Klarinet Archive - Posting 001271.txt from 1998/01

From: Fred Jacobowitz <fredj@-----.edu>
Subj: Re: BREAKING IN REEDS
Date: Wed, 28 Jan 1998 14:27:11 -0500

Avrahm,
I respectfully disagree. While there is a certain amount of truth
to your assertions, my experience is that reeds DO change - sometimes
alot, and in an extremely short space of time. They are pieces of wood
and everyone knows that wood is GREATLY affected by climate conditions
such as humidity and temperature. The better players are
better at adapting to the changes and have such good technique that they
can play well *even* with a mediocre reed.
I have found, however, that good reeds tend to play well in most
conditions. But, reeds do change, such as my good summer reeds, which
become soft and feel like #2's in the dry winter air.

Fred Jacobowitz
Clarinet/Sax Instructor, Peabody Preparatory

On Fri, 30 Jan 1998, avrahm galper wrote:

> Breaking in Reeds. Daniel Bonade (Part 1)
> This appeared in the Clarinet Quarterly 1954
>
> Many times one will hear a clarinet player boastfully say, "I usually
> can find only one good or two good reeds in a hundred".
> Another common remark is" My reeds last me only one week."
>
> The above remarks reveal two things about those who make them:They do
> not know very much about reeds, and they do not have good embouchures
> The better the players, the less reeds he will use.
> A player's ability and knowledge can be accurately determined by the
> number of reeds he uses over the period of a year. Of course, one must
> allow for the amount of playing done.
> Here is another remark one will hear- and often from good players:
> "My reed went well at the concert last night but this morning it is
> terrible."
> This appear to be the truth; it is a fact that the reed won't go. The
> fault lies, however, not in the reed but rather in the players'
> embouchure that changed overnight
> His lips have rested and the muscles are relaxed; therefore, his
> pressure upon the reed has changed.
> The same thing happens when one is touring; temperatures, climates,
> altitude, food water etc. are constantly affecting changes in the
> embouchure.
>
> A flute player does not rush to the store to buy a new head joint when
> he picks up his flute in the morning and hears a bad tone. No: he works
> hard to get normal flexibility back in his embouchure.
> So we can take a tip from the flutists and learn that our embouchures
> are constantly changing much more than we had realized- and this is
> the important point to be kept in minds when preparing new reeds.
> After playing a new reed for five minutes, the embouchure has radically
> changed because it has begun to adapt itself to the new reed.
> How foolish it would be to find a perfect reed at that particular
> moment
> Further, reeds change radically in their behavior the first few hours
> of alternate playing and drying, and one can never be sure how they are
> going to turn out
> Pretty grim picture isn't it?
> But don't give up, because there is a method, which allows for the
> above complications and yet will bring good results.
>
> Avrahm Galper
>
> The Upbeat Baerman Melodic Scales
> http://www.sneezy.org/avrahm_galper/index.html
>