larger compared with other wind instruments and is theoretically unlimited upwards. In practice, however, it eventually simply stops sounding pleasant. This tonal flexibility makes the clarinet one of the most agile and versatile wind instruments.
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German or French: The different fingering systems and their characteristics
German system
If you engage with the characteristics and ultimately the purchase of a clarinet, you cannot avoid choosing the fingering system. You should know that two different fingering systems have established themselves over time. On the one hand there is the traditional German system, which is mainly widespread in Germany and Austria, and on the other hand the French fingering system, which enjoys more international popularity. The French variant is also referred to as the Böhm-System. The latter arose from a revised and somewhat easier-to-play version of the German fingering system.
The system with the French fingering convinces with a sharper and more overtone-rich sound, while the German system brings warmer tonal characteristics. Since sound is always perceived subjectively and depends on many other factors such as the player, the reed and the mouthpiece, it's recommended to form your own impression.
French system
Besides tonal differences, the two systems can mainly be distinguished by their fingering technique and their different keywork, rings and trill keys. The German system, for example, is equipped with rolls which the little finger can glide over. In the French variant you'll find simple levers for the transition. The number of main keys is identical in both systems, but can be extended by auxiliary and trill keys for special note connections. The more trills a clarinet has, the more alternative fingerings are available to the clarinettist to play the same note. The rings, on the other hand, help the instrument to be better intonated. The French system is classically fitted with 17 or 18 keys and 6 rings. In the German system, models with 18, 20 or 22 keys are common variants, though the number of keys can rise to up to 27. In this case it's called a Volloehler-System. Ultimately which type of clarinet you choose depends, as always, on personal preference, the player's abilities and of course on the intended use. In our separate buying guide Distinguishing clarinet types we take a closer look at the different clarinet models.
