When intervals fall apart on clarinet or bass clarinet, it is tempting to blame the fingers or fingerings, but the root cause is usually the air. At the moment a note leaps, the air stream — which should stay steady — weakens for just an instant, causing the tone color and pitch to waver. A leap is not a "jumping" motion; it is the task of switching only the pitch without breaking the line of air. If you have a habit of letting the air weaken, the next note enters thin, the attack is delayed, or the pitch sounds sharper than intended. In an ensemble setting, any wavering at the moment the note changes stands out and makes it harder to blend. Start by treating this as an extension of long tones, building the sensation of leaping while maintaining air support.
- The main cause of unstable intervals is a momentary weakening of the air at the instant the note changes.
- Using a hairpin shape (crescendo then decrescendo), you train your body to remember the state of not pulling back the air.
- With register-key leaps, you practice moving into the upper register while keeping air support steady.
- Finally, you perform the same leaps without the crescendo to confirm that stability has been achieved.
The Biggest Enemy of Clarinet Intervals: The Moment Your Air Pulls Back
Interval failures occur when the air "stops, weakens, or escapes" at the moment the pitch changes. When the air weakens, the reed vibration becomes shallow, the core of the tone disappears, the pitch drifts sharp, or the response is delayed. The key here is not to keep blowing harder, but rather to increase the air support as you move toward the next note. If you "reset" at the moment the note changes, the habit of pulling back the air becomes ingrained. By using a hairpin shape, a crescendo naturally falls right before the note change, forcibly preventing the air from pulling back. Instead of "jumping with momentum," shift your approach to "catching the leap with air support."
Practice Steps
- 1. Start on low E and leap to B by pressing only the register key (4 beats each is fine).
- 2. Crescendo toward the next note, then decrescendo from the moment you arrive (hairpin shape).
- 3. Using the same pattern, gradually raise the range and continue as long as register-key leaps remain stable.
- 4. Finally, perform the same leaps without the crescendo to confirm that you can transition without the air pulling back.
Summary
The key to stabilizing clarinet intervals is creating a state where the air does not pull back at the moment the note changes. With hairpin long tones, maintain support toward the next note, then settle once you arrive. Repeating this reduces the fear of leaps and brings tone color and pitch into alignment. What matters most is imprinting the "way you push the air" during a successful leap into your body's memory. Each time, check whether the direction of the air remains forward at the moment the note changes. Ultimately, the goal is for the line of air to remain intact at the moment of a note change, even without the crescendo. As you become more comfortable, remove the crescendo and verify that you can reproduce the same stability.
Video Info
- Title: Stabilizing Clarinet Intervals: Long Tones to Eliminate the Moment Your Air Pulls Back
- Instrument: clarinet
- Level: Beginner
