Klarinet Archive - Posting 000390.txt from 1994/05

From: "Jay Heiser, Product Manager, Govt Systems" <jayh@-----.COM>
Subj: Re: Clarinet materials
Date: Mon, 23 May 1994 10:46:50 -0400

--> The next question is whether those vibrations matter. After all, the
-->sound of the clarinet is due primarily to its vibrating air column, not, as
-->far as I know, to the physical vibration of the instrument. Although it's
-->not relevant how the mouthpiece vibrates, it could be the vibrations of the
-->reed are not totally damped but are in fact partially transferred to the
-->mouthpiece by the binding of the ligature, and this could be an explanation
of
-->why a ligature might make a difference. Anyway, the question is reduced to
I'm curious as heck as to why it is the case, but mouthpiece material
definitely makes a noticeable difference in clarinet sound. My
belief is that is more significant than the material in the rest
of the instrument, but I have no 'scientific data' to support this.

-->walls were absolutely rigid? Attempts have been made to duplicate
Stradivarius
-->violins. I believe it is possible for the duplicate to have nearly identical
-->shape and dimensions and to be played with the same strings and bows but
still
-->have a different tone quality because the cavity (violin body) of the
duplicate
-->just doesn't vibrate the same way as the Strad. Somehow, the duplicates
aren't
-->using quite the same materials or haven't treated or cured them in a manner
-->resulting in the same vibrational characteristics. Now, I will be the first
-->to admit I know nothing about violin acoustics, so I may not have convinced
The jury is out on the mysteries of violin design, but there is
no doubt that spruce improves over time, making it impossible to
ever duplicate a vintage violin. Stringed instruments rely on
the vibration of the walls (esp the soundboard on top), making them
completely different than woodwind instruments. Stringed instruments
are eternal (expect for flamenco guitars) and woodwinds deteriorate.
:-(
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