Best Online Clarinet Teachers: Vetted and Taking Students

Finding the right clarinet teacher matters more in the first three months than at any point after, because clarinet is harder at the start than most instruments and easier in the middle than most. Every Tunelark clarinet teacher is vetted by working musicians and educators for teaching quality before they can list, and you choose the one you want for one-on-one online lessons that fit your schedule and your goals.

Here is who is taking new clarinet students right now. Some of the teachers below also teach saxophone, which is normal for working woodwind players and useful if you ever want to double. Teachers set their own rates, so the trial prices below are as of September 2026, and each profile shows the current rate.

Clarinet Teachers on Tunelark

What to Look For in a Clarinet Teacher

A clarinet squeaks for five reasons, and a good teacher checks them in order: a reed that is too soft or damaged, biting at the front of the mouth, a fingertip covering a tone hole only nine tenths of the way, too little mouthpiece or a chin that is not flat, and late fingers at the register break. Ask a prospective teacher what makes a clarinet squeak. The answer tells you whether they will diagnose your sound or just hand you a scale.

Ask about the break, too. The clarion register uses the same fingerings as the low register plus the register key, and the crossing between them is the part of clarinet everyone has heard about. A teacher who has a plan for it, usually around months three to six, is a teacher who has taken beginners through it before.

Every Tunelark teacher is vetted by working musicians and educators for teaching quality before they can list. Past that point you choose the teacher. A trial is $25 off the teacher’s 30-minute rate, and ongoing lessons run 30, 45 or 60 minutes.

What a First Clarinet Lesson Covers

Assembly and the reed come first. Cork grease on the tenon corks, the reed wet for about a minute, its tip level with the tip of the mouthpiece, and the ligature snug rather than clamped. A strength 2 or 2.5 reed for a beginner, never harder, because a reed that is too hard gives a stuffy tone and upper notes that refuse to speak.

Then the embouchure. Top teeth resting on the mouthpiece, bottom lip cushioned over the lower teeth, chin flat and pointed down, corners of the mouth firm. Most beginners have a real, if wobbly, note by the end of the first week, and long tones are what turn it into a sound you can rely on.

The lesson usually finishes with the first notes in the low register and a short tune built from them, plus a swab and reed routine. Squeaks taper over the first six to eight weeks and are mostly gone by month three, which is the honest clarinet timeline and worth hearing from the teacher before it starts.

A trial lesson is the fastest way to find out whether a teacher works the way you learn. Come with the clarinet assembled and a reed already wet, say what you want to be able to play, and ask yourself at the end whether the teacher diagnosed something specific about your sound. Our guide to a first lesson covers the parts of that half hour that have nothing to do with the instrument, our guide to a first clarinet lesson covers what goes wrong in the first week, and our honest guide to whether clarinet is hard to learn covers the early wall and how students get through it.

What Clarinet Needs From Your Online Setup

Clarinet is not as loud as saxophone, but a squeak is, and a video app’s noise suppression will treat the whole sustained tone as something to clean up. Turn it off. Zoom has an Original Sound setting for this, and FaceTime has Mic Mode set to Wide Spectrum. Google Meet has no music mode.

The camera should show your face, your hands and the clarinet together from slightly to one side, so your teacher can see the chin, the corners of the mouth and both hands on the tone holes. A half-covered hole is the squeak cause the clarinet adds over the saxophone, and it is visible on video when the angle is right.

Keep a swab, a spare reed, cork grease and a pencil beside the instrument. Moisture gurgles through the tone holes by the end of a lesson, and a teacher will ask you to swab mid-session.

How to Choose the Right Clarinet Teacher

The best teacher is not the one with the longest resume. It is the one who fits your goals, your learning style, and your schedule.

• Your goals. Are you learning for fun, working toward a school or community ensemble, or preparing for an audition? Different teachers specialize in different outcomes.
• Genre and style. Classical and band clarinet is the default, and jazz and klezmer ask for a different sound. Make sure your teacher’s background lines up with where you want to go.
• Communication style. Some students thrive with structured feedback. Others prefer a relaxed, exploratory approach. Your trial lesson is the best way to find out.
• Availability. Consistency matters more than almost anything else in music learning. Find a teacher whose schedule you can reliably commit to.

Why Learn Clarinet Online?

• Access to better teachers. You are not limited to whoever lives nearby. Tunelark’s teachers are based across the country, so you can find the right specialist for your goals.
• Scheduling flexibility. Lessons happen on your schedule. Evenings, weekends, whenever works.
• Comfort of home. Learning in your own space helps most students focus and reduces performance anxiety.
• Easy recording. Many students record lessons to review technique and feedback between sessions.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is clarinet hard to learn?

Yes, in a specific way. The difficulty is front-loaded into the first three months of embouchure, squeaks and the register break, and then it eases. Students who get through those months tend to keep going.

How long does it take to learn clarinet?

Simple tunes within the first month for most students, mostly squeak-free by month three, and intermediate repertoire, often in an ensemble, at 12 to 18 months, practicing 15 to 20 minutes a day, five or six days a week.

What age can a child start clarinet?

Nine to ten for most children, because the fingertips have to seal open tone holes and a half-covered hole squeaks. A physically large child can start at about eight.

Do I need to buy a clarinet before the first lesson?

You need one to play, and a plastic student clarinet is the standard starting point at $300 to $600 as of 2026, or $25 to $40 a month to rent. Plastic is plenty for the first two to three years.

Why does my clarinet keep squeaking?

Usually a reed that is too soft or damaged, biting, or a fingertip not quite sealing a tone hole. Biting harder to stop a squeak makes it worse. A teacher checks the causes in order, and most beginners are largely squeak-free by month three.