I recently had the privilege of sitting down with Larry Guy, a clarinetist whose career spans Broadway, the Metropolitan Opera, the New York Philharmonic, and the Joffrey Ballet. But what makes Larry truly special isn't just his performance credentials—it's his deep commitment to clarinet pedagogy and his remarkable series of instructional books.

If you've ever struggled with embouchure stability, articulation clarity, or felt guilty about not tonguing "correctly," this conversation will change how you think about clarinet technique.

The Embouchure Book That Almost Didn't Happen

Larry's journey into writing instructional materials began with an adult student named Julian Ander, a photographer in his 70s who practiced 3-4 hours daily in retirement. Julian's insistence that Larry "write this down" sparked what would become a series of groundbreaking pedagogical works.

But here's what surprised me most: Larry discovered that students could have textbook-perfect embouchures that actually sounded worse.

The Missing Piece: Air Flow

"I realized that they were making such a focus on their lips and the position of everything, that they weren't blowing very well," Larry explained. This revelation led to a fundamental principle: you cannot teach embouchure without teaching air flow.

The embouchure's job is simple but specific: get the reed vibrating correctly and set up the oral cavity properly. But without proper air support, even the most perfectly-formed embouchure produces disappointing results.

The Gigliotti Upper Lip Technique

One of Larry's most valuable embouchure insights comes from his study with Anthony Gigliotti: tucking the upper lip against the teeth and pressing down into the mouthpiece.

"It begins to replicate double lip to some degree," Larry noted, "because it tends to allow the throat to open naturally and easily without being forced open, and it gives a lot of stability to the upper lip pressing down."

Gigliotti was famously persistent about this technique, insisting that Larry show absolutely no red of the upper lip when standing in front of the mirror—a requirement that varied based on each student's individual lip thickness.

The Articulation Secret: It's Not One-Size-Fits-All

Here's something that will liberate many clarinet players: Robert Marcellus didn't tongue at the tip of the reed.

Larry shared a powerful story about finally asking Marcellus about the "tip of tongue to tip of reed" directive that had plagued him for years. With a short jaw and long tongue, Larry physically couldn't reach the tip of the reed without contorting his tongue into an S-shape.

Marcellus's response? "Oh, I don't do that."

This moment of "Satori" in Larry's lesson revealed that even one of history's greatest clarinetists tongued slightly farther down on the reed due to his anatomy—long tongue, short jaw, and significant overbite.

The Real Articulation Directive

There are actually two separate directives often confused:

1. Use the tip of the tongue (yes, this is important)
2. Place the tip of the tongue on the tip of the reed (this varies by individual)

Your jaw length, tongue length, and dental structure all affect where you can comfortably and effectively articulate.

The Coffee Cup Lid Trick

Want a simple, tactile way to improve articulation immediately? Larry uses coffee cup lids—the kind with a small rectangular slot for drinking.

Place the lid against your face and put your tongue through the aperture. The slightly sharp edges help you feel exactly where the tip of your tongue is, bringing awareness that's often lost when you're thinking about "16 other things while playing the clarinet."

This exercise addresses one of Larry's key observations: many students don't really know where the tip of their tongue is when playing.

Two Things That Destroy Your Sound When Articulating

According to Larry, these are the main culprits:

1. Using too much tongue mass - Use the tip, not the blade
2. Closing your throat - Start articulation studies with a yawn to keep the throat open

The goal? Your articulated notes should be just as beautiful as your legato playing. If articulation degrades your sound quality, one of these two issues is likely the problem.

Why Adults Learn Clarinet MORE Effectively Than Children

As someone who works primarily with adult learners, I was thrilled when Larry confirmed what I've observed: adults can learn clarinet very efficiently, often more so than children.

"By the time we're adults, we've learned how to work," Larry explained. "And we've learned how to not waste time supposedly, or hopefully."

Adult students often bring:

• Clear motivation and goals
• Developed work habits
• The ability to think conceptually about technique
• Genuine joy for the instrument (unburdened by forced practice)

During the pandemic, Larry discovered, as I did, that teaching adults who genuinely love playing clarinet is profoundly inspiring. While professional performance demands perfection every night, adult learners bring back the pure joy of playing.

Inside the Rose 32 Etudes

Larry's study guide to the Rose 32 Etudes is a masterwork of organization, with each etude on one page and practice instructions on the facing page.

Working through these etudes as an adult revealed their incredible pedagogical intelligence. Take Etude No. 12 in D minor, for example:

The long slurred passages require excellent embouchure, air, and tonguing setup. But Rose saves the real test for the end of the phrase, a clean articulated passage ascending to high C-sharp. You can't get lazy during the slurs, because the articulation at the end will expose any technical compromise.

"The lessons are built in," Larry noted. "The teacher can emphasize them so the student knows what to expect. But they're really built into the etudes, which makes them, I think, invaluable."

Lessons from Daniel Bonade

Larry's work cataloging and editing Daniel Bonade's complete works revealed fascinating details about this legendary pedagogue. One story stands out: Bonade reportedly had a photographic memory and wrote much of his Orchestra Studies book from memory, though Larry found 150-200 small errors to correct.

Bonade was also quite a character. Larry heard from multiple sources (and confirmed with Mitchell Lurie) that Bonade once wadded up his newspaper during a Philadelphia Orchestra rehearsal and lit it under principal oboist Marcel Tabuteau's chair, resulting in his first firing from the orchestra!

The Persistence Principle

One theme emerged throughout our conversation: effective teaching requires persistence about the specific things each student needs.

Students "may hem and haw and they may wait around and they may do it halfway, but you have to sometimes be so persistent about making it really happen."

This applies to self-teaching too. The habits we form early, often haphazardly, become what "feels like playing the clarinet" to us. Changing them can feel like we're no longer playing our instrument. But with persistent, intelligent practice, we can rewire these patterns.

Key Takeaways for Your Practice

1. Embouchure work must include air flow training - Focus on function, not just appearance
2. Your anatomy determines your articulation placement - Don't feel guilty about adapting the "rules"
3. Use tactile feedback - The coffee cup lid trick brings awareness to tongue tip placement
4. Keep your throat open when articulating - Start with a yawn
5. Articulated notes should sound as good as legato notes - This is your standard
6. As an adult, leverage your ability to work systematically - You have advantages kids don't

Get Larry's Books

All of Larry Guy's pedagogical works are available through Camco Publishing:

• The Complete Embouchure Book
• The Complete Articulation Book
• Rose 32 Etudes Study Guide
• The Complete Daniel Bonade

These books represent decades of teaching wisdom distilled into practical, step-by-step guidance that works for self-directed study.

Ready to Transform Your Playing?

If you're an adult clarinet player looking for systematic, intelligent instruction designed specifically for adult learners, I invite you to check out the Clarinet Ninja Dojo.

We offer two membership levels:

• Apex - Perfect for beginners and returning players
• Zenith - Advanced technique and repertoire

Inside the Dojo, we're currently working through the Rose 32 Etudes with detailed video lessons, practice techniques, harmonic analysis, and form studies—building on the foundation that Larry has provided in his excellent study guide.

Listen to the full episode with Larry Guy on the Clarinet Ninja Podcast, where we dive even deeper into embouchure, articulation, mouthpiece selection, and the art of teaching adults.

What's your biggest embouchure or articulation challenge? Let me know in the comments below!