...and I can't stand it! Whenever I play notes like C on the staff and above, I get a very bright sound, and I'm more a fan of the darker, rounder sounds. It would help if I practiced more, I know! But is there anything I'm not doing I should be doing, or anything wrong with my mouthpiece, ligature, or clarinet in general, or does it sound more like an embouchure problem? No, i do not take private lessons, and most likely never will, so all i can say is i'm doing the best i can.

Try getting a thicker mouth piece. The thicker they are they tend t ob emore darker...as long as you can handle the # that is.

thicker mouthpiece? how can you tell how thick the mouthpiece is? Currenlty i play on a Vandoren B45.

it could be that you have a very soft reed. Also, what kind of clarinet do you play on? and what ligature are you using, these all could be factors.

Clarinet-Selmer CL300 Plastic
Ligature-Rovner (not sure which one)
Reed-Vandoren v12 Size 3 or 3.5
Mouthpiece-Vandoren B45

how long have you used your current reed? Reeds can wear thin, so instead of a size 3 reed sound quality you might get a size 2.5 sound quality. Just an observation.

A B45 is a quite "open" faced mouthpiece. If your looking for a darker sound, try something else. I recommend a 5RV-Lyre as an awesome all-around mpc. I now play an M13-Lyre profile 88. It's awesome but quite narrow, gets a great sound in all registers on a 3.5 reed on my horn.

Got to vandoren's website, they have a great chart describing their mouthpieces.

well, a big factor i think is that your horn is plastic. Plastic horns put off a much much brighter sound than wooden clarinets. That alone is a big factor. I agree with finding a new reed, if the one you are using is older. And yes B45's are quite bright.

Well, my reeds are brand new. The problem is that I'm ALWAYS bright. Not just now. I'll try getting a better mouthpiece ASAP. I'll just have to deal with my clarinet, I guess. The problem with that there is that I'm trying to get a bassoon for myself (so expensive) and getting both instruments would be a bit of a strain. Not that I intend to give up clarinet, but I don't even own a bassoon, which to continue after high school, I'd need to buy anyway.

most universities have school-owned bassoons, if you plan on playing after high school...

you know when you play instead of just playing use warm air... like foging up a window! (Band teacher taught us that)

yeah...i never quite got that concept. i've always been told to blow warm air through my clarinet on those cold nights outside...