CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS ON THE CLARIONET
Year: 1824

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
GUTTERIDGE, of the Parish of Saint Finbarr's, in the City of Cork, in the
County of the said City, Land Surveyor and Musician, send greeting.
WHEREAS His most Excellent Majesty King George the Fourth, did, by
His Letters Patent under the Great Seal of the United Kingdom, bearing
date at Westminster, the 19th day of January, 1824, in the fourth year of His
reign, give and grant unto me, the said William Gutteridge, my execors,
admors, and assigns, His especial license, full power, sole privilege, and
authority, that I, the said William Gutteridge, my, execos, adñor, and
assigns, during the term of years therein mentioned, might make, use,
exercise, and vend, within England, Wales, and the Town of Berwick-upon-
Tweed, my Invention of "CERTAIN IMPROVEMENTS ON THE CLARIONET;" in which
said Letters Patent there is contained a proviso, that if I, the said William
Gutteridge, shall not particularly describe and ascertain the nature of my said
Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, under my hand
and seal, and cause the same to be enrolled in His Majesty's High Court of
Chancery within two calendar months next and immediately after the date of
the said Letters Patent, that then the said Letters Patent, and all liberties and
advantages whatsoever thereby granted shall utterly cease, determine, and
become void, as in and by the same, relation being thereunto had, will more
fully and at large appear.
NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
William Gutteridge, do hereby declare that my said Invention, and the
:

page_text: manner in which the same is to be performed, are particularly described in the
following details and annexed' Drawings of Figure 1 and Figure 2 on the
Sheet entitled A, and of Figure 3, Figure, 4, Figure 5, and examples Num-
bered from 1 to 19 inclusive on the Sheet entitled B.
Figure 1 exhibits a view of a clarionet of 16 keys, and two extra levers
without the bell, the mouthpiece, or the barrel; of these key No. 1 is patent;
the projection from key No. 4 passing under the upper curved termination of
.key No. 5, and acting upon No. 5, is patent. The lever of key No. 10, which
passes under the key No. 9, is patent. Keys No. 12, 13, 15, and 16, arc
patent; and the long lever marked with the small sign o near to its lower
extremity, and which acts as an additional lever on key No. 13, is patent; as is
also a small projection passing from the lever of key No. 13, under and near to the
lower end of the lever of key No. 12, and acting upon said lever, and as is like-
wise a small projection from the lever of key No. 16, passing under and near to
the lower extremity of the lever of key No. 15, and acting thereon. The lines
marked (n, n,). (P, P,) (9, q,) (r,.r,) represent the joints where the instrument
is generally made to divide for the sake of portability; (r, r,) represents the
joint to which the bell is fixed; (n, n,) that to which the barrel joint is fixed.
This Figure is intended to represent the aforesaid parts of a clarionet, as split
ip and, spread open. That part lying between the letters (n, n,) and (p, p.)
is commonly called the upper key joint; that between (p, p,) and (q, q,) the
middle key joint; and that between the letters (1, 2) and (1, 1) the lower
key joint. The seven large shaded dots represent the finger holes; that
below the keys. No. 1 and No. 2 being for the thumb of the upper hand, as
are also the keys No. 1 and No. 2. The use of key No. 1 is to enable the per-
former to produce by aid thereof the notes on the third line of the staff (as in
example No. 1 upon a clarionet of this discription, or upon any clarionet
having any number of these improvements, or having no other improvement
than said key No. 1), in a peculiarly easy and smooth legato manner by
aid of the upper thumb and finger only. The usual thumb key No. 2 is a
little removed to the left to accommodate the patent key No. 1), which
is placed a little to the right, so that if the thumb press only on No. 2,
that key alone will unstop.; but if No. 1 key be pressed, both No. 1 and
No. 2 unstop at the same instant to produce the B-'s natural on the third
line of the staff. Keys No. 4 and No. 5 are so constructed that if No. 4
be pressed, both No. 4 and No. 5 unstop at the same moment, by the
aforesaid projection from No. 4 key passing under the upper end of No. 5,
by aid of which connection both keys unstopped produce A on the second
space; and if the second finger of the upper liand press on the lower end

