Klarinet Archive - Posting 000026.txt from 1997/12

From: Da Shouryu-man <jnohe@-----.edu>
Subj: Re: New topic...when to transcribe?
Date: Mon, 1 Dec 1997 17:41:15 -0500

On Mon, 1 Dec 1997, Roger Garrett wrote:
>
> Actually, the break in is not so long for Bass......just the sanding of
> the back to be sure the warp is gone. An important consideration is that
> when reeds start to wear out, they make it sound/feel as though the horn
> is leaking somewhere......very important to remember this!

I seal my reeds first, soaking and pressing, soaking and pressing, etc
until I don't see air bubbles on the vamp when I blow through the butt of
the reed. Then I wait for it to completely dry, and occasionally, after
sanding then playing, it will warp again...that's why I say it's long.
While it may not be necessary to seal it, I do anyway. That's part of
what takes so long for me. I've never tried not sealing the reed; that
_would_ shorten the process significantly, huh? ^_^

> I disagree with the contention that one never plays on anything harder
> than a 3. I play on size 4 Vandorens, and they are a bit soft at times
> for me. Lawrie Bloom plays on 4's.....anything less than a size 3 on a
> standard C* mouthpiece will be too soft for a good quality, full-bodied
> bass clarinet sound....especially for projection in the low range.

I haven't tried a C* yet, so I can't say for sure. I was probably jumping
the gun with my statement there. All the students I've worked with and
played beside in regional conventions, if anyone played anything harder
than a 3, they got real reedy in the clarion (yuck) and couldn't play
ANYTHING below mezzoforte without sounding like a gagging goose. So when
I speak, I speak of off that experience. I haven't tried working past
3.5, but I may try with different mouthpieces, now that you've brought it
up.

> Doesn't matter to most of us if you sound that way as long as you realize
> that there are a LOT of people who have put a lot of time and effort into
> being good bass clarinet players......gee...and some of us have even
> played in a major symphony orchestra on it!

Mr. Garrett, I've been on the list for less than a day, and I'm happy that
I've found people like you who take basses seriously. I have such a hard
time finding people as such, and it's good to know that they're on this
list as well. I'll keep these things in mind from now on. ^_^

"The dumbest thing that band directors often do is take the last few
clarinets on the list after chair tests and have them play low clarinets.
It is truly a tragedy."--Grant Green, Contrabass ML

Shouryu

Coming soon! A whole new Dope-onna-rope! That's right! Shouryu is
changing EVERYTHING!!! A new signature with new and improved design! A
new web page with...>gasp<...USEFUL STUFF! Stay tuned in December when
Warm Up gets a whole new makeover!!! http://web.nmsu.edu/~jnohe
(This does not mean, however, that Shouryu has a girlfriend yet.)

   
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