Klarinet Archive - Posting 000021.txt from 2001/05

From: Tony@-----.uk (Tony Pay)
Subj: Re: [kl] Reed Balance
Date: Tue, 1 May 2001 16:42:05 -0400

On Tue, 01 May 2001 08:12:44 -0500, rgarrett@-----.edu said:

> At 10:38 PM 04/30/2001 +0100, you wrote:

> > On Mon, 30 Apr 2001 10:41:00 -0400, fred.sheim@-----.net said:

> > > I have noticed that some reeds are really sweet only when they are
> > > shifted slightly to the left or right on the mouthpiece, and
> > > really bad when centered. Is there a way to scrape them so they
> > > are good when centered? Is it a matter of too much thickness on
> > > one side or the other?
>
> Tony Pay responded:
>
> > You can try -- but then, why bother? (Really sweet is really
> > sweet:-)
> >
> > If it's not *really* so sweet, it may be worth making the effort to
> > adjust the reed; though I sometimes find that the optimum position
> > changes anyway as the reed ages, so it's worthwhile holding back.
>
> In response to the the suggestion immediately above (implied I guess -
> as it appears to be in the form of a question) - the idea of not
> bothering (to scrape a reed), it is worth mentioning that balancing a
> reed by removing material from one or both sides is a common, standard
> practice among clarinetists at all levels. If done properly, it
> simply allows the reed to vibrate optimumly for that particular player
> - perhaps without having to move it left or right.

I suppose my point was that it may be worthwhile not to 'balance' a reed
if it works perfectly well shifted to one side or the other.

The notion of my post was to undermine the (undeniable) attractiveness
of 'symmetry'.

In many cases, 'symmetry' corresponds to 'excellence' -- in some sorts
of visual design, and (apparently) in our instinctive assessments of
facial beauty -- but in the case of reeds, the more fundamental notion
of 'good sound' overrides that.

Consider: Amati violins look very 'roughly' made, but often sound very
good. (And wood is after all very rarely symmetrically constituted.)
So a reed might do everything you want it to and yet still be one that
worked best placed to one side or the other. 'Balancing' it --
particularly if you don't know quite what is the right thing to do --
can sometimes destroy its quality.

Of course, as the reed ages, adjustments might be required. But
sometimes those adjustments are *still* only changes of position. And
even if in fact the reed ultimately requires scraping, my point was:
don't think that it's necessarily better to make the adjustment *now*,
because later might be better, in terms of how the reed serves you over
its lifespan.

> > Also, I think there is myth that there are good players who know
> > *everything* about reeds, and who can make anything work by
> > adjusting it
>
> > Not so. All the really good players I know have quite a pragmatic
> > approach, and realise that their own adaptability is crucial in
> > making the best reed they have available, work. And, that their
> > judgement of 'what works' is fundamentally to do with their
> > imagination and standards, related to the music they're playing.
>
> Given the infinite "feel" of each reed, adaptation is a necessity -
> and, in fact, something that can be managed simply by rotating reeds
> frequently. Again, in a commercial box of 10 Vandoren V12 reeds,
> there are a number which cannot be used at all, and there are a
> number which can - all of which vary depending on the box of reeds
> and the level/condition of the player. Clarinetists who are at their
> peak in terms of conditioning and strength tend to be able to adapt to
> more reeds than those who are not "evolved" in their approach to
> playing.

That is of course true.

My point was rather that the ultimate judgement of a reed doesn't really
depend on whether it is symmetric, or any other physical attribute, but
rather on whether you can make it do what you want it to do.

Tony
--
_________ Tony Pay
|ony:-) 79 Southmoor Rd Tony@-----.uk
| |ay Oxford OX2 6RE GMN artist: http://www.gmn.com
tel/fax 01865 553339

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