Working Resistance

By Tyler Song

Let's talk about resistance today! Whether you're a fan of it, hate it, or never thought about it, resistance in our setup contributes a lot to how our airflow operates within the instrument!

So what actually IS resistance? In short, regardless of what's causing it, resistance in our setup is essentially anything that requires us to use more air!It could be a harder reed, a more resistant mouthpiece, and so on.

You might be wondering, now why would I want to work harder?

Well, a more resistant setup usually requires more air, can play much louder, and creates a richer, darker tone. Conversely, a softer setup can create a beautifully pure sound, but often struggles to play extremely loud.

As clarinet players, we’re often obsessed with obtaining that beautiful dark sound that all the professionals seem to have. So does that mean we should always go for more resistance?

This is where the term "working resistance" comes in. We want and need a certain level of resistance to facilitate adequate breath control, which translates to a fully vibrating reed, but there is a point of diminishing returns: if the setup is TOO resistant, it encourages biting, tension, and all sorts of bad habits. Remember that excessive support can cause tension too! The line between good resistance and bad resistance can be difficult to identify, and therefore easily crossed!

So to decide how we want to approach resistance in our setups, we should think about what we want to accomplish, our priorities on the instrument, as well as our own comfort levels!

For example, if flexibility and purity of sound are your top priorities, perhaps try a lighter setup: maybe a closed facing mouthpiece like the M13 Lyre with a V12 3.5+?

What if you need to play over 100 string players??? Try something heavier: maybe a BD5 with V12 4s?

It’s important to experiment and be aware of what works for your body and embouchure! Just because someone you know plays a certain setup, doesn’t necessarily mean it will work for you.

One final thing to keep in mind is WHERE the resistance comes from matters too! As I previously mentioned, it can come from the mouthpiece, reeds, ligature, barrel, clarinet, bell (so pretty much anywhere) or a combination of these! You might like resistance in one part of the instrument, but not so much another!

Happy Practising!