As a professional clarinetist (and whistler!!) I commend you for taking on the clarinet and wish you the best on your endeavors! In case you're curious about some of the physical mechanics (read, the nerdy stuff): the reason why the clarinet seems to play twice as low as it should be able to for its size (its lowest note is an octave lower than a low D whistle) is because it vibrates like a closed tube instead of an open tube (physics-wise I'm not exactly sure why; something to do with the bore taper I think). Same reason why if you take a flute headjoint and sound it with your hand covering the end, it'll sound an octave lower than if you leave the end open. This acoustical property has an additional consequence, however: because it's acting as if it were a closed tube, the clarinet only overblows every other note in the harmonic series. So whereas most instruments will sound an octave higher when you play in the second register with any given fingering, the clarinet will sound a 12th (octave+5th) higher instead, because it skips the octave and goes straight to the next harmonic partial. This is one of the main reasons the clarinet has so much extra keywork, because it needs enough buttons on it to play an entire octave and a half worth of notes before it reaches the next register.
Congrats on the new instrument! Your video gave me a chuckle when you were surprised at getting your first Toot. Legere reeds are the way to go these days. Enjoy it and join a community band once you get the fingerings down. I challenge you to give the bassoon a try sometime. Far more keys than a clarinet! Double Reed and all 10 fingers are used for holes and keys. BTW, I am enjoying the low C burke whistle. Solved the pipers grip reach problem by using my right pinkie finger on the bottom hole. Good luck with clarinet!
@@bassoon1975 thanks! Glad the low C is working for you. I bet your pinky fingers are much more used to moving than mine. With all the keys it looks like my pinky is going to have to operate, I may have to do some pinky crunches.
the sheer excitement on your face and in your voice haha love it, and holy cow you have real gold in your hands, don't loose it, very old clarinet it seems
@@pollyon it's supposed to be a really great clarinet model, and I love the thought that it was actually used during WWII. It's kind of like finding a Fender Stratocaster from 1957.
@@NathanielDowell yeah right true that, or like finding an ancient pinball machine from years back haha, cant wait to hear your progress, even if you just play for fun
Regarding cork grease use. Fifty plus years ago, my bassoon professor told me to ditch using the cork grease on the tenon joints. Use Vaseline instead. And you can clean the corks with a bit of vegetable oil on a paper towel, rubbed on the cork. The tenon joint corks on my 54 year old bassoon still look new.
I love that you're giving this a go, Nathaniel! Clarinet was my first instrument. I played throughout highschool and was accepted into a post-secondary music program. I love your joy! You're going to have fun learning. Relax with it - I think your embouchure is too tight and that's going to translate to holding the reed too tight for it to vibrate properly, giving you squeaks. It's actually not really that much more complex than whistle except that it's a chromatic instrument instead of diatonic. The "keys" extend the range - think of how some whistles have an extra bottom hole for the bell note and that's the general idea - the bottom keys take you lower. They also give you your sharps and flats. Because it's chromatic, you won't have to do much of a cross-fingering dance - pretty much straight up and straight down. You're going to have a blast once you sort out your embouchure. Enjoy the ride, man!
@@quickdogz thanks! I'm starting to figure out some of the keys, and I was able to play a major scale. I've gotten some amazing sounds a few times (huge, resonant low notes), but after I have to breathe I tend to lose it.
We think alike :D I've bought myself a Chalumeau which is simpler and ancestor to Clarinet. And it is not easy at all to make a decent sound for a beginner :D
Nice! I started as a kid on saxophone and played saxes and clarinets through college. Now as an old guy I've picked up the whistle. So I'm moving the opposite direction. I do love the clarinet, and even more so the bass clarinet. I'm interested to see your progress.
Hey Nathaniel! Congrats on the new instrument and your new adventure. Will be looking forward to seeing where your journey takes you!!! Best wishes!!!
