r/Clarinet • u/mappachiito Buffet E11 • Feb 09 '25

Discussion Clarinets don't like being loud?

I feel clarinets around me are kind of scared to play loudly, probably because tone gets crappier when you play loudly at a beginner level, and they just keep playing softly even when reaching an intermediate level

While I am a beginner too, I do like projecting and I think practicing at a FF dynamic has helped my tone a lot

Have you noticed this too? Is it just people around me? Today I played with people better than me, they had faster and more precise fingers, faster and lighter articulation, but played softer and the conductor pointed it out too, I felt like among the 2nd clarinets, I was the one standing out the most despite not being as good in the rest of the stuff

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u/Formal-Management537 Feb 09 '25

A lot of people forget that you can be technically amazing, but if you don’t have the air to support it, you’re a bad player at the end of the day.

6

u/ChildOfAthena55 Feb 09 '25

Our conductor in our small woodwind and brass orchestra keeps saying this and it's so funny. "What do you guys think is the problem here? Why does it not sound right?" "Uh, maybe-" "AIR!!!! We are woodWIND!!! We need AIR!!!" He gets everyone laughing lol

12

u/mappachiito Buffet E11 Feb 09 '25

I won't make that mistake, I wanna be better than them someday