Klarinet Archive - Posting 000540.txt from 2003/07

From: ormondtoby@-----.net (Ormondtoby Montoya)
Subj: [kl] Material (was anyone interested in saxophone)
Date: Fri, 18 Jul 2003 19:53:28 -0400

Bill Hausmann wrote:

They feel that, since some metal is inevitably removed by this process,
the sound of the horn is irrevocably changed.

It's an old and tired discussion, but.....

In Salt Lake, I talked with several mouthpiece & barrel & bell &
instrument makers & technicians about 'material vs. shape of air
column'. I expected a majority to agree with the 'air column controls
everything' theory, but the majority of them were *vehement* that
material makes a difference if you are skilled enough to bring out the
differences on a consistent basis. If your sound is wobbly or
inconsistent, then material is irrelevant, of course.

As an example, I noticed the unusual shape of David Shifrin's basset
barrel when he played K.622, and (not knowing to whom I was talking at
first) I happened to ask the fellow who made Shifrin's barrel, "I wonder
how the barrel is shaped inside?" He replied that it is 'straight" (I
assume he meant a straight taper rather than a curved taper), but he
told me that he worked for some length of time to find an exterior shape
such that the extra material can add a particular quality to the sound.
Obviously you need to have the basic sounds, and to have them down pat,
before you can begin to 'fine tune' them, and therefore nobody is going
to sound like David Shifrin simply by buying a certain barrel. But
again, I was surprised how vehement several people at Salt Lake who have
top-grade reputations were that material makes a difference once a
musician is truly in control of his playing.

FWIW

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