Klarinet Archive - Posting 000085.txt from 2006/09

From: "David McClune" <dmcclune@-----.edu>
Subj: Re: [kl] Bass clarinet reed strength
Date: Fri, 08 Sep 2006 14:15:25 -0400

Clark

Your "two cents" are worth more like 2000 dollars.

To restate, reed strength is related to facing curves and not
necessarily to the level of player. Yes a pro might play a slightly
harder reed than an 18 year old on the same mouthpiece but that is often
a half strength if that.

I have had the privilege of playing on (as I am sure Clark has) the set
ups of the some of the top players in the country. No matter the reed
strength...the set ups all played about the same... effortless. No
matter the darkness or brightness of their resultant tone, the feel of
the mouthpiece/reed was the similar. It was an amazing realization for
me as a player, let alone a mouthpiece maker.

All the best

Dave

Dr. David McClune
University Professor of Music
Director of Bands/Woodwinds
Union University-1862
1050 Union University Drive
Jackson, TN 38305

Office-731-661-5294
dmcclune@-----.edu
www.mcclunemouthpiece.com

>>> "Clark W Fobes" <claroneman@-----.net> 9/8/2006 12:43 pm >>>
Much of my career in San Francisco has involved playing bass clarinet
and
contra bass clarinet. I also make about 200 bass clarinet mouthpieces
per
year for students and professionals, so this subject is of great
interest to
me.

The thread really has two parts. First, the initial question was what
reed
strength is suitable for beginners. No beginner is going to be playing
up to
the altissimo register, so requiring him/her to play on a firm reed is

really not an issue. I think it is PREFERABLE to start a beginner on a
reed
that is supple enough to allow them to get air through the horn WITHOUT

using inordinate jaw pressure to bring the reed to its proper focal
point.
In fact, this will promote a better embouchure for bass clarinet which

should be less firm than a clarinet embouchure. A properly designed
mouthpiece will not close off with a softer reed. Unfortunately, most
of the
student priced bass clarinet mouthpieces are absolute crap, so
teachers,
spend a little bit extra and get a decent mouthpiece for your
beginners.
ALSO, I believe that any kid who moves to bass clarinet should have at

least 2 years of clarinet training. Bass clarinet IS difficult and
should
not be the initial instrument for a beginning woodwind student.

The second part of the thread has to do with the proper reed
strength
for advanced players. The suggestion that someone should use the same
reed
strength on bass that they use on clarinet is absolutely ludicrous. I
suspect that most players in this county play on medium faced clarinet

mouthpieces that require about a #4 reed (let's use Van Doren as the
standard). This being the case a #4 bass clarinet reed is much to hard
for
most bass clarinet mouthpieces. There are some makers who make very
close,
short facings that might require a #4 reed, but this is a flawed design
in
my opinion.

I occasionally coach people on bass clarinet and the most common
problem
I see is that they are trying to play with too hard of a reed and with
too
firm of an embouchure. You will never achieve sufficient resonance or
flexibility this way. I use a #3 Van Doren reed on my CF or RR facing
and I
can play easily into the extreme altissimo. This is a matter of having
an
acoustically correct mouthpiece - not a stiff reed. Also, with a very
firm
reed, the pitch is often too high and one will play particularly sharp
in
the throat tones and when playing pianissimo. There is a huge benefit
in
playing a softer reed and using less lip/jaw pressure. With this type
of
approach one has much more flexibility in changing registers, a better

legato, clearer articulation and a more robust lower register. Perhaps
the
hard reed concept is a result of a macho mentality among bass clarinet

players that they must be able to play loud to project. Projection is a

function of a presence of overtones, not simply volume of air.

Just my 2 cents,

Clark W Fobes

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