Müller's "Gamme De La Clarinette" (c. 1812) and the Development of the Thirteen-Key Clarinet

A fingering chart discovered at the Bibliothèque Nationale reveals important information concerning Iwan Müller's development of the 13-key clarinet. The chart is a single sheet entitled "Gamme Pour la nouvelle Clarinette inventée p: Iwan Müller, sur laquelle en peut jouer dans toutes les octaves et dans tous les modes, avec une justesse et une force parfaitement égales" ("Scale for the new clarinet invented by Iwan Müller, on which one can play in all octaves and in all tonalities, with accuracy and a perfectly equal dynamic level"). The clarinet illustrated in the fingering chart has the standard five keys plus eight more, as well as two additional levers to be operated by the right thumb. With his 13-key clarinet, Müller increased the technical capabilities of the instrument so that the player could dispense with a whole set of clarinets and play compositions in any tonality on one instrument. The basic design without the thumb keys was manufactured in Paris beginning in the 1820s.