First Division Band Method, Part 2: B-flat Bass Clarinet Book

This method has earned its reputation through decades of classroom success; the updated edition preserves the proven sequence while refreshing presentation and correlating material references. Bass clarinet players benefit from instruction specifically written for their instrument rather than adapted from soprano clarinet materials, ensuring appropriate fingering patterns and voicing from the start.

Working through First Division Band Method Part 2 feels like building a solid foundation one musical brick at a time. The exercises are straightforward and musical rather than abstract, so students experience immediate application and steady confidence as they advance.

This book is designed for beginning and early-intermediate bass clarinet players in concert band settings. Students progressing through their first or second year of band study will find instruction calibrated to their developing technical and musical skills.

• Use the corrected fingerings and embouchure guidance in the early lessons to establish proper bass clarinet positioning; the wider mouthpiece and longer bore require distinct technique from soprano clarinet.
• Work through exercises at a deliberate pace, allowing time for the lower register to stabilize before advancing to higher passage work.
• Pay attention to the dynamic markings and articulation patterns introduced progressively; they reinforce fundamental control rather than serving as mere notation.
• Coordinate your progress with other woodwind students in the band so that duets and sectional exercises align with the method's pacing.

Use this method as the primary pedagogical text during sectional rehearsals with new or developing bass clarinet players. The 32-page scope works well for systematic instruction across a full academic year, allowing time for reinforcement and mastery before moving to more complex literature.

• Proper embouchure and hand position specific to bass clarinet
• Fingering patterns across the lower and middle registers
• Tonguing and articulation control
• Dynamic control and expressive phrasing
• Note reading in treble clef across multiple octaves
• Rhythmic accuracy and counting in simple and compound meters
• Breath control and phrasing at appropriate phrase lengths