The bass clarinet looks like a saxophone. The bell end is made of steel and is curved upwards. The mouthpiece end is also bent round. Its tone is strikingly rich and velvety but its lower registers can sound rather hollow and sinister. It is not a regular member of the orchestra nowadays although it was often used in orchestral music in the late 19th and 20th centuries.

RANGE
It can be played both in treble and bass clefs. It is a transposing instrument pitched in B flat, sounding a major 9th lower than its written part. It is an octave lower than the ordinary clarinet in B flat.