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Question: Clarinet or Western Flute!?!? help me decide!!!?
This Christmas, i will get either Clarinet or Flute!.!. Now i can't decide which is a better instrument to pick!!

Can you please state the similarities and differences of both instruments!?!?

Which is easier to learn!?!?

Which sounds better!?!?

Please give me comments and suggestions about this instruments cause i need to decide now!!

I was thinking of the western flute for it has a soft sound than the clarinet!.!.!. But i still can't decide!!

Thanks for all of the answers!! Hope everyone have a happy Christmas!!Www@QuestionHome@Com


Best Answer - Chosen by Asker:
There are many factors you need to consider!.

For flute:
Your top lip needs to be flat when stretched, otherwise the excess skin could obstruct your air flow!.
Can you reach the keys when in playing position!?

For clarinet:
Can your fingers cover the holes completely!?
You have at least a slight overbite and fairly straight bottom teeth!.

*If you are a child (middle school or younger) and you want to get a flute, but don't have long enough arms, you could consider getting a curved headjoint to "shorten" the instrument!.

Easier to learn!? I would say they have about the same difficulty!. With flute, good air support is more important (harder than it sounds, tried it, lol)!. You have to know exactly how to change your air and embouchure (the way your mouth and lips are set while playing) in order to change octaves, i!.e!. one "a" to the next "a"!. After about 3 or 4 years you learn vibrato!. For horns (generic term for all wind instruments, trust me everybody uses it) Gemeinhardt flutes are easier to play in the low register, while Yamahas, in the higher!. These are both very good brands!. Armstrong is also good!. You can get a good beginner horn in the 6 to $800 range!. For clarinet, you have tons of fingerings and a larger playing range!. I know about 45 notes and about 55 fingerings (some notes have two or more)!. I hope you'll have a teacher because you'll need help selecting reeds at first!. Generally most people start on a 2 1/2 strength and buy Vandoren traditionals!. They are best for beginners!. For horns, the Yamaha YCL250 is an excellent beginners horn!. It is made of plastic (good quality plastic and around $700) and they are also great for marching band!. Other good horns are the Accent (around $500, plastic) and the Buffet model E11 (wood, around $1,000)

As far as sound I do not believe one is better than the other!. In fact, they compliment each other so much that there is a vast amount literature written for the two as a duet or as a trio w/piano!. I will be performing one on my senior recital in February!.Www@QuestionHome@Com