EXERCISES TO INTRODUCE THE ALTISSlMO REGISTER

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 I echruque 131

The AILissimo !{egistcl'

The altissimo range is from cf upward. Although fingerings for the nol cs
up to c' are included in the reference, for the purposes of this section I will
limit my comments to g3 The notes in the allissimo register arc considered
the most difficult to produce and to play beautifully. High notes can sound
as beautiful and be controlled as easily as the lower notes with the proper
production and practice.
The production of high notes creates a set of problems all its own.
However, many of these problems are mental. The production of high
notes involves the same elements as the notes of any other register: air sup-
port, finger coordination, and embouchure. These elements must be in
place for all fine playing, and this is particularly true of the higher notes. It
'9 is also necessary that the student should have progressed sufficiently to be
using a reed that is hard enough to produce the upper notes. A reed that is
~ too soft will close when the air support necessary to produce the upper
notes is given.
~ Most students approach high notes with fear and trepidation. As with
any technique on the clarinet, it is a mistake to tell the student how hard
~ something is: "The break is the hardest thing on the clarinet. The upper
notes are difficult to get and always sound bad"-familiar words, creating
=fJ mental blocks that often take years to break down.
In truth, there are difficulties in producing the high notes: their
~
response, the difficulty of attacking and playing them softly, their intona-
tion and their sound quality.
~
The response of the high notes depends on the basic elements men-
~ tioned above: air support, finger coordination, and embouchure. The
I~ embouchure is often the cause for high notes not speaking, speaking late,
or being out of tune. It seems to be human nature for the body to do every-
thing possible to help with these high notes. Thus the student will try to
"help" the note speak with embouchure movement. This is exactly the
wrong thing to do. When the embouchure remains firm and unmoved, the
air support remains steady, and the fingers are coordinated in their move-
ment, Iugh notes will speak and have the same basic sound quality as the
lower notes.
Refinement of sound quality and volume control of the high notes
comes with time and patience. If the student approaches these notes with
the proper attitude, this refinement will take far less time than if mental
blocks are built.
Unfortunately, the intonation of some of the high notes is a real con-
cern, owing to the imperfections of the instrument itself. Several notes are
inherently out of tune in the upper range, and the player must find a way
to accommodate these notes. When learning the fingerings of the altissirno
register, the clarinetist must remember to use the eb' key (key #14) as a vent
key on every note with the exceptiDn of c]:', the first note in that range. The
addition of this vent key raises the otherwise fiat pitch and improves the
quality of sound. If the vent key is used for c~', the resulting note will be
very sharp.