Klarinet Archive - Posting 000502.txt from 1997/03

From: Martin Marks <mmarks@-----.NET>
Subj: Re: reed adjusting
Date: Sat, 15 Mar 1997 00:23:05 -0500

At 10:03 AM 3/14/97 CST, you wrote:
>I just read the Digest for yesterday's posts so may be a little late or
>out of sync with this reply, but here goes:
>
>I've read a number of books, pamphlets, tried various tools for reed
>adjusting and have finally worked out the following principals/practices:
>
>I purchase reeds that tend to be slightly on the stiff side. So out of a
>box of 10 I'll get 2-3 that are just right, the rest tend to be a bit stiff
>so will sound a bit fuzzy/thin especially in the low notes as I don't have
>quite the embouchure to blow them.
>
>I keep small sheets of #400 wet/dry sandpaper in my case. I'll fold and tear
>until I have a piece about 1" square which I'll fold in half once again. I'll
>place the too stiff reed on a piece of white paper on top of a flat, hard
>surface, (to protect the surface from the sandpaper!)
>and gently rub on the reed with the sandpaper in the area just back
>of the tip, sanding pretty evenly this area, maybe a little heavier on the
>sides than on the central spine. After rubbing on this area for about 10
>seconds, I'll give a more gentle rub to the entire cut area of the reed.
>Then rub the dust off and try and in most cases it becomes a fine blowing
>reed!. In the case of a way too stiff reed where the gentle sanding doesn't
>do it, I'll take a piece of reed rush and rub the central spine area about
>3/4" back from the tip quite hard to reduce the thickness a bit, sort of
>using the reed rush like a file. Actually, a very fine, small, round file
>would probably work as well or better. Then do the bit with the #400
>sandpaper. In most cases I can then play all 10 reeds out of a box! This
>is a simplistic, no-brainer approach that doesn't rely on an understanding
>or application of sanding, cutting to specific areas of the tip, which I
>find almost impossible todo anyway, unless I get myself a 20x dissecting
>microscope and surgeons tools - - which I might eventually try!:)
>=====================================================================
>Tom Ascher Internet: u15310@-----.edu
>University of Illinois at Chicago Phone: (312) 413-3665
>
10 playable reeds out of box is fantastic. The only thing different you
might try is balancing the reed.
Sometimes one side of the reed has more wood than the other. You can test
this either by feel or by
blowing into the mouthpeice favoring one side than the other. Some players
use a thickness testing
guage. Sometimes you can judge which side is heavier by holding the reed up
to a bright light.
Very often, just balancing the reed eliminates the need for a lot of
sanding. There are several good
books on this subject. One that just came out is "PerfectaReed and Beyond"
by Ben Armato, former
clarinetist with the Metropolitan Opera. It has many simple techniques that
I have found work well.

Marty Marks
.