Contrabass Clarinet Finger Chart – Every once in a while, I hear people talk about what I call an E-flat contrabass clarinet (or “E-flat contrabass clarinet”), like my woodwind dub on a musical list or my book on the woodwind method in the same. Some people prefer the term “bass alto” or even “bass”, but I find “double bass” to be the most accurate and useful description of the instrument.
(One downside to this term is that you always have to specify the clef to distinguish it from the larger B-flat double bass.)
Contrabass Clarinet Finger Chart

First, let’s omit “alto,” which describes a deep female voice, usually in an operatic setting. This is a huge departure from the norm for an instrument with a much lower register than the lowest male voice.
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The use of “contra-alto” (with or without a hyphen) seems to be based on the dubious idea that the prefix “contra-” means “one octave below”. My best guess is that it’s the opposite form of some other instrument’s name, such as the bassoon (which happens to be an octave lower than the bassoon). In any case, following this logic leads to the term “anti-alto” clarinet, as it is tuned an octave lower than the alto clarinet (an increasingly popular instrument, making it a questionable choice for a frame of reference). This logic then produces a “double bass” for the B flat instrument, as it is tuned an octave below the bass clarinet.
The various music dictionaries I have on hand agree that the prefix “contra-” means “less than”, but don’t specify
Below, most use the alto as an example. (If you have a counterexample from a published, music-oriented reference, I’d love to hear it.) Based on this, “bass-midrange” doesn’t seem appropriate – a bass/midrange instrument should be
The problem is that of the three current manufacturers, Buffet-Crampon and Leblanc list “bass-midrange” clarinet on their website, while Selmer uses “bass.”
Hal Leonard Venova Method
Below are some published uses of various names, listed from oldest to newest. Please give me more information if you know. In my opinion, “bass-alto” became more common in the last quarter of the 20th century, which I consider an unwelcome trend (see “Flute Players”).
Waln, George E. “Clarinet Choir.” Woodwind Anthology: A collection of articles on woodwind instruments by The Instrumentalist. Northfield, Illinois: Instrumentalist, 1999. 2: 43. Article originally published in 1955.
Ayres, Thomas A. “Clarinet Choral Arrangement”. Woodwind Anthology: A collection of articles on woodwind instruments by The Instrumentalist. Northfield, IL: Instrumentalists, 1999. The article was originally published in 1957.

Kelly, Lucien. “Cailliet discusses the opposition.” Woodwind Anthology: A collection of articles on woodwind instruments by The Instrumentalist. Northfield, IL: Instrumentalists, 1999. Letter originally published in 1961.
Concerto For Clarinet, Chair, And Orchestra. All Three Movements. By Doug Clyde
Hullfish, William R. and Jack Allen. “Examine the Multipurpose Instrument.” Woodwind Anthology: A collection of articles on woodwind instruments by The Instrumentalist. Northfield, IL: Instrumentalists, 1999. Letter originally published in 1963.
Weerts, Richard K. “Clarinet Choirs Yesterday and Today”. Woodwind Anthology: A collection of articles on woodwind instruments by The Instrumentalist. Northfield, IL: Instrumentalists, 1999. Letter originally published in 1963.
Abramson, Armand R. “Better Use of Clarinet Chorus.” Woodwind Anthology: A collection of articles on woodwind instruments by The Instrumentalist. Northfield, IL: Instrumentalists, 1999. The article was originally published in 1964.
The author does not specifically name the E-flat instrument, but refers to “the double bass player of the clarinet family” (plural).
Cajun Folk Songs For Concert Band By Frank Ticheli By Manhattan Beach Music
Weerts, Richard K. “Clarinet Choral Music”. Woodwind Anthology: A collection of articles on woodwind instruments by The Instrumentalist. Northfield, IL: Instrumentalists, 1999. The article was originally published in 1964.
Weerts, Richard K. “The Double Bass Clarinet in the Modern Symphony Orchestra”. Woodwind Anthology: A collection of articles on woodwind instruments by The Instrumentalist. Northfield, IL: Instrumentalists, 1999. The article was originally published in 1964.
Rhone, Traugott. “Bass and Double Bass Clarets Are Mistakenly Named.” Woodwind Anthology: A collection of articles on woodwind instruments by The Instrumentalist. Northfield, IL: Instrumentalists, 1999. The article was originally published in 1957.

