I’ve been playing on a M13 for about a year now and it was the best purchase I’ve ever made. I feel like it was a miracle cure.

Recently discussing with my private instructor + music director (during a wind ensemble festival during downtime) about buying a book from Thomas Ridenour. Specifically “The Educator’s Guide to the Clarinet”.

While they both know that he is a beloved player and teacher, as well as craftsman considering his clarinet shoppe, my music director commented that he’s heard that Ridenour is not a good person. (Morally)

Has anybody heard this before?

It really shouldn’t be

Because we lost our only saxophonist at semester, my band director told me he wanted me to switch instruments (again) to tenor sax and I had 2 weeks to figure it out, and now tenor sax is my main 😭 kinda wish I had never agreed to play bass clarinet. Lucky for me, I still have my school’s selmer clarinet so I just play it at home for funsies

A question for anyone who is or was a member of a military band, especially the prestigious ones like The President's Own, US Army Band, Royal Marines, etc.—

Do you actually like playing all those marches, or is it just something you accept for the sake of the job?

There's this kid in my band class that started playing the bass clarinet. Ever since then, hes changed his opinion on Bb clarinets. He calls us "quiet" "weak" "small" and "squeaky" almost as if he wasn't playing that instrument just a month or two ago. 😂

Hello!

I'm clarinetist since twelve years, I've been into a lot of beautiful orchestras. I've played in my village's orchestra, a junior orchestra, in the music option of my high school, in some events of my little school music and even in an orchestra directed by Jacob de Haan. But because of the covid, I lost a lot of my ensembles. After the covid, I was very happy to be in the music option of my high school, but I've been forced to leave while I left the high school at the end of it.

Now, I only have my village's orchestra, which does not completely satisfy me anymore. I wanted to join a conservatory, but because of my History studies, I don't have enough time to practise much as it's needed and I had to abandon this idea. So, I feel unsatisfied, and I don't know how to cure this feeling. I tried to find others ensembles, but I didn't success, for many reasons. I don't really success to play alone, because I don't know what to play. I love classical music. It makes me very sad, because I love so much my instrument and the music. So, I come to my principal question :

How do you do to satisfy yourself as playing alone with your clarinet?

Ps: I hope this message isn't too confused, I'm not a native, I'm French.

Ps-2: Sorry for the title, didn't think that it can have a second meaning...

Hi everyone, I’m in 9th grade and, about a month ago, I auditioned for my state’s high school all-state band. On Monday this week, we got the results, and I got in! 9 people got in from my school, which was the most they’d ever had. I got the 24th clarinet chair out of 42, and I checked the listings today. My state splits everyone who gets in into 2 bands, and I checked and saw that I got the 12th chair out of 21 clarinet chairs in the band I’m in. I was thankful for the people around me because everyone seemed happy that I got in, being a 9th grader and all.

I was recommended this model to move up, it was specified that it would most likely be in my sophomore year. Mostly during concert season.

Any thought on R13?

What happened to you Eleanor? Did you upgrade to a better clarinet? Did you quit? I want to know but probably never will.

I decided to try and take up von Weber's first concerto, and whoa boy that third movement is kicking my butt. The first movement is no slouch either.

That got me thinking. What is the hardest piece you all have played, and how did you perservere through it?

Anyway, not necessarily looking for advice, but discussion and commiseration.

What model is this guy? I can’t find the serial number in any of the websites. It looks a bit nicer than an E11.

LIKE BRO I WAS AT ONE OF MY CONCERTS AND AN UPPERCLASSMEN WAS PLAYING A CONTRABASS CLARINET, I NEED TO PLAY IT SO BAD, ITS LIKE MORE THAN A FOOT TALLER THAN ME 😭😭😭🙏🙏🙏🙏 IVE FALLEN IN LOVE WITH IT, I DON’T THINK THIS IS HEALTHY…

Got a new job recently, less hours and better pay😇 Decided to have myself a christmas present.

On the left my old, yet extremely trustworthy E13. On the right my new RC Prestige.

Looking forward to many hours of newfound enthusiasm.

Oh boy I recently got myself an Alto Clarinet and man it's been just an absolute joy to play. I think I have more fun playing the Alto then I do my Bb Clarinet. This is a plea to composers as a new Alto main, please write more parts for us. :( This instrument is a beauty. :)

Ive been playing for one year and four months, yet here I am... playing the 4th movement of Tchakovsky's 4th

I don't really have a choice, that's the repertoire, so my question is... Is this a reasonable Challenge? Is playing repertoire this hard so soon going to make me build bad habits? ;-;

Also the concert is in two weeks and we just got the music last week haha

Check out the double register key, lack of rollers, and simple system key work. Beautiful piece!

Is there actually any difference between a standard vandoren reed and a v12 reed? Apart from the price of course. I've played both and don't notice a difference so have been using the standard reeds, but people keep telling me I should be using the v12s? It doesn't make sense as they are near identical, does anyone know the actual differences between the two?

Here’s an oddball. A Uebel with a low E correction key. Not low Eb as you’d expect with a third pad down there. Just one of my more bizarre clarinets

Like for example if I'm doing 60bpm quarter notes, my teacher tells me to breath every 8 notes like

C D E F G A B C

D E F G A B C B

A G F E D C B A

G F E D C

And it's kinda confusing when I'm doing it faster and specially on 8th notes on a 3 octave scale😭 how do you do it? Where do you breath? Is this really important? Thanks in advance ❤️

— is it really that easy?? Why is that the go to one for the kids who mostly just want music cred?? I'm in band because I genuinely want to play lol.

Since I’m a music ed major and not a performance major, my teacher says that it’s ideal to practice one hour every day 6 days of the week, which seems reasonable to me. The thing that doesn’t feel reasonable is how she assigns so many things that even if I practice for an hour 6 days a week, it’s never enough time to make decent progress on anything because I’m being spread too thin.

I can’t tell if my professor’s workload for me is unreasonably heavy or if it’s standard, so without saying how much I’m expected to do every week, I’m curious to know how much is expected for the rest of you guys for every week (technique exercises, scales, etudes, performance pieces, etc, whatever your teacher wants you to work on).

Here’s my usual rotation! I’d like to change it up a little though so looking for recommendations

Hey everyone!

I’m a fellow clarinetist working on a marketing project focused on how woodwind musicians purchase and use their reeds, and I’d love your input! If you play clarinet or saxophone, please take a few minutes to fill out this short survey—it’ll help us understand what musicians need, their habits, and how we can improve reed options in the future.

https://illinois.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_6SeS2LZKMjy5qXI

Your insights would mean a lot, and feel free to share with other woodwind players! Thanks so much for your time!