by Nick Somoski

Created on: December 31, 2010   Last Updated: January 02, 2011

Every clarinet player needs a 'survival kit' to get started. Inside this kit, there are many items that are either necessary or helpful to the player. These accessories could be anything from cleaning items to help care for the clarinet, to accessories that will aid them in the learning and playing process.

The most important items are the 'cleaning' accessories. It is extremely important to take care of the clarinet, to ensure successful playing at a later time. This is even more potent for players using a wooden clarinet versus the beginning student line plastic clarinet. With wood, if moisture is left inside the clarinet after playing, it can cause the wood to become brittle and eventually crack.

Swab - The first accessory any clarinet player should familiarize themselves with is the swab. It can be bought in many forms, made out of silk, cotton, or even felt. The strip of cloth is essentially tied to a string. At the very end of this string, there sits a small weight. The swab is designed so that the player can drop the weighted end through the inside of the body. They would then continue to pull the swab out the other end to clean any moisture and residue within the clarinet. Ideally, the player should use a swab after every time they play.

Cork Grease - Typically cork grease can be found in the form of a small chapstick like tube. It is an inexpensive, but very imperative, accessory to own. Cork grease is used as a lubricant on all of the corks found on the clarinet. The corks are on all of the pieces and work in putting the clarinet together. A player can apply some cork grease to make putting the clarinet together easier. Just rub a little on each cork and the clarinet is all set for use.

Reeds - This accessory tends to be thought of as the most important, seeing as a player cannot make a sound without a reed. It is, after all, the reed that produces all of the vibrations and sound for the clarinet. The body of the clarinet simply amplifies that sound and changes it with the pressing of different keys. Reeds can be bought in many different strengths and brands. Picking a reed, in the end, is all based on player preference. But there are general directions a player can pay heed to. A beginning player will usually start on a strength of 2. As the player builds up their endurance and become a more skilled player, they can begin to go up reed strengths. There are many different brands to choose from, but a beginning player will typically start with a Rico reed, an economy brand, designed to be used by a beginning student. By the time a player is within the strength of 3, it is about time that they start to branch out and experiment with different brands and strengths of reeds to achieve different sounds.

Those are the main accessories for a clarinet player to survive. There are many other items that can be purchased in relationship to playing the clarinet. For instance, a player can purchase accessories such a music book to give them scales and music to read and build on. Metronomes and Tuners are also very important to teach a clarinet player to stay in tempo and keep the tones of the clarinet in tune. There are yet other items that can be found. Reed cards can be used to hold numerous reeds, although each purchased reed typically comes in a reed card of its own. It is important to use these accessories to keep the clarinet in proper working order and to benefit the player in every way possible.

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