Klarinet Archive - Posting 000202.txt from 1998/01

From: Bill Hausmann <bhausman@-----.com>
Subj: Re: swabbing really does wear it out (retransmitted)
Date: Tue, 6 Jan 1998 08:18:07 -0500

At 03:26 PM 1/4/98 -0600, Roger Garrett wrote:
>The end of Bill's quote mentions the tip of the reed now returning to the
>mouthpiece.....while I would agree there is some kind of movement of the
>reed that touches the rails of the mouthpiece in some way, I do not
>believe it ever touches the tip of the mouthpiece while vibrating. The
>curve is simply too much to allow for it to. I also think the sound would
>close off......so, I am not sure if the quote is accurately presented, or
>if it simply is false information. Either way, it looks suspect to me.
>
Roger, I quoted straight out of one of the books that qualifies as a
saxophone player's bible, written by a highly respected teacher. "The Art
of Saxophone Playing" by Larry Teal, Copyright 1963 Summy-Birchard Music,
page 21. The book is still in print, although the publisher may have
changed. The quote from the published article is identified as being used
with permission of the Acoustical Society of America. Maybe the next
paragraph (Teal's words) will further clarify:

"This scientific evidence of the reed's action is a major contribution to
both our general knowledge and to the methods of procedure in fitting and
shaping the reed to the mouthpiece. The importance of these findings lies
in the fact that the reed must close along the *facing* as well as the
*tip* of the mouthpiece, and that both sides must seal simultaneously.
This explains the need for "balancing" the reed along the curve of the
facing, so that the reed will curl around the facing with a sealing
effect." (emphasis his, although he used italics instead of "* *")

Bill Hausmann bhausman@-----.com
451 Old Orchard Drive http://www.concentric.net/~bhausman
Essexville, MI 48732 http://members.wbs.net/homepages/z/o/o/zoot14.html
ICQ UIN 4862265

If you have to mic a saxophone, the rest of the band is too loud.