Klarinet Archive - Posting 000348.txt from 2003/01

From: "James Fay" <n3hpz@-----.com>
Subj: Re: [kl] legere reeds and ligatures
Date: Sun, 19 Jan 2003 10:54:25 -0500

Also, there was a practice to purposely NOT make the mouthpiece table flat.
One of them was the so-called "French Curve," a concavity in the table
which, when a reed was clamped on tightly with the traditional metal
ligature, would cause the reed tip to sit away from the mouthpiece tip,
improving staccato on what were mouthpieces with small tip openings.

Handmade reeds, their tables and vamps having been sanded and cured, are
much less likely to swell then commercial reeds are. I suspect plastic reeds
might act the same.

--Jim Fay

----- Original Message -----
From: "Richard Bush" <rbushidioglot@-----.com>
Subject: Re: [kl] legere reeds and ligatures

> Some possible explanations for this practice might be that it was
> difficult to work mouthpiece tables to a flat condition or that the
> reed maker didn't have flat, plate glass to guarantee that their reeds
> were truly flat on the flat side.
>
> When reeds are left on the mouthpiece, they swell in the window way.
> This dampens their ability to vibrate.
>
> On Friday, January 17, 2003, at 02:36 PM, James Fay wrote:
>
> > 19th C clarinettists playing on newly hand made reeds sometimes would
> > leave
> > the reed -- tied to the mouthpiece with a string ligature -- on
> > overnite to
> > help the reed conform to the mouthpiece table.
> >
> > Mabye we should consider this.
> >
> > I just bought 4 Legere's today for the 1st time and hope to spend some
> > time
> > with them tonight.
> >
> > --Jim Fay
> >
> > ----- Original Message -----
> > From: "Alan J. Nussbaum" <ajn8@-----.edu>
> > To: <klarinet@-----.org>
> > Sent: Friday, January 17, 2003 1:28 PM
> > Subject: Re: [kl] legere reeds and ligatures
> >
> >
> >> I have a somewhat different point about Legeres that I'd be
> >> interested in hearing about. I wonder if the Legere users on the
> >> list would mind making the following quick and simple experiments and
> >> reporting back: Take a Legere, lay it flat-side-down on a flat
> >> surface (like a piece of glass) and press down on the extreme butt
> >> end of the reed with your thumb. Does the tip visibly rise off the
> >> surface? Now press down on the tip in the same way. Does the butt
> >> end rise off the surface? This *does* happen with all three Legeres
> >> that I own. Now put the Legere on your mouthpiece and secure it with
> >> the ligature in the usual way. Look at the mouthpiece and reed from
> >> the side and form an impression of how far down the mouthpiece the
> >> you can see light between the reed and the facing. If your
> >> experience is like mine, the reed will stand away from mouthpiece for
> >> an astoundingly long distance--well below the intended bottom of the
> >> curve of the facing. Now do the same with a brand-new cane reed
> >> (that has not had enough time and wetting to get warped). Is the
> >> narrow V of light between reed and mouthpiece not noticeably shorter?
> >> From my experiences with Legeres I think I have to conclude that they
> >> have a marked tendency to warp away from their flat side for some
> >> reason. If others have the same experience, I'd be interested to
> >> know that. If not, I wonder what I could possibly be doing wrong to
> >> make them curl away from the mouthpiece in this way.
> >>
> >> Alan Nussbaum
> >>
> >> ---------------------------------------------------------------------
> >>
> >
> >
> > ---------------------------------------------------------------------
> >
> >
> Richard Bush
> rbushidioglot@-----.com
>
>
> ---------------------------------------------------------------------
>

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