Hello fellow clarinet players.(: I've been playing the Bb soprano clarinet for a year and a half now ( I'm in 8th grade), and my middle school director has asked me to chnage to bass clarinet for a lower, earthy sound. However, I need to know how to do this before I want to change over. As in, I want to learn how to change my the tiny soprano embrichure (excuse my mistake), and overall how to hit the higher reguister notes, plus any other info that might make my learning progress easier. Thanks!

Just a little back information that may or may not help:

- Even though, I'm in middle school, I am currently holding my own in a high school marching band with very high level players.

- I can play a low E chromatically up a the stratospheric G (the bottom register 2 4 5 and Eb key fingering) with good tone quality.

If you must, feel free to ask any more information of me. Thanks for helping(:

Yay a convert! :D I switched over during 5th grade. You need to take in a lot of mouthpiece, but not so much that you squeak. I play on 3.5 Vandoren tenor sax java cut reeds because that's what my private teacher recommends. Whatever you do, DO NOT play Rico. You may want to start on a 2.5 reed (bass clarinet or tenor). When you are playing high notes, keep your embouchure the same throughout the note. Don't puff your cheeks and don't make your embouchure too tight. A good exercise for embouchure is to do octave jumps.

E - B
F - C
F# - C#

All the way to F - C.

Besides the lower sound, the bass clarinet has an extra key, Eb, so remember: you now have a 3 octave Eb scale. One of the basses at my school goes down to low C.

One more thing! Play out. Don't be tentative. If you're playing too loud, your director will tell you.

Like I always say, the less attention you pay to your embouchure in bass clarinet, the better. For me, it's almost like blowing in to a recorder, no pinching necessary, only a solid seal around the mouthpiece. I use double lip on the bass.
In the upper register, simply relax the air through it. It feels nothing like clarion on a soprano, think fast, tall air, no tensing, and good seal.

This is a big change, but it's not as hard as it seems, if you ever do play higher notes, don't pinch the reed, it won't help any, the highest I've been on the bass is the E 3 lines above the top line F, but most written music cals for lower notes, play out and don't be shy, be aggresive if you have to!

You mostly won't play high notes.... not all the time for a bass. its not that hard, and the notes are decently similar. in fingering that is.