The author believes that the instrument is best known as the E♭ bass clarinet (the bass clarinet is best known as the baritone clarinet).
Low Register Colour Fingerings: The Special Case Of The Paperclip Contra
Lawrence, Morris Jr. “E♭ Double Bass Clarinet.” Woodwind Anthology: A collection of articles on woodwind instruments by The Instrumentalist. Northfield, IL: Instrumentalists, 1999. Letter originally published in 1966.
Little, Terence. “The Reverse Clarinet.” Woodwind Anthology: A collection of articles on woodwind instruments by The Instrumentalist. Northfield, IL: Instrumentalists, 1999. The article was originally published in 1968.
Weerts, Richard K. “The Clarinet Chorus Works as a Whole.” Woodwind Anthology: A Collection of Articles on Woodwind Instruments by The Instrumentalist. Northfield, IL: Instrumentalists, 1999. The article was originally published in 1969.
Lendl, F. Jeffrey. The clarinet: some notes on its history and construction. Third Edition. Edited by Philip Bett. Orchestral instruments. London: E. Benn, 1971.
Free Clarinet Fingering Chart By Barry Cockcroft
Harmon, John M. “The Clarinet: New Possibilities.” Woodwind Anthology: A collection of articles on woodwind instruments by The Instrumentalist. Northfield, IL: Instrumentalists, 1999. The article was originally published in 1978.
Heim, Normandy. “The Clarinet Chorus Phenomenon.” Woodwind Anthology: A collection of articles on woodwind instruments by The Instrumentalist. Northfield, IL: Instrumentalists, 1999. The article was originally published in 1979.
Donald E. McCarran. “Teaching and Playing the ‘Other Clarinet.'” Anthology of Woodwinds: A Collection of Articles on the Wind Instrument for Instrumentalists. Northfield, IL: Instrumentalists, 1999. The article was originally published in 1983.

Heim, Normandy. “Clarinet Choir”. Woodwind Anthology: A collection of articles on woodwind instruments by The Instrumentalist. Northfield, IL: Instrumentalists, 1999. The article was originally published in 1985.
Leblanc Low C Bass Clarinet
Jones, Brian D. “E♭ Bass Clarinet: Misunderstood and Overlooked.” Woodwind Anthology: A collection of articles on woodwind instruments by The Instrumentalist. Northfield, IL: Instrumentalists, 1999. The article was originally published in 1998.
Page, Janet K., K.A. Gourlay, Roger Blench, and Nicholas Shackleton. “Clarinet.” New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians. Edited by Stanley Sadie and J. Tyrrell. London: Macmillan, 2001.
Randall, Don Michael, editors. “Clarinet.” Harvard Music Dictionary. 4th edition. Cambridge, MA: Belknap Press: Imprint of Harvard University Press, 2003. Overview They are made entirely of nickel silver (an alloy of copper and nickel). It is stronger and more durable than brass!
For the trombone models, two ranges are available: the first is a drop in low D (model 340), and the second is in C (model 345), with amplitudes of three octaves.
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When the bell does not protrude from the body of the clarinet, the lowest note is D.
Like the modern bass clarinet, C# and low C are operated by 2 keys on the right thumb.
Auto-repeating registry key – since 195? One key controls 2 registry keys. It’s so much easier!

For automated systems, registry keys have been moved. 1st has been lowered towards Bb and 2nd has been raised towards the mouthpiece.
The 10 Most Expensive Clarinets In The World
Leblanc has added a harmonic registration key, extending the range by 3 to 5 octaves! This third registry key is manual.
This model has a serial number starting with an A (eg A5), possibly referring to “full bass clarinet”?
By raising the lower G middle finger of the right hand, play Ab, so you can play Eb lower than Ab.
The 345A double bass is very rare, probably due to high manufacturing costs, and sells for almost the same price as the 340.
Contrabass Clarinet Research :: — Jason Alder :: (bass) Clarinetist
Acknowledgements Thanks to Jason Alder www.jasonalder.com/ for generously sharing information and documentation. We look forward to reading the results of your research on the Leblanc double bass clarinet. Since you’re not German (in which case you’ll read the German version of this page), you might think that all clarinets are the same or at least very different. A similar design – the Boehm system is a “classic clarinet”. Most of the best clarinetists use this type in most orchestras in the world, probably all you’ve seen and heard – you can leave it there. But that’s not all.
Different types of clarinet are used in German-speaking countries and the Near and Middle East (eg Greece and Turkey), klezmer and jazz (New Orleans style) in the East. These are often referred to as the German system, usually a special/descendant version of it. The modern German classical system is called the Oehler system, which is directly derived from the Müller clarinet (not Klosé’s Boehm system). Albert or simple systems are used in Jazz and Klezmer. You will find the historical background under “History”.
No, you can’t say that for any reason. The modern Boehm instrument is an excellent all-rounder, but in some cases, players prefer a different type of instrument to play their musical genre. It could be Mozart, jazz or Turkish folk. Maybe you’ve seen the phrases “Boehm” and “German” on lists of clarinet and reed manufacturers, and you’ve probably seen some that sound similar to what you see at school, in your group, or on TV Different clarinet. If you’ve ever been to New Orleans and seen the Jazz play in the Hall of Conservation, their instruments will be different. They are all descendants of the “German” system.
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The development of the clarinet – from the simple instrument around 1700 to the current model we play today, has gone through several stages. These do not draw a straight line. Instead, it resembles a family tree of natural evolution:
Leblanc Contrabass Clarinet 340 & 342
For the first 50 years or so, there was only one clarinet system, all replicas of the Danner clarinet. An extra layer or two of felt didn’t make much of a difference. Around 1812, Iwan Müller introduced many improvements that are still used in the modern clarinet: (salt spoon keys, depressions and cut holes, etc.). In 1839, Klose’s Boehm system was derived from the Müller clarinet, and since then there have been two main branches: the French Boehm instruments and all other instruments, which are more or less variants of the Müller clarinet, henceforth known as the German system.
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