Klarinet Archive - Posting 000670.txt from 2004/11

From: GrabnerWG@-----.com
Subj: Re: [kl] Sandpaper vs. Reed knife
Date: Wed, 24 Nov 2004 12:39:07 -0500

In a message dated 11/24/2004 8:27:15 AM Central Standard Time,
dwh46@-----.net writes:

<<One instructor when I was in high school
would take the barrel of a ballpoint pen and rub the surface gently in one
direction only, toward the tip, which he said was to seal the reed to keep
prevent it from absorbing too much moisture. I ask the same question as
Erik...should something like this actually be done?>>

Any rubbing or polishing of a reed accomplishes two things: 1. it helps to
seal the pores in the cane, keeping the reed from absorbing too much moisture;
2. it does dull the tone.

The question is - is this a good thing or a bad thing?

One of the problems I have with so much of the advice we get, from any
number of different directions, is not the advice, by the way we interpret it. We
are always looking for "absolutes."

We have this belief, that subconsciously goes like this - "THERE EXISTS a
thing, a concept, a piece of equipment, a technique that if I could only do it,
or have it, the SAME WAY every time, things would therefore ALWAYS be
better."

Unfortunately there are few, if any, magic bullets.

For example, as in the issue above: Some reed cane soaks up adequate
moisture, some too much. If you are using the cane that soaks up too much, you are
either going to have to do something to retard the absorption of moisture, or
perhaps risk the breakdown of that reed in practice, rehearsal, or, heaven
forbid, performance.

Some reeds are also responsive but TOO bright, or edgy, and can benefit from
some treatment to dull down the sound. Give that same treatment to another
reed, and it may play "well" but really have an uninteresting, one dimensional
sound.

If we keep our thinking flexible, and stay away from the "THOU MUST DO
THIS," we have more potential to cope with the situations that our instruments and
the music we want to play on them throw in our path.

Walter Grabner
www.clarinetXpress.com
World-class clarinet mouthpieces

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