Klarinet Archive - Posting 000874.txt from 1995/10

From: vanbuul@-----.COM
Subj: Re: V.12's
Date: Tue, 24 Oct 1995 11:05:46 -0400

On Tue, 24 Oct 1995 Roger Shilcock wrote:

>This would drive music store operators crazy. How would they know how many
>2.9s, 3.8s or whatever to stock?

Yesterday I spoke the person who told me about Vandoren being able to measure
reed strengths precisely. He stands with his story. He told me the reason why
Vandoren doesn't market these 'sub-strengths' is a marketing/logistical one,
like the one mentioned by Roger.

By the way, he told me that Vandoren is not able to predict the strength of the
reeds they produce; they measure them afterwards. Measuring is done in two
steps: firstly they measure the dimensions of the reed along the axis from tip
to end; then they measure the bending resistance. Combination of these two
variables gives the overall reed strength.

This man I spoke with accompanied Eddy Daniels on his recent tour in Holland. He
told me that Daniels keeps a range of reeds with different strengths in use. He
chooses the one most suitable for the occasion, depending on acoustics,
temperature/humidity etc. This is exactly what Vandoren intents by packing a
choice of strengths in a box.

Luuk van Buul