 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Gmwinder
Date: 2013-02-03 01:04
Last week at the NAMM show Vandoren introduced their new student reeds called JUNO. They are very responsive and ideal for beginners. They are setting up dealers all over the US so would appreciate feedback if you get a chance to try them
Junoreeds.com
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Author: GBK
Date: 2013-02-03 18:06
From what I've been told these are 'student' line reeds, only available in strengths 1 1/2 to 3. Not yet available on line, only through local music stores.
...GBK
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Author: kdk
Date: 2013-02-04 00:11
What exactly is it, other than low strengths, that makes a reed a good "beginner" reed. The only reason I've never started beginners on Vandorens is that they're more expensive than regular Ricos and young students break them or otherwise mistreat them so often. Are these Junos less expensive?
Karl
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Author: Gmwinder
Date: 2013-02-09 14:44
Karl...the profile of the JUNO has been designed by Vandoren to create an immediate response but since it is Vandoren cane beginners can make a good sound from day one. They are priced like Rico which is 30% less than the Vandoren Traditional.
If you contact them they will send you some samples.
Send an email to the following address:
stephaniem@junoreedsusa.com
Gary
Junoreeds.com
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Author: Bob Phillips
Date: 2013-02-09 15:07
I'm not sure that cheap, soft cane reeds make sense compared to the stability and durability of a couple of Forestone synthetic reeds.
I'm not sure, either, that a beginner's tone quality will benefit much from "good" cane or be discernibly different from a synthetic.
Bob Phillips
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2013-02-09 15:11
Considering (so it seems to be the case on here) that beginners in the US start on Vandoren 3 and soon go onto 3.5 or 4, there's no market for these Juno reeds in the US.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
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Author: kdk
Date: 2013-02-09 15:27
That was one teacher - not everyone (as some of the counter-arguments in the thread show).
I think the telling points will be whether the Junos turn out to be better sounding and longer lasting that the regular (orange box) Ricos and whether they're easily available to the student (parent) market. Ricos are ubiquitous, often available by the reed from open boxes at local music outlets, and have almost exclusive name recognition among U.S. band directors who aren't themselves clarinetists. Gone are the Symetricuts and those grooved ones (I forget the name) that used to be slightly competitive with Rico at the beginner student level.
At the very least, Junos may compete with Luries as the first step-up, but only if they are widely enough distributed to be visible on the store shelves right next to Rico and Lurie. If parents have to special-order them at local stores or buy them online, Junos may end up competing with their own pricier sister models in the Vandoren line instead of displacing any of Rico's market.
Karl
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Author: Ken Shaw ★2017
Date: 2013-02-09 17:16
Karl -
The grooved ones were the Vibrator brand. They were the worst reeds ever made -- unplayable and with a nasty, spoiled taste, as if they had been made from century-old rotted cane.
When I began playing, back in the days of the dinosaurs, Ricos came in brown boxes. They had the advantage of being quite consistent and the disadvantage of making that nasty "beginner" tone.
Other beginner brands were Roy Maier and Charpen, which had a 1/8" hole drilled partly through the cane at the top of the vamp.
In 1958, I learned about Vandorens, which then came in boxes of 12 and 25. They were a bit less inconsistent than they are today, and about half of them were playable out of the box. The good ones had a fresh, slightly sweet taste. Most important, they sounded MUCH better than Ricos. I still have an unopened box of 12 Hard (#5) strength Vandorens from 1958, which I keep as a souvenir.
Ken Shaw
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Author: kdk
Date: 2013-02-09 17:32
Right - Vibrator. I do remember hating the taste. I wonder what they were treated with. And I actually have a few of the old brown box Rico reeds (in the original box, though no longer sealed).
I vaguely remember Roy Maier and don't recall Charpen at all. But even then, Rico reeds were the ones in the 100-reed wall dispensers (put in a quarter and get a single reed) that they used to market to band directors and, if you wanted Vandorens, you pretty much had to buy them in sealed boxes.
Karl
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Author: Ursa
Date: 2013-02-10 03:46
According to the page linked to by Dan, "Juno will not be sold on the Internet or in catalogs."
That is a puzzling arrangement to me. It is going to be hard to recommend Juno reeds to students if they can only be obtained from brick-and-mortar music stores which, around here, are either 35 or 65 miles away.
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Author: Dan Shusta
Date: 2013-02-11 18:41
I received an email from Stephanie at junoreedsusa.com telling me where my closest dealer for the Juno clarinet reeds is located.
I called the store and found out that a 3 pack sells for $9.50 and that a box of 10 sells for $19.17. (plus applicable UT taxes)
I just checked with WWBW and found out the following:
Rico #2 (box of 10) $12.49 (free shipping)
Rico #2 (3 pack) $3.99 (free shipping)
Rico Royal #2 (box of 10) $12.99 (free shipping)
Mitchell Lurie #2 (box of 10) $13.49 (free shipping)
Mitchell Lurie Premium (box of 5) $6.99 (free shipping)
I don't know if WWBW collects state taxes or not.
F.Y.I.
p.s. I called the store back to do a direct comparison with Rico. The manager of the music store told me that the price for the Juno was the same as the Rico's and that the Mitchell Lurie reeds cost a little bit more.
Post Edited (2013-02-11 19:25)
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Author: DavidBlumberg
Date: 2013-02-12 20:36
Here's why young players shouldn't play a single reed that costs over $5 - or in the case of a Forestone, $30
Little kids break reeds quite easily
Unless that Forestone has an iron tip, I'd wait for 2-4 years of playing.
Synths are ideal for marching band.
http://www.SkypeClarinetLessons.com
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