page_text: of key No. 5, "A FLAT," second space, or G sharp, second line of the staff, may
be produced, by which contrivance the said second finger may remain station-
ary when the whole of the notes in example, No. 2 (except the first note), are
performed; and if the key No. 1 be on the instrument, nothing can be casier
than the performance of the said example, No. 2, which upon a common
clarinet would be very difficult and very imperfect. Thus far these improve.
ments may be extended to all sorts of clarinets, because this upper-key joint is
adapted to the other parts of any other sort.
The use of the key No. 9.-This key is to enable the performer to make,
by aid of the upper little finger, the notes in example, No. 8, and for those
of the upper notes of example, No. 4, in each group, and those groups are by
this key made much easier in a legato manner by this contrivance than when.
it stands across and covers a hole at T, as is the most usual manner of putting
the key for this purpose.
'
The use of the lever of No. 10 key passing under No. 9 key.-This lever.
comes to the touch of the upper little finger for enabling the performer to exc-
cute the two notes of example, No. 6, in the same manner, as the upper of them.
may be made with a similar sort of key and lever on some eight-keyed .flutes,
the disposition of the other long levers leaving room for it in this position on the
clarinet. By this device, the several groups composing the 5th and 7th examples.
miny be executed in a perfectly easy and smoth legato style; this will appear
obvious to those who use such a key on the flute to make the last. group of
notes in example, No..5. This lever may be converted into a key to cover the
hole of its key (No. 10), and No. 10 key may be put across the contrary of.
what it is in the Figure, and cover a hole at S, as is, more.usual; in which case
the Patent only extends to the key effecting the passages which would be made
with the upper little finger key. No. 11 is the key for the purposes usual to
the lower little finger key, but altered from the situation assigned to it gene-.
rally, to leave the place it usually occupies to the levers of keys No. 12 and
No. 18. The keys No. 12, No. 13, No. 14, No. 15, and No. 16 are what are
commonly termed "flap and lever keys." The levers of No. 12, and No. 18.rise.
in an oblong curve after passing their pivot or fulcrum, so as to go over the
Hap of key No. 12, and the lever of key No. 15 rises in the same manner over
its own flap, and likewise over the flap of key No. 14; and, the, levor of key,
No. 16 rises over the flaps of keys No. 12 and No. 13; the levers of No. 12
and No 15 aro curved under at their lower ends, so as to return in a small
jet, which lays hold of the lower part of their flaps and closes them by a pull
up thus acting contrary to the usual action of propelling or pushing up. The
advantages and object of Nos. 12 and 13 are to assimilate the fingering of the

