 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: KenJarczyk
Date: 2015-11-02 22:31
Curious!
Who are the Eefer People here? What is your preferred instrument, mouthpiece, reeds and any other accessories that you find helpful?
Me? I do some Symphony, a lot of chamber, a lot of musical pit orchestra, and Wind Ensembles. I love the Buffet R13, Clark Fobes E-flat mouthpiece, the newer Backun barrel (with the B-flat reed cutout), and Vandoren Rue 56 3.5 reeds (just starting a migration towards the Rue 56 3.5+). I did use the Fobes extension, as many do, but I've since stopped, as I found no appreciable difference in the intonation +/or sound of the bottom, which plays wonderfully fine without it, but I did have a bothersome "node" warble in the middle D with it on! Also - just switched from Rovner Dark ligature to the Vandoren Optimum.
As such, I'm a happy Eeffer-guy!
Ken Jarczyk
Woodwinds Specialist
Eb, C, Bb, A & Bass Clarinets
Soprano, Alto, Tenor & Baritone Saxophones
Flute, Alto Flute, Piccolo
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Author: Zacharywest158
Date: 2015-11-04 01:25
Hi Ken,
I'm not a professional, (yet), but I do play quite a bit of Eb clarinet! I use a 5RV mouthpiece with a Rovner ligature and a chopped-down Gonzales 3.5 reed. This seems to work pretty well, although there is always the battle between getting the best possible tone quality and playing with a setup that is intonationally stable. What I use works for me, but is by no means the "only" setup that works.
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Author: KenJarczyk
Date: 2015-11-04 02:40
Thanks for the reply, Zachary!
So, how's the program at Cleveland? Do they carry many clarinet majors? Anything special or wonderful going on there?
5RV - that's about a 106 opening. To me, Vandoren likes their Eeffer pieces open! And the 5RV is their "small" opening! Well, good for you, must have a strong set of chops! I like the Clark Fobes myself, it is the only Eeffer piece he offers, and is the identical lay that he uses in the San Francisco Opera, not a bad pedigree there, and is a .96 opening. I find that piece very warm and dark, ppp possible low E to C-4 and above! And when I push the pedal down, I can still remove wallpaper on the back wall!
Are you playing Eeffer in Symphony +/or Wind Ensemble? And an important for chops question - how matched is your B-flat/A mouthpiece lay to your E-flat 5RV? Best if they're as close to the same as possible.
Also, just curious, is there any "brand" bias at your school? Any snobbery if you play a non-preferred brand?
Ken Jarczyk
Woodwinds Specialist
Eb, C, Bb, A & Bass Clarinets
Soprano, Alto, Tenor & Baritone Saxophones
Flute, Alto Flute, Piccolo
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Author: Zacharywest158
Date: 2015-11-04 04:42
Ken,
The clarinet program here in Cleveland is strong. I have some truly gifted colleagues, and it's a pleasure to play alongside some of these people in orchestra. Including myself, there are eight clarinet majors at the school, and we're a mix of undergrad, masters, and professional studies/artist diploma students. We all study with Frank Cohen, former principal clarinet of Cleveland.
I have yet to try the Clark Forbes, but I have heard good things. The studio Eb clarinet has a Richard Hawkins mouthpiece that I don't care for. It seems too resistant for me, although I have no idea what the measurements are. My Bb/A mouthpiece is handmade from a Zinner blank by Mr. Cohen, and I'm not sure what the measurements on that are either. All I know is that I seem able to switch back and forth between Bb/A and Eb without any issues, so I imagine the mouthpieces are not dissimilar.
I usually volunteer to play Eb in orchestra, and, as CIM doesn't have a wind ensemble, that's the only context in which I play. I believe there may be some upcoming Eb parts in pieces that composition students will be premiering, so I welcome the possibility to play Eb in a chamber music setting!
As for bias, we all play on Buffet clarinets, but different models. We have several people on toscas, and others on the RC prestige, R13 prestige, and festival models. I'm in the minority, using an R13 Bb from about 2005 and an R13 A from 1974. There are a good variety of mouthpieces represented too. Several students, including myself, play on mouthpieces made by Mr. Cohen, but I know several of my studio mates play on Vandoren black diamond series mouthpieces with excellent results. Another popular mouthpiece at school is the "playeasy", although I've never tried it myself.
As long as you sound good, you're welcome to play on whatever setup is comfortable for you.
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