Klarinet Archive - Posting 001001.txt from 1997/03

From: Fred Jacobowitz <fredj@-----.EDU>
Subj: Re: Ligatures
Date: Mon, 31 Mar 1997 17:06:07 -0500

Jerry,
You have made the cardinal mistake most players who have used
metal ligs. make when using a Luyben ligature. I have used the SAME one
for the past 15 years. The secret is to tighten it enough that it doesn't
slip and then to jam it down a little so it is very tight. This doesn't
strip the plastic because you are not turning the screws. I still think
the Luyben is the best ligature out there (and the cheapest too!) because
it lets the reed vibrate the most freely. Unfortunately, Luyben doesn't
include this helpful hint so many students end up stripping the screw
channels and conclude that the ligature is a cheap piece of trash.

Fred Jacobowitz
Clarinet/Sax Instructor, Peabody Preparatory

On Mon, 31 Mar 1997, Jerry Korten wrote:

> I used the Luyben ligature and found that to tighten the ligature enough to
> get a responsive setup I tightened it so much that I stripped the threads.
>
> You can cut away a bit of the threads and place a small metal nut there and
> get all the pressure you need.
>
> Or you can buy the newer Rovner "light" (with cutout section in the middle)
> that does everything the Luyben does but better.
>
> I agree that the inverted Bonade sounds good, but you can so easily crush the
> reed fibers, and the life of the reed is notably shorter while using the
> Bonade than it is with the Rovner. You know when your reed is toasted when
> you can see a bulging out into the window on the flat side.
>
> Jerry Korten
> NYC
>

   
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