Artwork by Ashley Moye (@akmoye)
We like multiphonics, but they can often be complicated and fickle things. At worst they can come across as a bit of a cliché, but at their best they offer a hyperspace of new musical possibilities.
We have created this guide as a practical resource to cover a wide yet still manageable range of possibilities that we find reliable and interesting. Our goal is not to be exhaustive, but instead to balance pragmatism and usability with detail and range. Our suggestions are not posed as absolute or universal (e.g. in terms of pitch response); we emphasise the variability and contingency of multiphonics, and recommend the clarinetists and composers alike always try things out first before expecting a particular result.
We identify and cover three types of multiphonics:
Multiphonics - special fingerings that cause two or more primary tones to interfere, creating additional components that result in complex timbres.
Harmonic Multiphonics - conventional fingerings with an altered embouchure that emphasise or isolate single or clusters of overtones of a fundamental tone.
Multiphonic Tremolo - created by alternating normal fingerings with removing either the left hand first finger or thumb.
There are already many previous texts, catalogues, blogs, and resources available in print and online for the bass clarinet which cover these sounds. The value and usefulness of existing resources ranges from the good to the bad and the ugly. We wanted to create something that consolidates some of the better perspectives into a single format. The result is this project consisting of both written and audio components.
The written guide and quicksheet are available for free via the dropbox link below. You can purchase the accompanying sound catalogue ‘Bass Clarinet Multiphonics’ from Bandcamp, and with the download you’ll also receive both PDF documents. An extract from the document is shown at the bottom of this page, containing the first or main multiphonic types.
