Klarinet Archive - Posting 000785.txt from 1998/03

From: "Diane Karius, Ph.D." <dikarius@-----.edu>
Subj: Re: Zonda reeds & Husa's Apotheosis
Date: Sat, 14 Mar 1998 11:43:33 -0500

> Date: Thu, 12 Mar 1998 15:21:52 -0600 (CST)
> From: "Edwin V. Lacy" <el2@-----.edu>
> To: klarinet@-----.us
> Subject: Re: Zonda reeds & Husa's Apotheosis
> Reply-to: klarinet@-----.us

> On Thu, 12 Mar 1998, EbKlarinet wrote:
>
> > Also, Eric asked about Zonda's grading. I find that they play softer
> > than V-12s, but not by an entire half strength. I use V-12 #4, so I go
> > back and forth between #4 and #41/2 on Zondas.
>
> As someone has mentioned earlier today, in the case of Zonda reeds, it
> would not be correct to say that a #4 is a #4 is a #4. The Zonda's can be
> bought in a soft #3, a medium #3, a hard #3, a soft #3.5, a medium #3.5,
> etc., etc. I think they are actually capable of determining something
> like 60 different grades of hardness. To simplify things a little, they
> have combined the strengths comprising a range of three gradations so that
> there are about 20 different strengths. The key is in the "lot number"
> printed on the back of the package. If this lot number ends in the letter
> F, that indicates soft #3, G indicates medium #3, and H indicates hard #3.
> I, J and K are the three grades of #3.5, etc. (I hope I have all this
> correct. I know that this is the grading system for the alto sax reeds,
> and it should be the same for the clarinet ones, although the letters
> which end the lot number may be different.)
>
> So, in order to get what you want, you have to buy them from a dealer who
> knows what this is all about, or you have to try to explain it to the
> salesperson. Say that you want reeds in the soft #3. If you want to buy
> them from one of the large nationwide mail order dealers, you have to
> describe exactly what you want and how to determine the strength, all this
> to a person who may not quite be sure what a clarinet is, but who was
> chosen for the job because they have a nice telephone voice, etc.
> Sometimes they get quite impatient because it doesn't seem to them that
> this should be such a big deal. This has been a problem for some of my
> students who may not be quite so insistent as I am that they get exactly
> what they ask for, and pay for.
>
> Perhaps Zonda needs to consider some kind of simplified system. The reeds
> themselves are great, in my judgement, and the fact that the grading is
> more precise can be a big advantage. But, it requires that the consumer
> be able to both determine which strength works for them and to buy that
> strenght consistently and without too much trouble.
>
> Ed Lacy
> el2@-----.edu
>
>
Diane R. Karius, Ph.D.
Department of Physiology
University of Health Sciences
2105 Independence Ave.
Kansas City, MO 64124
email: dikarius@-----.EDU