Klarinet Archive - Posting 000325.txt from 1994/05

From: Martin Pergler <pergler@-----.EDU>
Subj: Re: Ligatures
Date: Thu, 19 May 1994 16:53:44 -0400

Dan Leeson asks (perhaps doubts...) what effect ligatures can have on the
sound. While I know even less about ligatures than he claims to (in
part because I have an arbitrarily small fraction of his experience...)
here are a few comments.

I would guess the main effect is indirect -- arising from how the
ligature exerts pressure on the reed to keep it against the table. I am sure
someone else will discuss the vibration of reed fibers, etc. I think
we can sort of see what is happening as follows:

Take a thick paperback book and rest it across the edge of a desk, so that
about half (the side with the spine) is supported on the desk and
the other half (with the loose page ends) hangs free. Now rub the loose
page side like wedging a deck of cards. You'll here a buzzing sound.
But with many books, if you hold the top of the book, where it is supported
on the desk, firmly with your hand or with a weightier book, the buzzing
sounds different. [I'm just trying it here now -- doesn't work with
the telephone book, but wonderfully well with _A first course in
representation theory_ by Fulton and Harris (don't ask -- its a math book)]
Seems reasonable to suppose a ligature could do the same. (Of course
its more complicated and not quite analogous)

Any comments?

Martin

BTW, Dan -- there's something funny with your message. Both the To: and
the Reply-To: field have your email address rather than the klarinet
address, so I almost responded to you personally rather than to the list.
Cary Karp's messages (and other I suppose, though I haven't checked)
are fine. So everybody, be sure to check you're replying to the list
(if thats's what you want). MP

-------------------------------------------------------
Martin Pergler pergler@-----.edu
Grad student, Mathematics
Univ. of Chicago