Klarinet Archive - Posting 000395.txt from 1999/12

From: "dew@-----.com>
Subj: [kl] mouthpieces and braces
Date: Tue, 14 Dec 1999 11:25:44 -0500

I am considering trying new mouthpieces and would like the list's advice.

I have just had braces put on (to treat TMJ problems). (Not suspenders for those of you who might be confused: these are =
metal appliances on my teeth.<g>) The good news is that my playing has not been as adversly affected as I had feared! B=
ut I am having difficulty adjusting my ears to the different sound I now produce. I have such a clear concept of "my sou=
nd" that I find it unsettling to be producing a different sound, and there is little I can do about it under the present =
circumstances. It is consistant (or will be, as soon as those necessary compensations kick into auto-pilot), and I've di=
scovered how much to adjust for tuning. Surprisingly, endurance is not as much of a problem as I had thought it would be=
! My listeners tell me the sound is not disagreeable to them, and that it sounds like a clarinet, but the more discernin=
g among them agree that it is different from my usual sound.

So my question for the list is whether anyone has any experience with the way braces affect the production of sound, and =
whether there are suggestions for differences in the mouthpiece. In comparison to my presently-used mouthpiece, should I=
look for something more open, less open, more resistant, less resistant, other factors in approaching my original sound?=

Thanks in advance,
Denise Edwards-Wilson

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