Clarinet Family
D or Eb Clarinet: The two smallest clarinets. They both have the same mechanical and fingering systems, but the clarinet in D is rarely used. These are also known as piccolo clarinets. The Eb clarinet is a very popular solo instrument. It emphasizes its upper register and requires great effort.
A and Bb Clarintes: The Bb clarinet is the most popular and commonly used clarinet. For flat keys players use the Bb clarinet, for sharp keys the A clarinet is a good choice.
Alto and Bass Clarinet: The alto clarinet is pitched lower in Eb. It's beautiful sound is perfect in small ensembles, especially together with the Bass clarinet. The Alto is not easy to play, and it takes a few hours to adapt to the larger size.The bass clarinet is pitched an octave lower than the normal clarinet in Bb. The instrument is very heavy, so there is a floor stand attached to the clarinet body.
Basset Horn: The bassette horn is pitched in F and nearly as big as the Alto clarinet, in between the soprano B-flat and Bass clarinets. This clarinet is not seen very often. There are two variants of the bassette, the straight clarinet and the bent (crooked) horn, which uses a floor peg as support. Contrabass Clarinet: The contra bass clarinet is pitched in B-flat and sounds one octave below the bass. It's constructed in both metal and wood. There are pieces written for the contra bass, but obviously you won't hear them very often. Not many orchestras owns one of theese clarinets. The U-shaped barrel is made of metal. Then there is the bell and the moputhpiece.
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