Tips for Bassoon
by
Kirsten Nelson, DMA
SFA Assistant Professor of Music, Bassoon and Theory
Posture
Chair
The chair should have a flat
surface that is not too slick and does not have anything sticking out on the
right side.
Sit up straight or lean slightly forward. Face directly ahead and avoid twisting the upper part of the body or the head to either side. Place the seat strap towards the middle or front of the chair and under the thighs. To prevent the seat strap from sliding out from under a lighter person, place the strap diagonally from the back of the left-hand side of the chair to the right-hand side of the front of the chair.
Lean the Bassoon Across the Body
1. The boot joint should rest on the right thigh; the long joint rests on the
palm-side of the 1st finger knuckle of the left hand.
2. The left thumb should be placed on the whisper key; then center the whisper key over the middle of the body.
3. Angle the bocal and the reed to come to the face (the reed should touch just below the lower lip). If you have to stretch or twist your neck or lower your head to reach the reed, raise or lower the bassoon accordingly and re-adjust the reed and the bocal.
4. Read the music over the
top of the bocal or to the right-hand side. Do
not read around the left side of the bell.
Hands and Arms
1. Guide keys
for fingers - -the fingers should rest on these keys when not operating other
keys.
a. LH pinky on low E-flat key
b. LH thumb on the whisper key
c. RH pinky on low F key
d. RH thumb on the low E (pancake) key
2. The arms should be in a
straight line from the pinkies to the wrists to the elbows which should be out
away from the body. Avoid bending the wrists, especially the left one as
it must support the weight of the bassoon.
Embouchure
Pucker the lips like you are whistling or blowing out a match. Focus the corners inward like closing a draw-string bag. The lips should be fairly relaxed, not tight. Drop the lower jaw and form an overbite. Put about 3/4ths of the reed in the mouth. The upper lip should be up close to the bark, and the lower lip about half way between the tip and the bark. This position may change as you change registers.
Breathe in an oval to aid in correct embouchure formation. Say "Ho;" then breathe in, keeping the lips in same shape.
Common embouchure faults:
1. Biting
2. Under bite or even jaws
3. Rolling lips in over the teeth with little or no
red showing
4. Smiling
5. Excessive tension in the lips/chin muscles
6. Puffing the cheeks and/or air pockets between the lips and
the teeth
7. Too little reed in mouth
In order to produce the
best sound and achieve maximum volume, the reed must be able to vibrate as
freely as possible. The more pressure you place on the reed, the more you
dampen the vibrations. Many embouchure problems result from using a reed
that is too hard. I recommend soft to medium soft for beginning
bassoonists and medium soft to medium for advanced players.
Tonguing
The tongue should strike the bottom blade of the reed, and contact should be made at about 1/4 of an inch back from the tip. Be sure that the tongue moves in an upward motion to strike the reed.
Common faults are tonguing straight into the tip of the reed with the tip of the tongue or striking downward on the top blade of the reed. These motions block the air stream and inhibit the speed of the tongue.
A "T" or a "D" syllable is most commonly used depending on the articulation style. If you experience response problems in the lower register, use a long tongue, "Doo," regardless of the written articulation to help the notes to speak cleanly.
Intonation
The bassoon, due to the nature of its construction and playing condition, can have many intonation problems. Sharpness is the most common problem; however, from middle c up to the f immediately above it has a tendency to be flat.
To change the overall pitch of the instrument, change the bocal. Bocals range from 0 to 4 in length with 0 being the shortest and 4 being the longest. 2 is the standard length bocal.
Sharpness -- Causes and Solutions:
1. Biting, even jaws, excessive tension in lips, smiling -- all poor
embouchure formations. Review the correct embouchure and emphasize
lowering the jaw, relaxing the lips and throat muscles (form the vowel
"oh"), and lower the back of the tongue as if having your throat
examined.
2. Reed that is too hard -- soften the reed or try another one. Hard reeds often cause the embouchure problems listed in #1.
3. Bocal that is too short -- use a longer one (larger number). Pulling out the bocal or the joints DOES NOT WORK. You cannot pull them out far enough to make a difference in the pitch. Also, pulling the joints loose creates breaks in the bore which can cause response problems.
4. Tension in the face and head muscles (raised eyebrows, for example) or shoulders, and twisting the body to the side. Each of these things can cause the pitch to go sharp even if the embouchure is correct. Face straight ahead and work on relaxing the tense muscles.
Flatness -- Causes and Solutions:
1. Embouchure too loose or slack, lower lip rolled out, air in cheeks or
between lips and teeth. Review the correct embouchure and emphasize
keeping the lower lip parallel to the teeth and directly under the reed while
keeping air out of the cheeks and lips. Shaping the vowel "ay"
or "ee" in the throat can also raise the
pitch.
2. Weak air stream -- blow.
3. Reed that is too soft -- harden the reed or try another one.
4. Bocal that is too long -- use a shorter one (smaller number).
Some notes may require alternate fingerings or the use of additional keys to improve intonation.
TOOLS
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*=items you must have to make these adjustments
The rounded cutting block, mandrel, plaque, reamer, and reed knife will have to be purchased from a double reed supply store. The other items on the lists can be found at hardware stores, etc.
REED WIRES
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- Squeezing 1st wire from the sides
a. Opens tip
b. Makes reed harder
c. Makes tone darker
d. Raises pitch - Squeezing 1st wire from the top and bottom
a. Closes tip
b. Makes reed softer
c. Makes tone brighter
d. Lowers pitch - Squeezing 2nd wire from the sides
a. Closes tip
b. Makes reed harder
c. Makes tone darker
d. Raises pitch - Squeezing 2nd wire from the top and bottom
a. Opens tip
b. Makes reed softer
c. Makes tone brighter
d. Lowers pitch
PROBLEMS AND SOLUTIONS
****Put the reed on the mandrel and the plaque between the blades before sanding or filing.
- Reed too hard. Signs: tip too far open; hard,
"honky" sound; small, dark tone; response problems-especially on
attacks; sharpness; cracking on small a (top line, bass clef); response
problems on a1 (2nd space, treble clef)
a. Squeeze wires from top and bottom
b. Sand or file the shaded area
- Reed too soft. Signs: tip too closed; buzzy, nasal sound; bright tone; small e (4th space,
bass clef) sags at all dynamic levels; upper register difficult to
produce; tone stops on d1 (space above 1st ledger line above bass clef
staff) or higher--this happens when the tip is so thin that the air stream
closes it
a. Squeeze wires from the sides
b. Clip the tip ONLY A FEW MOLECULES AT A TIME!!!!! - Tone too dark.
a. Squeeze wires from the top and bottom
b. Sand or file the shaded area
- Tone too bright.
a. Squeeze wires from the sides
b. Burr the tip--close tip with fingers and sand the very end
c. Sand or file the shaded area
d. Clip the tip a tiny, tiny amount - Response problems in the lower register
a. Sand or file the shaded area
ALWAYS ADJUST THE WIRES FIRST!!!! IF THE ADJUSTMENT DOESN'T WORK, YOU CAN PUT THEM BACK THE WAY THEY WERE. ONCE YOU SAND, FILE, OR CUT, THAT CHANGE IS PERMANENT. WHEN SANDING, FILING, OR CUTTING, TAKE OFF A SMALL AMOUNT OF CANE THEN PLAY-TEST THE REED. DON'T MAKE BIG ADJUSTMENTS ALL AT ONCE--YOU WILL OVER-DO IT.