Klarinet Archive - Posting 000471.txt from 1998/04

From: Jacqueline Eastwood <eastwooj@-----.EDU>
Subj: Re: Reed Life Span
Date: Fri, 10 Apr 1998 10:06:41 -0400

On Thu, 9 Apr 1998, Brian Catchlove wrote:

> I have until recently been making my own reeds from tubes. I had some
> moderate success of increasing reed life by wetting and drying the
> blanks(sometimes several times a day) over a period of up to 2 weeks before
> finishing the reed. To make the "vamp" I use a machine made in Ulm, Germany
> by Wilfried Schmidt in his basement.
>
> How many clarinettists make their own reeds? And how?
>
> Forgive me if this has already been discussed as I only joined the list
> recently.
>
> Brian Catchlove
>
>
>
I actually learned how to make reeds from tube cane when I was an
undergraduate -- for the vamp, I used a ReedDual machine. But even after
about 6 weeks of practice, I was not mechanically inclined enough to turn
out anything that played even marginally well, so I gave it up. I found
it time-consuming, but perhaps someone who's more handy than I am with
woodworking tools could do a better job!

(P.S. It DID help me learn how to work on manufactured reeds better!)

Jacqueline Eastwood
University of Arizona/Arizona Opera Orchestra
eastwooj@-----.edu