32 Clarinet & Saxophone September 2004 Secret 44from Michdle Gingras's newbookClarinet Secrets, 44 Shape: Play a long tone onopen g fora few seconds. While imagining and articulating the syllables "Wow-Wow-Wow," slowly and gradually lower your jaw(this willmake the pitch godown). Slowly move the jaw back uptoward the reed and repeat both motions several times, making sure the .;aw moves continuously without interruptions in the sound. Coming back up with the jaw at the end of each wave prevents saw tooth wave shapes. The jaw moves 50% down, 50% up, always coming back to the starting position. Try different depths of undulations to vary the vibrato's character. Do notexecute vibrato with the diaphragm orthroat. Control: Once you master the roundness of each wave with the jaw, use the metronome at a very slow speed, and play four beats "straight" (no vibrato), followed by four beats with "vibrato crotchet notes" (one evenly-shaped wave per beat) Speed: With the metronome at a low speed, play a semibreve, then vibrate at 2 minims, 4 crotchets, 8 quavers, 4 quaver triplets (resulting in 1 2 notes), and 16 semiquaver notes. Keep the tempo steady, and gradually increase the speed at the start of each new set. (Think: "wow", "wow-wow", "wow-wow-wow-wow" until you reach the tempo = B4): Consistency: To stabilise the jaw, play a four-beat long tone, followed by four beats of 4 semiquaver notes, and alternate back and forth. Make sure all waves evenly match each other. new music as well as in popular, jazz orfolk music, atoisanimportant factor inone's interpretation. There are opposing views regarding the use ofvibrato inthe clarinet world, and some performers prefer to dismiss the technique altogether inthe context of classical music. I believe that a very light, almost imperceptible vibrato can add colour and character to a phrase from the traditional clarinet repertoire, especially within the romantic and contemporary time periods. The Hungarian melody in Kod6lys Dances of Galanta loses its folkloric flavour without a noticeable vibrato. ano Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue sinply isn't the same without a jazzy vibrato. Some schools of playing such as the British School tend to use vibrato more consistently than other schools. Clarinettists who generally prefer playing without vibrato can gain by adding this technique to their repertoire, if only to use it when absolutely necessary 0rwhen avant-garde composers specifically call for vibrato intheir music. Although vibrato isusually played inaneven and consrstent manner, it can also beplayed at varying speeds. The most effective way to achieve a solid and steady vibrato isto practise rr very slowly at first to develop good habits right from the start. Sinqle- reed instruments' vibrato isplayed with the 1'auv. Avant-Garde Tech