Klarinet Archive - Posting 000172.txt from 2001/10

From: "Robert Moody" <LetsReason@-----.com>
Subj: Re: [kl] Reed Resurfacer
Date: Mon, 8 Oct 2001 08:57:16 -0400

I, generally, am so afraid to "mess" with reeds that I do very
little to them if they are good from the beginning. But here are
a few things I do and would appreciate the lists' ideas about
them:

1. At first, I play the reeds about 10 to 15 minutes at a time
until what I perceive as the "newness" is gone. That curious, and
oddly delightful, taste of "new reed" in it. ;-)

2. I keep the reeds in my Selmer reed case with the glass plate
on the inside (seen in most catalogues).

3. After having been "broken in" by playing, I may find any
unevenness in them by "blowing the sides". I turn the mouthpiece
at an angle in my mouth and blow a g1 on each side of the reed to
detect if one side or the other is thicker or playing stiffer. I then
do very minute adjustments according to what works best for me.

[I have found that I like the left-side just a little firmer than the
right.]

4. After the reed dries, I then place it on a piece of paper on a hard
flat surface and smooth the back (i.e. rub it back and forth on the paper).

5. Lastly, I take another sheet of paper and, rubbing from base to tip,
smooth the top.

For me, this makes the reeds last a little longer and play a little more
consistently. I'm not sure, and I don't care at this point, whether it is
all in my head- it works for me.

Besides...it makes the reed shiney and smooth like the rest of my
clarinet...
and my head. ;-)

Any opinions?

Robert

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