Klarinet Archive - Posting 000398.txt from 2004/06

From: RichChPlay@-----.com
Subj: Re: [kl] Clarinet-related comments; was, Please, no more political comments.
Date: Wed, 23 Jun 2004 20:55:42 -0400

on 6/22/04 7:47 PM, Patricia A. Smith wrote:

>Economic discussion, part 2: Reeds - love them, hate them, here's a
>question for those who make their own: Do you think you actually SAVE a
>substantial amount of money by making your own reeds rather than
>purchasing commercial reeds, or do you break even?

I've never figured it on a cost basis in the 23 years I've been making
reeds. Relative to the price of finished commercial professional quality
reeds, cane is inexpensive, even considering a certain amount of waste.
Sandpaper and the most basic tools are relatively inexpensive. When I
take student to the hardware store for the basics, it's about $30-35. A
ReeDuAl or DeLutis Reed Machine (or any other such piece of equipment)
can be a little pricey. The time spent making reeds "costs" something.

But if you're a professional player, the control over the final product
(even accounting for the vagaries in cane, and the waste of material) and
the longevity and stability of that product is worth the cost and effort,
at least for me.

on 6/23/04 2:10 AM, Georg Kuhner wrote:

>But what' more important I'm not addicted to vandoren or other
>manufacturers! My reeds support my idea of sound. I feel better playing than
>any comercial available brand - this worth even more than money!!!

Absolutely!

on 6/23/04 7:30 AM, Patricia A. Smith wrote:

>At the same time, I suspect you, and others who make their own reeds
>probably are very "neat handed" - you more than likely have INCREDIBLE
>fine motor skills with tools, etc.
(SNIP)
>I do not
>do well with knives. And my work with reed rush is not the best
>either. I suspect I would waste more cane than I would make useable
>reeds from! ;-)
>
The learning curve can be a bit steep. I, too, am a bit of a klutz with
tools, and lack a certain amount of patience. But once you get the hang
of it, it ain't rocket science. A clarinetist I know who makes his reeds
quite successfully told me at the beginning that you could learn
everything you need to know about reed making in 30 minutes (maybe a BIT
of an exaggeration!) - the rest is just experience. Not far from the
truth.

>Of course, plenty of folks also have reed-making machines that they can
>fine-tune to produce reeds that meet personal specifications, but I
>believe you said you make yours entirely by hand? That is quite an
>accomplishment.

In my experience, the machines can only get you close. You have to do the
finishing work and the fine tuning to your mouthpiece by hand in any
case. A machine is not a "magic bullet".

on 6/23/04 9:21 AM, Georg Kuhner wrote:

>By the way cane is really cheap and You start of blanks that are cut ...
>
>I'm sorry Patricia I use some tools and not only a knife.
>I could make a reed this way but this needs much more time ....

I found (after many years of using "commercial" blanks) that making
blanks from tubes helps the quality of the finished reed tremendously.
For a while I did this by hand using a utility knife and sandpaper, which
is really the best way IMHO. I've gotten lazy, though, and now I use a
shaper and a planer to make blanks. Faster, but it still requires a
little hand finishing to make good blanks.

BTW, I hand make the tips of my reed, too - better than a clipper, which
can crush the fibers at the tip of the reed and change the playing
characteristics. I learned this trick from double reed players.

Davie Cane sells Argendonax (Zonda, Gonzales) blanks in varying
thicknesses that are pretty good, though, as a place to start learning
the process.

There are a few good books to help with learning the process. "Selection,
Care and Adjustment of Single Reeds" by Larry Guy is quite good, both
for reed makers and commercial reed adjusters. Lots of valuable tips.

Ronald Vazquez's "A Handbook for the Reed Maker" is quite good, but may
be out of print.

George Kirck's "Reedmate Guide to Reeds" I find useful. He believes all
the same reed myths that I do!!

Opperman's book is in print again. Ben Armato has a book, more about
cane, but good. Our own Walter Grabner wrote a book about reed making.
He's a "real man" - he does it without a ReeDuAl!!

I've lost the post where one of us commented that double reed players
have been doing this for centuries. It's true and it amazes me that so
many good professional clarinet players have a "know nothing" attitude
about reed making and finishing. In general, double reed players seem to
have a lot more solid information about what makes reeds work (for them)
than clarinetists do.

David

David Niethamer
dnietham@-----.edu
http://members.aol.com/dbnclar1/

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