 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: sandee
Date: 2001-04-04 12:59
How does one keep the clarinet ready to play when doubling on another instrument? I'm using both clarinet and pennywhistle now, but my reeds dry out while I play the whistle. Any suggestions? Thanks!
Sandee
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Author: bob gardner
Date: 2001-04-04 14:30
If you use a Legere reed they are always ready. You don't have to wet them.
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Author: Sylvain
Date: 2001-04-04 14:31
Try a Legere Reed. Not everybody likes them but it's quite an impressive plastic reed. Won't dry and to me sounds better than your average unworked wood reed.
-S
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Author: Dee
Date: 2001-04-04 15:54
Cut a piece of sponge just the right size to stay inside the tip of your cap. Use a thin sponge or cut down the thickness. Then before you take your seat, dampen each sponge. Then when you put the cap on your horns, the sponge will keep the reed from drying out.
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Author: Don Berger
Date: 2001-04-04 19:44
This is a frequently occurring problem for "doublers". Dee's suggestions are VG, I usually put tape over the vent holes in the caps and give all reeds a "lick" in the breaks! Don
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Author: Ken Shaw
Date: 2001-04-04 22:16
I leave the hole in the mouthpiece cap on and blow into it every few minutes. That keeps things both warm and wet and prevents mildew inside the cap when I put the mouthpiece away.
Best regards.
Ken Shaw
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Author: Quido
Date: 2001-04-05 03:13
What you do is you keep a bucket of water next to your seat. For example when I was playing Mahler's first symphony I had to switch between B-Flat, A, C(if I had one) and Bass clarinets. With my bucket next to me when I wasn't playing one of the instruments I propped it upright but upside down in the bucket of water. With the entire mouthpiece(not to mention a good portion of the clarinet) immersed in water, you don't not need to worry about keeping your reed soaked. Make sure you prop it in a way that the tip of the reed is not touching the bucket, otherwise it may break. A handy trick for those who need to safely and quickly switch between various clarinets.
~Quido
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Author: Quido
Date: 2001-04-05 03:14
What you do is you keep a bucket of water next to your seat. For example when I was playing Mahler's first symphony I had to switch between B-Flat, A, C(if I had one) and Bass clarinets. With my bucket next to me when I wasn't playing one of the instruments I propped it upright but upside down in the bucket of water. With the entire mouthpiece(not to mention a good portion of the clarinet) immersed in water, you don't not need to worry about keeping your reed soaked. Make sure you prop it in a way that the tip of the reed is not touching the bucket, otherwise it may break. A handy trick for those who need to safely and quickly switch between various clarinets.
~Quido
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Author: Mike
Date: 2001-04-05 03:37
"a bucket of water" To think I've wasted money on instrument stands and legere reeds!
How about a lawn sprinkler that "rains" on the woodwind section?
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Author: Robert Small
Date: 2001-04-05 05:07
I find that a tight fitting cap will keep the reed moist for several hours without playing. And like Don I tape over the air holes.
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Author: T Coleman
Date: 2001-04-05 06:23
I'm sure Quido is pulling our leg a little.
OK, a lot.
I always wondered where Handel got that magical "fluid" sound from the woodwind section in the Water Music. Now I know! The reed players are dipping their horns in buckets of water. And hey, that bucket could double as a spitoon for those Skoal chewers in the percussion section!
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Author: David Spiegelthal
Date: 2001-04-05 19:45
Along the same lines as Quido, when I'm doubling on bass clarinet I keep a 55-gallon drum of water next to me and keep the bass immersed in it upside down.
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Author: Cass
Date: 2001-04-05 22:47
I was using sponge in the mouthpiece cap until I started reading in the newspaper about how filthy kitchen sponges are, and I started thinking about human saliva and what is in it. So that sponge is staying wet on the reed and soaking up germs, right? They probably all die by the time I use it again, but I started thinking "eeeeuw" and it bothered me. So I changed to little pieces of paper towel. I cut a paper towel into squares that I fold up. I keep a small plastic "drug dealer" bag of them (bags about 2" square, hold about a week's worth of towel pieces). When rehearsal is over I just throw the damp paper towel out and then use a fresh one next time.
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