page_text: clarinet in example, No. 8, to that of the flute with the two flap and lever keys
in example, No. 9. The keys No. 12 and No. 13 of Figure 1, and those of
No. 5 and No. 6, Figure 2, are the same, i. c., No. 12 of Figure 1, and No. 5,
Figure 2, are alike, and No. 13, Figure 1, and No. 6, Figure 2, are alike.
The following is a continuation of the explication of Figure 1 :-The long lever
passing nearest the holes for the lower three fingers, and up to the touch of the
upper little finger, passes just under the lever of the key No. 13, at the sign o,
by which means, when the little finger presses the upper end of said long addi-
tional lever, the flap of keys No. 12 and No. 13 close, the latter being closed
at the same instant that the former closes, by means of a small projection
(before mentioned) passing from the lever of key No. 18, under and near to the
lower end of the lever of key No. 12. The end of the long lever of key No. 14
passes over the upper end of the said long extra lover, and the long lever of
key No. 15 passes up between the aforesaid two long levers and over that of
No. 14. The long lever of key, No. 16 as a small projection (before
mentioned) to close the flap of the key No. 15. The uses of these several
contrivances are, that if the lever of key No. 12, be pressed, and the
extra long lever be repeatedly touched, such passages, as those in example,
No. 10, may be easily had. If the lever of key No. 14 be touched, instead
of the said long extra lever, the passages of example, No. 11, would be pro-
duced. If the lever of key No. 15 be touched, instead of either of the
foregoing, the passages in example, No. 12, would be had. If the lever of
key No. 12 were not pressed during the repeated touch, as aforesaid, of the
extra long lever, the lever of No. 14, or the lever of No. 15, keys, the
passages in examples, No. 13, No. 14, or No. 15, would be produced, according
to the repeated touch in the succession before mentioned by the upper little
finger on one, two, or all three of these levers, i.e., the extra long lever, the
lever of key No. 14, or the lever of key No 15; for, because the lever of
the key No. 14 presses, when pressed, that extra long lever, and because the
lever of key No. 15 presses, when pressed, the lever of key No. 14; hence,
the expressions before used of "one," "two," or "all three." The passages,
No. 16 example, may be had by an alternate touch repeated of the two little
fingers, the one on key No. 11, and the other on the extra long lever. If the
lever of key No. 14 be pressed, and that of No. 16 be repeatedly touched,
the passages in example, No. 17, may be produced. If instead of the lever of
key No. 14, the lever of key No. 15 were pressed, the passages in example,
No. 18, would be produced.
.
•
The use of Figure, No. 2 (Sheet A).-This Figure represents the same
parts of a clarinet (as to the joints) as those before particularized for Figure 1,

page_text: i:e. that part between the lines (n, n,) (a, a,) is the upper key joint; that
Between the lines (a, a,) and (b,b,) the middle key joint; and that between
(b, b,) and (r, r,) the lower key joint. The two former of these, i.e. the upper
key joint and the middle key joint are common, key 1 being the common
Bb key; No. 2 key, that for the shake; and No. 3, that for the note A of
the second space of the staff. The exemplification of key No. 4 is the same
as for key No. 11 of Figure, No. 1; and for No. 5 and No. 6, the same as
for No. 12 and No. 13 of Figure 1, as before stated and specified, with the
following differences, namely, at X there is a small projection from each of
the levers of keys No. 6 and No. 7, the latter passing a very little under the
former, by which means a touch of the lever of key No. 7 at the small sign
will close the key No. 6, the same as the touch of the long extra lever of
Figure 1 will close key No. 13 of Figure, No. 1, by which the passages in
examples, No. 8, No. 11, No. 18, and No. 14, may be produced by the same
sort of actions of the fingers as are specified for making those passages by
Figure No. 1.
x
The use of Figure No. 3 (Sheet B annexed).-This represents a lower key
joint, including the finger holes of the lower hand. Key No. 1 is patent. It is
to enable the performer by a regular alternate easy motion of the two little
fingers (one on key No. 1, and the other on key No. 3), to produce the
passages in example, No. 16. Lever No. 4 is patent. It passes under,
raises the lever, and closes the flap of key No. 6 with its lower part, and with
its upper part presses on and closes No. 3 key, all at the same instant it is
touched, thereby enabling the performer to accomplish in a very easy manner
the hitherto great desiderata on the clarinet, such as those passages in
example, No. 11. The way to perform them on this instrument is to press
the patent lever No. 4, which then closes No. 3 and No. 6 keys, and when
so pressed, a repeated, simple, and easy touch on the upper end of key No. 5,
produces those passages. Except as far as keys No. 2, No. 3, No. 5, and
No. 6, are combined with the use of No. 1 key, or with No. 4 lever, they are
not patent. If the lever, No. 4, be just made steady on its pivot, it requires
no spring.
The use of Figure, No. 4.-This represents a lower key joint, with the
lower hand finger holes of a common clarinet, having the patent key No. 1,
5 which is the only patent key on this Figure. Either Figure 3 or Figure 4
may be accommodated to the upper joints of any sort of clarinet. The sort
of passages for this patent key are such as those in example, No. 16, which
were previously among the desiderata for this instrument, the accomplishment
of which is, however, now rendered uncommonly easy and perfect.