I know this is only going to show my newness to playing.

I am currently learning/practsing my grade one pieces. I am really enjoying it. Although I am getting the right notes out almost in the right timing I am stuggling with what I believe to be poor tone.

When I listen to a recording of the pieces I notice a distinct differnce (dont get me wrong I know there always will be a differenc because of the standards). But I feel that I have lost something...

Does anyone have any ideas?

I currently play a buffet b12 (fairly standard I believe for a beginer) and have recently moved up to a no3 reed because i found it was getting too soft to play high notes after a long period of playing. I play with a leather lig but occation change to what I would call a normal one (there is only a small difference when I do this).

Many thanks for any help

I'm no expert but in the last year have improved my tone by changing the speed of my airflow through the clarinet. All thanks to my teacher who nags me about air flow speed etc. Get in touch with a good clarinet teacher and they should be able to ppoint you in the right direction. Also check your reed make - differne makes suit different people and check to make sur that your reed is balanced as that makes a huge dufference. All the best.

Your set-up can make a lot of difference to your tone, but it sounds like yours is already pretty good. The other big issue is lip control, which you build up by practising regularly. Most of my beginners start off squeaking a lot and sounding very flat, but by the time they get to grade 1 these problems are disappearing, due to increased muscle tone and efficient blowing. Then after grade 2 most of them have trouble pitching the very high notes in tune, but regular practise (in short bursts a couple of times a day works well) gradually fixes this. By playing a lot, and consulting a teacher who will check your set-up for you, you'll be well on your way to achieving a nice tone, but it's worth noting that in grade 1 they don't expect you to sound anything like the professional on the CD. I'm a clarinet teacher who's been playing for more than 20 years (since age 7 ) and I don't sound as good as that either.

Let us know how your exam goes!