The small piece of wood on the clarinet is the reed.
yes!
A clarinet concerto is a piece of music written for clarinet to be played with an orchestra. The most famous clarinet concerto ever written is Mozart's Clarinet Concerto in A. Attached is a related link of the youtube recording of the piece by Martin Frost and the wikipedia article about the Mozart Clarinet Concerto. A clarinet quintet is a piece for clarinet and string quartet. A string quartet typically has 2 violins, a viola, and a cello. There are numerous composers that wrote for this genera, but since we talked about the Mozart Clarinet Concerto above it is interesting to note that Mozart also wrote a Clarinet Quintet. This piece is also attached. Hope this helps! Good luck with the clarinet.
A REALLY cool Bass Clarinet solo is "Ode to Joy". It's really fun and low and sounds very cool on it.
Selmer 100
The solo near the end of the movement is the oboe, but it does end with a lovely clarinet/tambourine duet. Would need to know WHICH solo you reference: at letter "D" - near the end - there's a plaintive, mournful solo for English horn. The piece does end with interplay between the clarinet in its chalumaux register and tambourine, but I think the answer above - referencing the oboe - is actually incorrect: that is an English horn near the end of the movement, as per Tchaikovsky's original score of the entire ballet. (And I should know - I'm currently conducting the piece for at least the 10th time in concert!)
As an ensemble or solo instrument ...
Yes The Clarinet also is used in marching bands, jazz bands, and as a solo instrument.
Perhaps after looking at previous parades, you can find a piece that resembles that style, maybe with a little more difficulty. Check with your band director, who may be able to provide good advice or provide you with a contact.
In my opinion, the top two brands for clarinets (or any other instruments) are Jupiter and Yamaha. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The top brands of Clarinets are YAMAHA and BUFFET hands down. SELMERS made in France are also great, but they are expensive and not that popular in the US.
Some solo pieces for bass clarinet include: "Concerto for Bass Clarinet and Chamber Orchestra" by Ann Callaway, "The Seas of Kirk Swarf" by Peter Maxwell Davis, "Dreams and Prayers of Isaac the Blind" by Osvaldo Golijov.
Ross Gorman. He was the clarinetist in Paul Whiteman's band in 1924.