Univ. Music and Performing Arts Vienna
Abstract :
When playing woodwind instruments, most of the player's
control over the instrument takes place inside
the player's mouth. Blowing pressure, tonguing strategies,
embouchure and vocal tract configuration are
modified during playing to perform expressively. Aiming at
analysing the player's actions at the note
transitions, an experiment with eleven clarinet players was
carried out. The mouth pressure, the
mouthpiece pressure and the reed oscillation were recorded in
order to track blowing and tonguing
actions and to identify vocal tract adjustments. The influence of
the player's actions on the sound was
quantified by considering the note attack and release
transients. The results showed in which manner the
players adapt tonguing and blowing actions according to the
articulation style (legato, portato,
staccato), the tempo and the dynamics of the music. The
tonguing technique in portato articulation was
consistent among players, whereas different techniques were
observed for staccato articulation. The
influence of the vocal tract on the attack transients was proven
to be non-negligible and it was
dependent on the clarinet register. Particularly at high pitches,
some players showed vocal tract
adjustments that supported shorter attack transients.