Klarinet Archive - Posting 000736.txt from 1995/10

From: vanbuul@-----.COM
Subj: Re: V.12's
Date: Sun, 22 Oct 1995 00:01:23 -0400

On Thu, 19 Oct 1995 Benjamin Maas wrote:

>I have been using V-12 reeds for quite some time (I think since they came
>out). Ocasionally I decide that I am unhappy with my reed situation and I
>go and buy some new brand. Every time I end up going back to the V-12. I
>guess the moral of this is not so much that V-12's are great (they generally
>work fine for me) but that reeds in general and I don't get along. In all
>seriousness though, I noticed that fewer and fewer reeds per box are working
>these days, and usually I go back to my stash of older reeds to find
>something that might just work.
>
>Ben Maas
>bmas@-----.edu
>(Eastman School of Music)
>>
>> What's the deal with the cut of the Vandoren V.12 reeds these days? Maybe
>> it's just me (and probably is), but after playing V.12 4's for the past six
>> ago. Now, I recently bought a pair of Prestige R-13 (Bb & A) Buffets and am,
>> once again, returning back to the V.12 4's. I understand that new
>> instruments may require some set-up adjustments, but V.12 4.5's seemed to
>> work fine on the Prestige's for awhile after I purchased the set. All I
>> know is that this "back-and-forth" game is about to drive me crazy. Anyone
>> else having similar problems with the V.12's, or are all your reeds working
>> absolutely beautifully?
>>

I spoke with the importer of Vandoren reeds in Holland (the same one as the
Leblanc importer I wrote about in earlier postings). He visited the Vandoren
factory in Paris and spoke with Mr. Vandoren.
He told me that Vandoren is able to measure reed strength to one tenth of their
numbers, ie. they can measure the difference between, for example, a 3 and a
3.1. When the boxes are filled, Vandoren deliberately places several strengths
in one box (let's say 2.6 to 3.4 in a box of number 3). This is done for two
reasons:
- First: we clarinettists all have different feelings about which reed we should
use. If Vandoren puts reeds of exactly one strength in a box, lots of players
don't find any reeds useable at all. Of course, if this strength exactly matches
your choice, you could use ten out of ten.
- Second: one player sometimes wants a reed which is a little stronger, then he
wants something softer etc. because of changes in acoustics, humidity, weather.

Bottom line: when there is no variation in a box there is no choice.
Variation within a box is not a matter of not being able to select better in the
factory, but a choice made by Vandoren to make a box more 'universal'.

Greetings,

Luuk van Buul
vanbuul@-----.nl

   
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