Klarinet Archive - Posting 000118.txt from 2006/01
From: Tony Pay <tony.p@-----.org> Subj: RE: [kl] Mouthpiece selection Date: Mon, 16 Jan 2006 22:51:15 -0500
On 16 Jan, "Keith" <bowenk@-----.com> wrote:
> I have just had the pleasurable experience of selecting new mouthpieces at
> Walter Grabner's workshop/home. I did veer away from the "unstable flight"
> analogy that Tony draws, though I do not deny its validity for people who
> play much more than I.
>
> However though the argument (that a less controllable mouthpiece may be the
> best choice for a highly skilled player) may be true, the flight analogy is
> but an analogy not a proof.
I didn't mean to say that a less controllable mouthpiece was the best choice.
Obviously you want it to be controllable. I rather came about it from the
other direction -- namely, that mouthpieces that are very 'forgiving', and
therefore very 'comfortable' to play, tend to be too unvarying in tone colour
and dynamic response.
I had that experience playing on a Selmer C85 many years ago, I recall. I
had to do a radio performance of Boulez's Domaines, in the full version. The
sound was very homogeneous, and the response very even, which is a relief
when you're doing those sorts of pyrotechnics -- especially Cahier F. But
listening to the tape, I found it lacked character.
Of course, it depends on what you want.
I don't know what you could mean by a 'proof' in what you write above. The
underlying concept that makes the analogy worthwhile is surely very general,
to do with any control system that you want to have a wide range of output
with a fairly constrained input.
As Joe Wakeling says, there's a tradeoff -- an excellent mouthpiece for a
given person makes an optimal tradeoff for that person. (I think I did say
that, Joe, in the post -- something like, "the fact is that there's a
tradeoff in tolerant mouthpieces.")
Anyway, I'm sure you're right about Walter's mouthpieces. When I met him a
few years ago -- a delightful experience for many reasons -- I bought one of
them which I played in several concerts. It worked very well, though I'd
have to try others from his now much expanded range to find the one that was
the best for me -- and I haven't been in Chicago recently.
Tony
--
_________ Tony Pay
|ony:-) 79 Southmoor Rd tony.p@-----.org
| |ay Oxford OX2 6RE http://classicalplus.gmn.com/artists
tel/fax 01865 553339
... I could be arguing in my spare time.
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