Klarinet Archive - Posting 000074.txt from 2004/08

From: Bill Hausmann <bhausmann1@-----.net>
Subj: RE: [kl] high notes
Date: Tue, 3 Aug 2004 17:46:48 -0400

At 03:12 PM 8/3/2004 -0500, Christy Erickson wrote:
>Krista, It is difficult to say what may be the problem just from notes over
>the internet, but I do know that Mitchell Lurie reeds are a bit on the soft
>side. I find that students like this particular brand due to that fact but
>they need to play on something with a bit more resistance-especially if they
>practice regularly and have a good strong embouchure, which may be happening
>in your case. In the "old days" when I was in high school, I remember using
>Mitchell Lurie no. 5 reeds and still having to clip them with a nail clipper
>(I'd never heard of a reed clipper back then). If you have an old no. 4,
>you might try clipping one of them off a bit-only a hair at a time.
>Recently, I decided for some odd reason to try the Mitchell Lurie's again
>and I purchased a box that was far too soft for me.

Different reed brands use different strength scales. Mitchell Luries may
SEEM soft if you are used to Vandorens with the same strength number, but
will be just right if you have been playing Ricos or Rico Royals. A
Mitchell Lurie 4 is equal to a Vandoren Classique 3 1/2 or a V12 4,
according to Vandoren's chart. A Mitchell Lurie 5, though, is only about a
Vandoren 4 (V12 4 1/2). The scales are not necessarily linear. Vandoren's
seems to be (of course, they printed the scale!) but the Mitchell Lurie
scale is, by comparison, compressed at both ends (small differences between
1 1/2 and 2 and between 5 and 5 1/2, but larger differences in the 2 1/2 to
4 range).

> I have a student who just got a Selmer Signet from EBay and it has an
>awesome sound! I did try it out with my Vandoren B45 mouthpiece and liked
>it. I did play on a Selmer clarinet in high school and have had several
>Selmer mouthpieces sitting here from those days. I got a Buffet R-13 in
>college and found that those Selmer mouthpieces never sounded very good on
>my Buffet clarinets. Strange thing is, I have a student who tried my old
>Selmer HS ** mouthpiece one day and it was just what she needed on her
>plastic Vito clarinet so it finally found a home. You may have better luck
>with the Selmer mouthpieces on a Selmer clarinet-either HS * or HS **.

It is more important to match mouthpiece and instrument than is usually
credited. For example, I find I generally cannot play a Vandoren
mouthpiece in tune, always going flat in the altissimo. But on my Selmer
Balanced Tone, they play perfectly and effortlessly in tune (the horn
otherwise plays sharp up there).

Bill Hausmann

If you have to mic a saxophone, the rest of the band is TOO LOUD!

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