Klarinet Archive - Posting 000631.txt from 2004/11

From: "Don" <dhatfield@-----.org>
Subj: Re: [kl] HOW TO handle new REEDS?
Date: Mon, 22 Nov 2004 15:20:31 -0500

I agree with the idea of starting beginners on a mouthpiece that's of better
qaulity than the standard out-of-the case student models supply, along with
a stronger reed, and have found many who could handle a medium reed right
from the start. The year Leblanc introduced their new line of clarinets, I
got Tom Ridenour to visit our music store and do some clinics. He suggested
then we should look at the mouthpieces we offered with our rental program
clarinets. So we started offering a choice of a B45, Larry Combs or a Hite
instead of the stock mouthpieces, and made sure we tried the students to get
the best mouthpiece for them. We also added Vandoren medium reeds, and the
local elementary teachers were amazed at the retention rate with clarinets
in their beginner programs.

I was raised in a school band environment where "everybody has to use the
same mouthpiece and reed setup". I made big waves in high school when I got
a Kaspar mouthpiece from my private instructor (1972), and we finally
convinced our director that the sound of the clarinet section would improve
if everyone could find a mouthpiece that might fit them better than the
mouthpiece he wanted us to use.

And, Lelia, I guess Cthulhu is worth consideration since Pat Paulsen is no
longer around to get my vote...will HP Lovecraft become required reading in
public schools as a result?

Don Hatfield

> Mouthpieces have to be considered a primary area of concern to any player,
> and
> the solution is of course making sure you are able to match reeds to your
> "mouthpiece"
> with ease and reliability...
>
> David Dow

---------------------------------------------------------------------
Klarinet is a service of Woodwind.Org, Inc. http://www.woodwind.org