Nathaniel. Well done venturing into a clarinet. Wish I was there to help a little. Keep going - you’ll love it
As a professional clarinetist (and whistler!!) I commend you for taking on the clarinet and wish you the best on your endeavors!
In case you're curious about some of the physical mechanics (read, the nerdy stuff): the reason why the clarinet seems to play twice as low as it should be able to for its size (its lowest note is an octave lower than a low D whistle) is because it vibrates like a closed tube instead of an open tube (physics-wise I'm not exactly sure why; something to do with the bore taper I think). Same reason why if you take a flute headjoint and sound it with your hand covering the end, it'll sound an octave lower than if you leave the end open.
This acoustical property has an additional consequence, however: because it's acting as if it were a closed tube, the clarinet only overblows every other note in the harmonic series. So whereas most instruments will sound an octave higher when you play in the second register with any given fingering, the clarinet will sound a 12th (octave+5th) higher instead, because it skips the octave and goes straight to the next harmonic partial. This is one of the main reasons the clarinet has so much extra keywork, because it needs enough buttons on it to play an entire octave and a half worth of notes before it reaches the next register.
Congrats on the new instrument! Your video gave me a chuckle when you were surprised at getting your first Toot. Legere reeds are the way to go these days. Enjoy it and join a community band once you get the fingerings down.
I challenge you to give the bassoon a try sometime. Far more keys than a clarinet! Double Reed and all 10 fingers are used for holes and keys.
BTW, I am enjoying the low C burke whistle. Solved the pipers grip reach problem by using my right pinkie finger on the bottom hole.
Good luck with clarinet!
@@bassoon1975 thanks! Glad the low C is working for you. I bet your pinky fingers are much more used to moving than mine. With all the keys it looks like my pinky is going to have to operate, I may have to do some pinky crunches.
the sheer excitement on your face and in your voice haha love it, and holy cow you have real gold in your hands, don't loose it, very old clarinet it seems
@@pollyon it's supposed to be a really great clarinet model, and I love the thought that it was actually used during WWII. It's kind of like finding a Fender Stratocaster from 1957.
@@NathanielDowell yeah right true that, or like finding an ancient pinball machine from years back haha, cant wait to hear your progress, even if you just play for fun
Regarding cork grease use. Fifty plus years ago, my bassoon professor told me to ditch using the cork grease on the tenon joints. Use Vaseline instead. And you can clean the corks with a bit of vegetable oil on a paper towel, rubbed on the cork. The tenon joint corks on my 54 year old bassoon still look new.
I love that you're giving this a go, Nathaniel! Clarinet was my first instrument. I played throughout highschool and was accepted into a post-secondary music program.
I love your joy! You're going to have fun learning.
Relax with it - I think your embouchure is too tight and that's going to translate to holding the reed too tight for it to vibrate properly, giving you squeaks.
It's actually not really that much more complex than whistle except that it's a chromatic instrument instead of diatonic. The "keys" extend the range - think of how some whistles have an extra bottom hole for the bell note and that's the general idea - the bottom keys take you lower. They also give you your sharps and flats. Because it's chromatic, you won't have to do much of a cross-fingering dance - pretty much straight up and straight down. You're going to have a blast once you sort out your embouchure. Enjoy the ride, man!
@@quickdogz thanks! I'm starting to figure out some of the keys, and I was able to play a major scale. I've gotten some amazing sounds a few times (huge, resonant low notes), but after I have to breathe I tend to lose it.
We think alike :D I've bought myself a Chalumeau which is simpler and ancestor to Clarinet. And it is not easy at all to make a decent sound for a beginner :D
Nice! I started as a kid on saxophone and played saxes and clarinets through college. Now as an old guy I've picked up the whistle. So I'm moving the opposite direction. I do love the clarinet, and even more so the bass clarinet. I'm interested to see your progress.
What kind of clarinet and saxophone music did you like?
I have always loved jazz. I love the big bands, particularly Count Basie. But my musical tastes have exploded over the years.