Spit happens.

 Got a note from an early-stage clarinet player who his having, um...moisture problems with her clarinet (read: too much spit). She writes,

I have to stop playing after a short time due to too much moisture accumulating in my mouthpiece. I can hear the “gurgling” sound even only halfway through a piece! 

I sometimes use Legere French cut reeds and alternate with Vandoren cane reeds.I can even see huge “drops” of moisture on the (Legere) reed and mouthpiece window. I wonder if the excessive moisture is due to the synthetic reed not re-absorbing moisture like a cane reed? I find that it is a bit better when I play with cane reeds.

Am I the problem? Do I naturally exhale more hot air with moisture than other players?

Katherine took this one on, since she works a lot with adult learners, and this was right up her alley. So, I'll let her take it from here!

Hi, Katherine here!

I see the watery clarinet issue all the time in new players. I think that when you put something in your mouth, your mouth creates saliva as part of the digestive system. In my experience, it can take a year or even two to stop this excess saliva production in my young players. It slowly decreases over time, generally.

That said, there are definitely some people who play “wetter” than others. I have an adult student who even after 14 years still makes a lot of saliva when she plays. She uses two of our swabs during practice sessions, alternating between each one whenever she needs to swab out so there’s a little drying time.

Frequent swabbing of the mouthpiece will definitely help. But beware: dragging a “normal” swab through the hard rubber mouthpiece removes microscopic bits of rubber and over time, and degrades the quality of the tip rail significantly. Where once there was a flat “rail” there will be a rounded edge! That tip rail is really important since the reed vibrates against it.

If your hands need to use a swab with a string, I suggest a small silk swab like for an oboe or E flat clarinet. Be sure not to pull it across the tip rail but through the window of the mouthpiece. Otherwise we have a great, absorbent and inexpensive mouthpiece cleaning cloth you can use.

Cane reeds will absorb more moisture than plastic reeds. They also get “waterlogged” and translucent, so you have to change them anyway. You can wipe the back of a plastic reed whenever you stop to wipe your mouthpiece.

I was thinking, could you make an effort to swallow any built up saliva in your mouth before you play? This would mean stopping to swallow frequently during practice. Are there any routine activities that you could be doing right before practicing that might be leading to extra saliva production, like eating a meal or a small snack?

Is anything else in overtime water production, like seasonal allergies? Runny nose? I wonder if an antihistamine could help dry you out a little? I’m definitely not a doctor, just trying to think outside the box a little about things that could be related in some way.

I hope this helps. Thanks for writing!

Katherine