E-flat clarinet
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The E♭ clarinet is a member of the clarinet family. It is usually classed as a soprano clarinet, although some authors prefer to describe it as a "sopranino". It is used in orchestras, concert bands, marching bands, and clarinet choirs. It plays a particularly central role in clarinet choirs, in which it carries the high melodies that would be treacherous for the B♭ clarinet. Solo repertoire is generally very limited. In many cases E♭ clarinet is doubled by a B♭ clarinetist.
The slightly larger D clarinet is specified in many scores. Such parts are (especially in America and western Europe) often played on the more commonly available E♭ clarinet.
The E♭ clarinet is required to play at the top of its range for much of the time to take advantage of its piercing quality. In this range special, non-standard fingerings are required on most instruments to maintain good pitch. Therefore high, fast passages are often very difficult to play. The embouchure must be much tighter to achieve the brilliance of the upper register which can make the player vulnerable to squeaking. Because of the E♭'s piercing sound, any mistakes are readily obvious to the audience.
Use in concert bands
Although the E♭ is somewhat of a rarity in school bands, it is a staple instrument in college and other upper level ensembles. Unlike the B♭ soprano clarinet which has numerous musicians performing on each part, the E♭ clarinet part is usually played by only one musician in a typical concert band. This is partially because the E♭ clarinet has a bright, shrill sound very similar to the sound of the piccolo. It commonly plays the role of a garnish instrument along with the piccolo, and duo segments between the two instruments are quite common.
Despite being a member of the clarinet family, the E♭ clarinet is often heard playing along with the flutes, quite possibly due to its high pitch and relatively weaker low register that would be inadequate for the majority of the clarinet features in band literature.
Orchestral music utilizing the E♭ (or D) clarinet
- Béla Bartók - Bluebeard's Castle (1&2 double E♭)
- Hector Berlioz - Symphonie Fantastique
- Leonard Bernstein - Candide, West Side Story
- Aaron Copland - El Salon Mexico
- Edward Elgar - Symphony No. 2
- Leoš Janáček - Sinfonietta
- Gustav Mahler - Symphonies Nos. 1, 2, 3, 4 (D), 5 (D), 6, 7, 8, 9
- Johann Melchior Molter - Six Clarinet Concerti (D; probably the earliest extant clarinet concerti)
- Carl Orff - Carmina Burana (Orff)
- Sergei Prokofiev - Symphonies Nos. 4, 5, 6
- Maurice Ravel - Daphnis et Chloé, Boléro, Piano Concerto in G
- Dmitri Shostakovich - Symphonies Nos. 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10, 11, Violin Concerto No. 1, The Age of Gold
- Richard Strauss - Ein Heldenleben, Eine Alpensinfonie, Till Eulenspiegels lustige Streiche (D)
- Igor Stravinsky - The Rite of Spring, The Firebird (D)
References
- Hadcock, Peter, "Orchestral Studies for the E♭ Clarinet", Roncorp Publications. A very useful resource for the E♭ player, containing many of the standard excerpts, and an extensive fingering chart.
- Simon Aldrich, "[Johann Melchior Molter]", Continuo Magazine, February 1997.
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