A Parent's Guide to the Clarinet

Anatomy of the Clarinet

Assembling the Clarinet

1. Start by assembling the mouthpiece and ligature, and attached it to the barrel. 

a. Moisten reeds with water or saliva before attaching them to the mouthpiece. Ensure that the curve of the reed is aligned with the curve of the mouthpiece, and that the angled cut of the reed and mouthpiece line up. The flat side of the reed will go up against the flat side of the mouthpiece.

b. The wide part of the ligature goes on first. The ligature should go farther than the curved part of the reed. On a metal ligature, the screws should be against the reed. Tighten just enough so the reed doesn't move when the mouthpiece is shaken. Don't over-tighten the ligature.


The ligature should sit below the curve on the back of the mouthpiece.


The ligature should sit below the curve of the reed, and the
reed should line up with the top of the mouthpiece.

2. Don't hold onto the small, delicate keys at the middle or bottom of the upper joint, as they are easily damaged. Instead, hold onto the area with fewer keys on the top. On the lower joint, hold onto the area at the bottom with fewer keys.

Hold the lower joint at the bottom and the
upper joint at the top to assemble the two.

3. Apply cork grease when cork is dry or when there is difficulty putting the pieces together. Wiggle the pieces back and forth to assemble.

4. Line up the bridge keys that cross the upper and lower joints (just like puzzle pieces) without clashing the keys on the sides.

The bridge keys are two small keys (circled) that, when connected,
allow you to play keys across the two body joints.

The bridge keys when assembled (circled). 

5. When assembled properly, the reed, register key, and thumb rest will form a straight line.

The reed, register key, and thumb rest (circled) should
form a straight line down the instrument.

6. If your student needs to leave their clarinet during band they should separate the upper portion from the lower. Avoid leaving it on the floor so it doesn't get knocked over.

Cleaning and Storage

1. Take the mouthpiece and barrel unit off. Invert the instrument and drop the weighted end of a pull-through swab into the bell end. Pull the swab gently up through the instrument so that it doesn't catch on anything. Do this two or three times.

2. Always take the reed off of the mouthpiece and dry it off before storage. Store reeds in a flat case to keep from warping.

3. Practice good reed rotation. Use a different reed each day for four days, then start over with the first reed. This allows them to strengthen between uses. To help with the rotation, you may also number your reeds on the flat or back side.

4. If reeds show signs of mold, or have any cracks or chips, they are trash. Throw them away immediately so they don't get confused with good reeds.

Troubleshooting

PROBLEM: The swab got stuck.

SOLUTION: Stop pulling immediately to avoid damaging anything. Bring it in so we can extract the swab.

PROBLEM: The bridge keys are bent.

SOLUTION: These are the keys that stick down below the upper joint and above the lower joint to connect the two pieces and allow you to play notes across the body of the instrument. Since they stick out, they are easily bent if the pieces are dropped or knocked against something. Bring the instrument in so we can have the keys adjusted. On Buffet clarinets, this area also has a small nylon pin that can be snapped off if dropped.

PROBLEM: Some notes won't play properly.

SOLUTION: This is most often caused by air leaks, which are attributed to bent keys, which are mainly caused by dropping the instrument or gripping it in the wrong place during assembly. Bring it in so we can have the keys regulated and adjusted.

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For more information about clarinet maintenance, watch our maintenance videos below, or call AMUSE at 310-377-7838.

Clarinet Maintenance Video


Reed Maintenance Video



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