 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Dani
Date: 2002-11-30 19:03
I am currently 2nd chair (out of 22) clarinet in my school's eighth grade band. I started playing in seventh grade along woth all of the other clarinets in our band. Anyway, one of our band directors started us all out on strength 2 Vandoren reeds. He also told us that he doesn't want any of us going any higher than a 3 1/2 Vandoren reed. This is a big problem for me because I have been playing on a 3 1/2 since the middle of last year. I am going through a reed almost everyday, which is starting to get VERY. I have tried playing on 4 reeds and they go soft on me very fast, also. I can almost make then last 3 days (I usually only play for 90 minutes a day). Every once in awhile our band director (that works with the clarinets) will ask to see what size reeds we are all playing on. My question is.... should I try playing on a higher reed and risk getting in trouble or just stay where I am. I am going to the music store today and I am also wondering if you think I should play on a higher strength what strength do you think it should be. We have a test on Monday and I really don't want my chair to go really far down, because I would hate to have to play 2nd clarinet for the concert. THANK YOU SO MUCH for hearing me rant and rave.
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Author: Kristin
Date: 2002-11-30 19:40
Dani,
First of all, you probably should not be playing on a reed strength lower than 3 1/2. 3 1/2 are probably fine for you...you could probably use 4's if you feel more comfortable on them. As for going through reeds really quickly...you should not be playing on just one reed until it dies. You need to develop a reed rotation, where you always have reeds that you are breaking in, reeds that you are practicing on, and reeds that are very good for concerts. Don't play on one reed for an entire practice...switch every so often. This will prevent your reeds from dying so quickly.
Good luck in your test!
Kristin :-)
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Author: Rob
Date: 2002-11-30 19:41
For one, your band director shouldn't be the one to decide what strength reed you should be playing on unless he is your private teacher as well. It almost sounds to me though, that what you need to do is start breaking in your reeds. If you start playing high and loud on a reed you just took out of the box, then it will probably go very soft really fast. Breaking in reeds is a very important part of playing the clarinet, and many different people will have theories on how to break in reeds. It usually takes about 3 days. On the first day, play on the reeds (do about 3 different ones in a practice session) for about 5 minutes down low and quiet. Gradually over the 3 days, start playing louder, longer and higher on them. Also, with the Vandoren's, check to see if they are of equal strength on both sides. You can do this by changing the angle of the mouthpiece in your mouth from side to side. It should sound about the same as playing the reed straight on. Again, this is just my theory, and I encourage you to check through past threads on this website to see what else has been said on breaking in reeds.
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Author: Fred
Date: 2002-11-30 19:47
Something's wrong. Reeds shouldn't be changing strengths on you that fast. Do you have a teacher you can consult to see if it is something you are doing? What kind of mouthpiece are you playing? A 3.5 Vandoren should be hard enough for most (not all) mouthpieces.
Reed strength should be matched to the design of your mouthpiece. I have a mouthpiece that I play a 2 on; I have others I play a 3.5-4 on. But I never go through a reed per day.
Perhaps other posters more knowledgable can comment if they believe this drastic a deterioration can be due to improper reed break-in. Seems extreme to me.
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Author: Dee
Date: 2002-11-30 20:20
You are definitely doing something wrong. You should not go through a reed a day.
1) Break in your reeds gradually, even though you have to change reeds in the middle of practicing. Note band class is generally short enough you won't need to change in the middle of that.
2) What mouthpiece are you playing? This may be the wrong combination of reed and mouthpiece.
3) You may be squashing the reed with your embouchure trying to get high notes. Have your private teacher check you out. If you don't have a private teacher get one. They can also advise you on items one and two above.
4) Rotate reeds. Do not use the same reed even twice in a row. Let it recover. I rotate through an entire box of ten. It's several days before I get back to the first reed.
I read (in the clarinet magazine I think) that a professional player goes through about 100 reeds per year. However he/she is playing 8 hours a day every day of the year. So the pro gets about 30 hours per reed but he/she is rotating them not playing them continuously. So for a player that is playing about 90 minutes per day, reeds should last somewhere around 20 days each. So a couple of boxes ought to get you through an entire year.
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Author: Kat
Date: 2002-12-01 04:04
Wow...100 reeds a year for a pro? At Vandoren's 1 good reed per box quota, that's a lotta dough spent on bad reeds! ;^)
Katrina
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Author: bob49t
Date: 2002-12-01 07:21
Something's definitely amiss here !
Remember to swallow the Vindaloo before playing - sorry !
Seriously though - some lateral thinking required here -
1) check the integrity of the mouthpiece for cracks or warpage - you may habitually and unwittingly overtighten your ligature.
This will damage your m/piece and could certaqinly torque your reed and blow it away v quickly as it gets warm and wet. If any of the above are possibilities try some more m/p's for comparison.
2) are you sure you're positioning the reed -
a)correctly ?
b)centrally ?
c)consistently. ?
3)Your independent teacher should help here and fast.
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Author: Dee
Date: 2002-12-01 17:57
Katrina
I'm sure the pros find far more than one good reed per box because they take the time to adjust and balance the reeds. They know how to vary the mounting of the reed on the mouthpiece slightly to account for variations in the reed. Their embouchures are developed and flexible enough to accommodate variations in the reed. They are experienced in matching the reed to the mouthpiece and so on.
If you are only getting one good reed per box, you're doing something wrong.
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Author: Wes
Date: 2002-12-01 19:33
Having played for many years, had a lot of mouthpieces, refaced a lot of mouthpieces, and used many boxes of reeds, I can't imagine using a number 4 Vandoren reed without sanding it down a lot to make it like a number 3. Is there a good clarinet teacher that you can consult with in regard to your equipment? Good luck!
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Author: Meri
Date: 2002-12-01 20:31
If you sound better on the harder reed than the softer one, use the harder one. Especially if you have a private teacher. I know some students do better on a slightly harder reed, because it encourages them to use better air speed.
Reeds that are too soft don't encourage students to use sufficient air speed, which partly contributes to thinness of sound.
Meri
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Author: Allison
Date: 2002-12-02 00:00
In each box of Vandoren reeds that I have ever gotten, theres a nice little chart telling you which reed strength is recommended with which mouthpiece. Beyond that its up to you and your teacher to decide the type of sound you are after (do you play in orchestra a lot, lots of chamber music, solo work where a clean, clearer sound might be desirable, or is volume and easy playing a requirement ...ie outdoor band work, or are you looking for afunky, smoky, jazzy sounds? Different reeds and different mouthpieces work in different situations and its worth reeding up on (pun intended! )and experimenting with. I use a Vandoren 5 RV with V12 #4 reeds for orchestra and an M 13 for wind ensemble work where a bolder sound and easy blowing is desirable. I am an amateur musician but have had a lot of time to listen and play with this.
Also, the issue of rotating reeds also can also extend to aging reeds. Boxes I have left unopened for 2 or 3 years or more, seem to have a lot more "out of the box good reeds", and yeah I am lazy... I love a good out of the box reed. Its worth buying ahead two or three years if you can manage it, although this is not someting I would recommend to someone who is new at the clarinet and who's embouchure and habits are still changing dramatically.
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