Klarinet Archive - Posting 000039.txt from 1997/05

From: "David B. Niethamer" <niethamer@-----.edu>
Subj: Re: ligature questions
Date: Fri, 2 May 1997 18:16:55 -0400

On 4/30/97 6:32 AM, Everett Austin wrote:

>On the subject of placement of standard clarinet ligatures (metal) on the
>mouthpiece: I wonder if anyone noticed that a photo of Gervase de Peyer on
>one of his CDs out in the last 5-10 years shows his standard metal
>clarinet ligature rotated 90 degrees out of the normal position: screws on
>the side! When I noticed this unique placement a couple of years ago I
>tried it and it wasn't bad though tends to distort the ligature. The
>effect is like a Mitchell Lurie "Springboard" ligature, which has two
>rather broad metal bands touching the reed at right angles to its long
>axis.

When I studied with Russianoff, he went on a kick to do this for a few
months. It does make a significant difference if you're playing some
generic metal ligature, less so if you have a Bonade or some other
quality brand.

Someone (now deleted from my mail program!) mentioned the propensity of
reverse Bonade's to slip off the mpc. During one of the many discussions
of this on this list, someone suggested lightly sanding the interior of
the ligature to roughen it so it will "grab" the surface of the mpc. I've
successfully used this trick a few times since. I couldn't use the screws
front Bonade - pulls the beard!

David

David Niethamer
Principal Clarinet, Richmond Symphony
niethamer@-----.edu
dbnclar1@-----.com
http://members.aol.com/dbnclar1/

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