So....how low can you go?

[poltr1]

Some of you long-time filkers know that my main woodwind instrument is a bass clarinet. I've played one for the 6 years I was in junior high and high school. While I can still play a regular clarinet, I don't think I can play it as well as the bass. My regular clarinet chops are shot.





Like cflute's bass flute, it's twice as long and an octave lower than the "regular" instrument. In my case, the "regular" instrument is the Bb soprano clarinet. Due to its size, the bass has a metal crook for a neckpiece, an upturned metal bell, and a hook for a neckstrap. It also has an extra key on the bell to go a half-step lower, to Eb (concert Db). I've seen pictures of some bass clarinets with even more keys and pads that enable it to go down to a low C (concert Bb). Damn. (I'd be happy if I had one that went down to a low D (concert C).)


There are also smaller clarinets in the family, like the Eb sopranino clarinet, and slightly larger ones, like the Eb alto clarinet. And slight variants like the A clarinet, which would be advantageous to have for pieces written in "sharped" keys.

The bass clarinet has a distinctive sound; you'd recognize it if you heard it. Famous pieces that feature the bass clarinet are Tchaikovsky's "Dance of the Suar Plum Fairies", the theme from "The Addams Family", and Grofe's "Grand Canyon Suite". Despite its musical range, music for it is written in the treble clef (although it really should be a tenor clef, with an "8" below the treble clef to indicate it's an octave lower than written, like some tenor vocal pieces).

But there are some clarinets that go lower than the bass clarinet. There's the Eb contrabass clarinet, which is even larger than the bass. It's featured on the "Heffalumps and Woozles" song from "Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day" (when the heffalumps are slow-dancing). It's contrabass instead of bass because there's a section which goes to low concert G, well below the range of the bass.

Even larger is the BBb contrabass clarinet, a full octave lower than the bass clarinet. Due to its size, it's doubled up unpon itself, and they're made of metal. Here's a picture of one.

And beyond that are the ultra-rare EEb contrabass clarinet (only 3 or 4 were ever made) and BBBb octocontrabass clarinet (only 1 was ever made). Unfortunately, these are museum pieces and no sound files are available. (See the contrabass clarinet page above for more info.)


Now....does anyone have a picture of me at GaFilk with the bass clarinet, or the rest of the woodwinds on the combo stand?

Comments

[filkerdave.livejournal.com]

Man, that brings back memories of school!

[allisona.livejournal.com]

Me, too :). I played clarinet in my high school band for five years.

[filkerdave.livejournal.com]

Hee. I used to actually play bass clarinet; never played the regular one.

[poltr1]

That's unusual. I started off with regular clarinet in 4th grade, had a brief stint with the bass in 5th, and transitioned from regular to alto to bass in 7th.

[peteralway.livejournal.com]

uh. i can play a kazoo. sort of.

[mrlogic.livejournal.com]

My daughter missjely played bass clarinet for two years in junior high band. She enjoyed playing it but complained that the case was heavy to carry.

[poltr1]

That's the down side of big instruments -- they require big cases. :(

Maybe with all these clarinetists -- quadrivium also plays -- we should have a woodwind choir at an upcoming filk con.

[filkerdave.livejournal.com]

I think all of us who played bass started off on it.