Klarinet Archive - Posting 000672.txt from 1997/07

From: "Edwin V. Lacy" <el2@-----.edu>
Subj: Re: Reed refrigeration
Date: Mon, 21 Jul 1997 22:19:30 -0400

On Mon, 21 Jul 1997 Jrykorten@-----.com wrote:

> I had no idea that there was such a vigorous population of bacteria was at
> work in the cane! Also this may explain what the enzymes are doing as Diane
> Karius indicated that there was nothing in the wood that our enzymes can
> digest. Can Diane try culturing a reed?
>
> Would using an antibacterial agent then also prolong the life of the reed?
> There must be something that is "mouth friendly" like barbasol to combs but
> for reeds instead.

I can't say for sure, but a lot of people use such agents successfully.
There is a commercial product called "Reed Life," I think, which is
supposed to inhibit bacterial action in the reed and prolong its useful
life. Also, some people use very weak solutions of various other
solutions, such as hydrogen peroxide, boric acid or Listerine mouthwash.
The procedure which some people use is to soak the reed for a few minutes
in their antibacterial solution, then let it dry thoroughly in a
climate-controlled environment.

All this is actually much more critical to double reed players, especially
bassoonists. Clarinetists and saxophonists can always order a couple more
boxes of reeds on fairly short notice. But, if my bassoon reeds don't
last long enough and I haven't prepared for their demise, I have a two
week procedure I have to go through to make another group of reeds. So, I
am interested in preserving their playing characteristics as long as
possible.

> Perhaps this is why we are trained to brush our teeth before playing each
> time.

That leads me to what I do. I soak my clarinet and saxophone reeds and my
cane for oboe and bassoon reeds for a _very_ long time. And, I always
soak them in distilled water only. Part of the reason for that is that in
the lengthy soaking period I am trying to leach out the minerals and
particulate matter in the pores of the cane. If I use tap water to wet
the finished reed, I am replacing some of those minerals with others from
the water. Oh yes, and I never play after eating without brushing my
teeth first. That means that I don't get to partake of the refreshments
which are provided at intermissions of some of our orchestra rehearsals,
or I have to do so quickly enough to allow for brushing my teeth before
the second half begins!

I have found that after a long soaking period, a reed does not need a
break-in period, and it does not change on repeated wetting and drying.

BTW, when I say a "very long" soaking period, I mean a minimum of 5 days,
but sometimes it can range up to several months. If anyone is really
interested in trying this, I can recommend my article, "An Experiment in
Treatment of Arundo Donax" in the Journal of the International Double Reed
Society, No. 16, 1988, pp 99ff. In short, there are some procedures which
need to be followed:

1. Soak the reeds in a tightly-sealed container in order to avoid
picking up bacteria or mold spores from the air.

2. Leave no air space in the container.

3. The container should be kept in a dark place, as algae need
light in order to multiply.

4. The water should be changed after the first 24 hours, and then
every 48 hours thereafter.

I know that this will seem very radical to many people. However, I have
made reeds from cane soaked in this manner for periods ranging up to nine
months with no apparent negative effects. I have never soaked single
reeds so long, but a soaking period of several weeks seems to me to
produce better results than using the reeds right out of the box. My
article suggests some reasons why this may be true.

> My reeds "go soft" on me after time. How does this fit in with the statement
> that the bacteria make the cane appear harder?

There would be several factors involved in the changes that take place in
reeds over time, and bacterial action would be only one of them. I'm sure
there is also a mechanical factor involved as the fibres weaken through
repeated use. Then, the action of mouth acids on the cellulose binding
material of the cane would eventually have an effect.

There is very much that we reed players don't know about cane and its
properties, and a lot of superstition and guesswork that passes for
science in this field. We might all benefit greatly if some of the more
technically oriented members of our profession would make a study of this
field in more detail.

Ed Lacy
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Dr. Edwin Lacy University of Evansville
Professor of Music 1800 Lincoln Avenue
Evansville, IN 47722
el2@-----.edu (812)479-2754
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