Klarinet Archive - Posting 001102.txt from 1998/09

From: Spiegelthal.Dave@-----.COM
Subj: [kl] Tenor Reeds on Bass Clarinet (was:Re: [kl] Re: [Re: [kl] Jazz
Date: Mon, 28 Sep 1998 09:45:29 -0400

Kelly Abraham wrote: "I personally HATE using tenor sax reeds on bass
clarinet, because I have problems playing the lowest and highest notes in
tune." I would beg to differ. In 20 years of playing bass clarinet (in
sypmphony orchestras, school bands, pit bands, and jazz bands) I've played
on both "bass clarinet" and "tenor sax" reeds interchangeably, depending on
what's available in what brands, and sometimes because of price
differences. While a true "bass clarinet" reed should theoretically be
slightly wider and perhaps shorter than a tenor sax reed, if you compare
modern reeds of just about ANY BRAND, you'll find that the bass clarinet
and tenor sax reeds are IDENTICAL in size and cut. Manufacturers apparently
make them on the same equipment, as far as I can tell. I've done many a
test where I bought both the tenor and b.c. reeds from the same
manufacturer in the same strength, and did blind tests to see if I could
tell which was which, and I've NEVER found any statistical difference,in my
own experience. Typically, since there's a greater variety of reeds
available for tenor sax, I buy those for use on my bass clarinet.
Dave Spiegelthal
Calverton, VA

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