Fletta traversa or clarinet? What to choose to start with

It's up to how you get to sound and where you figure you're playing. If you fall in love with an airy and brilliant sound and you look at an orchestra, a group of cameras or playing Latino and Bossa nova jazz, choose the traverse flute. If you call them a warm and versatile sound and you want to play with wind bands, paddes, fandangos or traditional jazz, choose the clarinet.

The challenges come at different times and at the flute, the challenges are to get the first stable sound out. At the clarinet, the sound goes up faster but then we have to master the cane and cross the log change.

To sum up

The traverse flute does not use cane: the sound is born by blowing against the edge of the purple.
The clarinet uses a simple cane and the first sound comes out quickly but the shilling's common at first.
At the flute, octaves are mainly achieved with air and at the clarinet, the registration key changes digitations.
The flute is at all, and the most common clarinet is in itself bemol and a transpository instrument.
Both are usually started at about 8 or 9, and sweet flute prepares very well for either of them.

Fletta traversa vs. clarinet: table

Differences between mischievous and clarinet flute for those who start
Aspecto	Flute	Clarinet
How the sound's born	Free mouth: blow against the edge of an attic with no cane.	A simple cane vibrates with a nozzle.
First sound	It may take a few days to get out stable and at first you lose a lot of air.	It goes out quickly but squeezes are common while adjusting his mouth.
Postura	Lateral with arms up to the right.	To the front, vertically, the weight lies with the right thumb.
Digitation	Waves that cover the holes and octaves are mainly made with air.	Locks that cover with yolks, more keys, and the registration key changes the positions.
Filling of the instrument	Do: what you read is what's ringing.	Almost always as a bemol: she's a transposier.
Sonido	Bright, light, agile at the sharp.	Wide record: serious dark and warm, sharp and bright.
Consumibles	He doesn't wear rods.	Retiring and replacement rods and tights for corks.
Where to hear	Orchestra, camera music, charanga, Latino jazz, Bossa nova.	Wind bands, porro and Fandango, orchestra, traditional jazz.
Age of Orientation Initiation	Around 8 or 9 years old with a curved head, something earlier.	Between 8 and 9 years old with final teeth from the front.

Free snack or cane: great difference

At the rag flute there's nothing that vibrates inside his mouth. The lips form a small hole and direct his air to the edge of his mouth, as if you blow onto a bottle's beak. Finding an angle and air's velocity takes a few days and at first classes it's best to get a little tipsy to blow so much: it's resting a moment and following.

At the clarinet, the lower lip slightly covers the teeth at the bottom, the upper teeth lean on the nozzle and the curfew hold the seal. The cane does a good part of the work, so the sound appears at once. The challenge is to control it: biting more makes screams, and a very hard or very spent cane complicates everything. Learning how to moist, rotate and replace the rods is part of the instrument.

Digitation and change of registration

At the flute, many notes from the second octave are reached with the same position as at the first: what changes is the direction and velocity of the air. That makes the logic of digitations kindly, though the third record brings new positions.

The clarinet doesn't come up by octaves but by duodecics. When activates the registration key, the same position produces a note an octave and a fifth above, so the mean record has its own digitations. The famous "step" between the throat notes and the acute record requires to cover all holes at once with precision. A teacher advice: practice the throat notes leaving the fingers of his right hand down, and the crossing becomes smoother.

Sound, gangs and Colombian music

The clarinet has a special place in Colombia. It's a leading feature of the Caribbean wind bands, where it's with tang and fandanga melodies and the orchestras that brought that music to the parlour. A large section of claratorios usually exists at the school and town gangs, so it's an instrument with many open doors. If that's your goal, read about [wind bands in Colombia]](/blog/bandas-de-viento-en-colombia-como-empezar).

The traverse flute shines in the symphony orchestra, in camera music and Latin music: the Cuban charanga, Latino jazz and nova Bossa owe him a great deal. It also appears in an assembly of Colombian Andean music, with the melody of bambucos and hallways.

Do you choose a flute if... or choose a clarinet if...

Choose the naughty flute if...

That's an air sound, bright and agile.
That's better if you don't depend on rods and their maintenance.
Can you imagine yourself in an orchestra, camera or play Latino music?
Do you care about a side posture with his arms up?

Choose the clarinet if...

You wanna play at a wind band or at the high school band.
You get excited about the joint, Fandango, traditional jazz or the hot sound of the grave.
It frustrates you to spend some days without making a sound and you'd rather sound soon.
Later you'd like to get to the saxophone.

See what's been worked at [naughty flute classes]](/clases/flauta-traversa) and [clarinet classes]](/clases/clarinete)To buy, check how to choose your first clarinet.

If after that you want to change or add another

Between flute and clarinet the embocatura is completely different but we have been transferring reading with a sun key, air control, breathing and a great part of the logic of the keys. Many vistists end up playing two or three instruments.

From clarinet to saxophone is one of the most common steps, with a simple cane and a similar pursuit.
From flute to saxophone it's also natural: both come up by octaves and the logic of positions looks alike.
If the child's still small, [sweet flute]](/clases/flauta-dulce) prepare breathing, reading and fingers for either of them.

Frequently asked questions

What's easier, a naughty flute or a clarinet?

None of them are easier in general. At the flute, it's more difficult to get the first sound out and at the clarinet the sound goes out quickly but monitoring the cane and crossing onto the acute record takes time.

Is it normal to get dizzy while playing naughty flute?

That's right, in the first few weeks it's common, because a lot of air doesn't come into the instrument. Rest a few seconds as it goes by and let your teacher put your mouth up to better use the air.

How often do you change the clarinet's cane?

It depends how much you practice and how you care about them. It's best to have several in rotation and to change that that that sounds opaque, scattering or no longer responding.

Can I get from clarinet to saxophone?

That's a very common path, and they both wear simple cane, so the purple and air adapt quickly. The new are digitations and instrument size.