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Klarinet Archive - Posting 000044.txt from 2000/03
From: "David B. Niethamer" <dnietham@-----.edu>
Subj: Re: [kl] Ligatures in general
Date: Wed, 1 Mar 2000 21:55:02 -0500
on 2/29/00 6:14 PM, Tony Pay wrote:
>Excuse me, David, because I have great respect for your contributions.
>
>I really don't believe this.
DAMN!! I *knew* the BS police were gonna get me... ;-)
Seriously, in thinking about where I came by this information, I can't
remember, and I certainly have no concrete evidence for its proof. I
think it was presented to me (compulsive screw tightener extraordinaire)
as a rationale for not constantly and compulsively tightening the screws
on my ligatures. The medication has worked wonders, and I no longer
behave in this way! Who first gave me this "information" I can't recall.
>If you experiment by putting cylinders of
>cardboard inside your mouthpieces, you get to understand the sorts of
>changes that such gross alterations make. That is, they are rather
>surprisingly small.
>
I'll have to experiment with this a bit. I find it hard to imagine that
rather noticeable changes in response and pitch would not be the result.
But, I'll have to fool with it for myself before I comment any more.
>I doubt that the sorts of changes that an 'overtightened' (what does
>this really mean?) ligature might make, on an ebonite mouthpiece, are of
>anything like that order of magnitude.
As I recall it, the theory presented was that as a mouthpiece aged, the
process that hardened the rubber would begin to "wear off", making the
pressure of the metal ligature capable of constricting the bore at that
point where the ligature was tightened. I have to admit I don't have a
shred of evidence to prove whether any of this is true. In playing with
the relative tightness of my ligature screws today (I really need to get
a life!!!) I couldn't hear or feel any difference in the feel or sound of
a particular reed if the ligature was tighter or looser, for what that is
worth. Given my current credibility on this subject...
David
David Niethamer
Principal Clarinet, Richmond Symphony
dnietham@-----.edu
http://members.aol.com/dbnclar1/
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