Klarinet Archive - Posting 000120.txt from 2001/06

From: "emily worthington" <emily.worthington@-----.com>
Subj: Re: [kl] Hello
Date: Sun, 3 Jun 2001 12:35:27 -0400

Ian Black wrote:
<<more frequently the Pomarico
"Sapphire" (a pro-standard crystal mouthpiece - available in UK from John
Myatt's in Hitchin, Herts : >>

yay! Someone who doesn't think crystal MP's are the creation of satan!

Before I go further I should introduce myself - I'm a friend of debbie's
(the surrey clarinet mafia are closing in). I'm 17 and i've been playing
clarinet for (nearly) seven years - currently on a leblanc Sonata Bb (my A
is a buffet E13). I've played quite a lot of bass, and i'm also an ex-first
study pianist. Debs and I played in the same area youth orchestra for a
while, I'm principle in the county youth orchestra, which I love. I'm going
off to study music (1st study clarinet) at uni next year and I've been
following your discussions for a few weeks now - I've never learnt so much
in such a short time! cheers guys.

Anyway, mouthpieces. I was interested in Ian's message because I used to
play on a vandoren A3 crystal (until the tip got chipped) and I loved it.
However I switched to a Weinberg MI (like Tony Wakefield's, i think- hi
Tony!) partly because it had been reccomended and I didn't have time to shop
around, and partly because several people had expressed doubts about crystal
MPs and their various attributes. (I know, cardinal sin, I should have spent
time trying out different ones and it was a big risk but I just didn't have
the time. it isn't a habit. I spent ages testing when I bought my A3)

I've been really pleased with the M1 because it left me nowhere to hide as
far as my embrachure was concerned - I've had to work really hard to get the
best out of it and it's paying off but i'm thinking I might have a look
around in the summer to make sure it's the best thing for me. I find my tone
often a little hollow, especially at the bottom and even more especially on
my A clarinet (maybe because it's new and not blown in? or does the MP not
suit it?), though it's much more centred than when I started using this MP
(my centre disappeared when I stopped using the A3).

I realise much of this is probably due to my technique but does anyone else
find this MP a little difficult to control (not just tone but also
intonation, which I didn't have problems with before!)? Of course (as Debbie
may have noticed at easter :-) ) i'm still getting used to the MP, after a
year and a half, but any suggestions as to other things to try would be
welcome!

Another query: I play on rico grand concert#2.5 reeds and i often find i
have to either rub them down because they feel incredibly hard or trim them
because they're really soft (however once they work, they work forever and
sound fantastic). They also periodically warp en masse (even though i keep
them in a reed box with a flat glass plate). Any thoughts?

Thanks!
Em

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