Clarinets

High-range instruments > clarinets in B-flat & A

General

The subtle changes in timbre between clarinets in B-flat and A are noticeable in solo works and chamber music. Igor Stravinsky stipulated in his Three Pieces for clarinet (1918) a change from A to Bb clarinets between the second and third pieces, most certainly imbuing the third piece with a suddenly brighter tonal character. The 'standard' pair of clarinets that all professional clarinettists own are pitched in B-flat and A. They are both equally versatile since most players prefer to have matching instruments (same model, similar quality, same keywork etc.) due to the frequent changes between the two eg. in an orchestral setting. One reason for the continued existence of these neighbouring instruments is the ability to perform “difficult” key signatures (eg. sounding B major) on an instrument where that key signature is rendered “easy” by the transposition: sounding B major (five sharps) would be C# major (seven sharps) on a B-flat clarinet, however D major (two sharps) on a clarinet in A. Whilst key signatures are perhaps rare in contemporary works, the virtues of these instruments can be found in their two distinct tone colours: the B-flat clarinet is woody and bright and the A clarinet is woody and more mellow or dark. Both are capable of achieving colours from dark to bright depending on range, context and setup. The difference in timbre between B-flat and A clarinets might not be overtly apparent to the untrained ear, but even if this works on a subliminal level, it may be worth considering for your music. One virtue of the clarinet in A is the extra semitone in the low register thanks to its nominal pitch a semitone below the B-flat clarinet.

Nearby range and tone colour pairings: flute, alto flute, oboe, oboe d’amore, cor anglais, soprano saxophone, alto saxophone, trumpet, high-mid range percussion, violin, viola

Distant range and tone colour pairings: low woodwind, low brass, large/low percussion, low strings

Video example clarinet in B-flat (18th century)

Notable repertoire for clarinet in B-flat:

Carl Maria von Weber — Clarinet Concerto No. 1 and No. 2 in F minor and E-flat major (1811) for clarinet and orch.
Johannes Brahms — Sonatas No. 1 and No. 2 in F minor and E-flat major (1894) for clarinet and piano
Aaron Copland — Clarinet Concerto (1949) for clarinet and chamber orchestra
Pierre Boulez — Domaines (1961/1969) for solo clarinet or clarinet and ensemble
Helmut Lachenmann — Dal niente (1970) for solo clarinet
Liza Lim — Sonorous Body (2008) for solo clarinet

Video example clarinet in A (18th century)
Video example clarinet in A (20th century)

Notable repertoire for clarinet in A:

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart — Clarinet Concerto in A major (1791) for clarinet and orchestra
Johannes Brahms — Clarinet Quintet in B minor (1891) for clarinet and string quartet
Carl Nielsen — Clarinet Concerto (1928) for clarinet and orchestra
Heinrich Sutermeister — Capriccio (1947) for solo clarinet
Jean Françaix — Theme and Variations (1974) for clarinet and piano
Chris Dench — Ruins within (1993) for solo clarinet

Transposition hacks

clarinet in B-flat

sounding > written: think a major second higher [ + M2 ] • read as if tenor clef and play one octave higher
written > sounding: think a major second lower [ - M2 ]

clarinet in A

sounding > written: think a minor third higher [ + m3 ] • read as if bass clef (German notation) and play one octave higher
written > sounding: think a minor third lower [ - m3 ]

Clarinets in C, B-flat and A

These three clarinets appear most often in orchestral writing and formed the core of the clarinet section before the higher and lower types of clarinets began to appear. During the time in which clarinets had only very few keys, a clarinet with a different nominal pitch, or transposition, could turn a "difficult" key into an "easy" key. For example, an overture in D major would call for clarinets in B-flat to play in E major, which having four sharps for a clarinet with as little as 5 keys (the mechanical kind) would have been quite a challenge, depending on the music. Playing the overture in D major on a clarinet in A would mean the clarinettist could play in F major, which having only one flat is much easier. Today, in part due to the fully chromatic keywork of modern clarinets, the necessity to change between B-flat and A clarinets on account of key signature has been minimised, even though music that uses key signatures of six or seven sharps or flats is difficult on any instrument, depending on the kind of writing, and changing instruments because of this may be worthwhile. The individual sonic qualities of the B-flat and A clarinets and the slightly larger range of the A clarinet are not to be underestimated in their ability to impact your music.

Clarinets in C appeared perhaps least often however they were quite noticeable because of their considerably brighter timbre. Clarinettists could use the same mouthpiece on a C clarinet so this was minimal inconvenience. C clarinets were used regularly in orchestral music from the mid 18th through to the early 20th century but their popularity has diminished since modern Bb and A clarinets now cover the full range of technical requirements needed, and so many — but not all — players have been transposing C clarinet parts at sight on B-flat clarinet for a century or so. The use of C clarinets today is something vaguely akin to historical performance practice: they are being used to get closer to the sound that composers wanted and there are some very good examples for this, particularly in the works of Ludwig van Beethoven, Richard Strauss and Gustav Mahler.

Basset clarinets in C, B-flat and A

The basset extension of the clarinet involves building an instrument with four extra chromatic pitches. It’s referred to as an “extension” because the notion of a basset clarinet “extends” the idea of the range of the instrument downwards. An extension does not mean that these low notes can be applied at will. The instrument (or at least the lower joint of the instrument) has to be build like this from the outset. The term “basset” comes from Italian: bassetto being the diminutive of basso and therefore meaning “small bass”. Indeed any kind of basset clarinet could be the bass voice of a small ensemble. The common types of basset clarinets are built with nominal pitches of C, B-flat and A, the last of which being the most popular thanks to the version of the Mozart Clarinet Concerto performed on basset clarinet in A. You may have to ask around a fair bit to locate an instrument in C or B-flat, but they do exist. Basset clarinets can play just as high as their standard range counterparts, but possess the four extra low “basset” notes (written) Eb3, D3, C#3 and C3.