 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Luisebv
Date: 2018-04-20 08:27
Could give me some advice on how to face with bad temperatures and humidity on reeds. I store my reeds on a ziploc bag and a Boveda Humidor bag on 62%, but where i stay the weather is a little bit too hot and dry, (97ºF at 56%) and most of my reed sounds not so good.
i have heard that i could need a softer reeds, for this situation, Is that true?
And if it is, how much softer could be ? (Because 1/2 softer is to squeaky reed for me)
And for the Cold and high humidity weather could be the opposite? (Harder Reeds)
Thanks
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Author: Paul Aviles
Date: 2018-04-20 14:27
Storage is only one issue. If your practice room is dry (56% humidity), it will only take about one minute for your reed to dry out on your mouthpiece.
It will be a huge help to use a humidifier in the room where you do more practice.
Actually you will NEVER have a situation where you have colder temperatures and high humidity. Cold air represents a lower dew point (the aspect of humidity that is important). Also, in colder climates, running heaters in doors removes even more moisture from the air. The opposite of your situation would be a tropical climate like Florida or Brazil. There, you might want to us a dehumidifier, however, I NEVER complained about reeds the two years I lived in Orlando.
One other fix would be to use Legere reeds when things get really bad. Try a strength 1/4 softer than you use for cane (example: if you use #3 cane, use a Legere strength 2.75).
................Paul Aviles
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Author: Ed Palanker
Date: 2018-04-20 16:09
The worst thing for a reed is to allow it to keep going from wet to dry, especially the bottom half that has the bark on it. I explain it on one of my reed pages on my website. It's worked for me for decades. I never soak the whole reed, water NEVER touches the lower half of the reed. I "soak" the top half for a few seconds only, I NEVER let my reeds sit out in the open air. They are exposed to the air only as long as it takes to choice one to play then they immediately get put back into the air tight bag. I explain it as what I call, play dry, which is not actually totally dry. Check it out and see if it helps.
ESP eddiesclarinet.com
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Author: TomS
Date: 2018-04-22 02:52
Paul Aviles ... haven't heard from you in a while! I am glad you are back!
Tom
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Author: dorjepismo ★2017
Date: 2018-04-23 20:03
Where I'm at, the weather is mostly dry, but can change frequently, quickly and drastically. I personally don't do the plastic bags and so on because you get somewhere to rehearse or perform and you have no control over what it's like there, but maybe that's just laziness, so no criticism of the people that use that stuff. At any rate, the way I cope is to have a full reed case of reeds that play well but are quite different at any given time. I can usually find one that will work under whatever conditions I run into, and if not, there are some Legeres in the case that will work acceptably anywhere.
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Author: kdk
Date: 2018-04-23 21:55
I've almost throughout my playing lifetime been in the camp of carrying a reed case (sometimes several) with a number of different-feeling reeds and picking the one that plays best on the day and at the place where I need to play.
In my dotage I'm still experimenting with a number of things, not all reed-connected. After reading a few posts here, I decided to try a different tack that a few players seem to find successful. I've been playing on the same reed now for nearly a month - not rotating, just wetting and playing the same reed every day. I'm not humidifying it (or the mouthpiece with the reed stored on it). After initially balancing and adjusting it, I did go through a few days of making further minor adjustments as it first went through the break-in process. I'm in suburban Philadelphia, where we've had temperature swings from the 40s to the 70s, days of stormy, rainy weather interspersed with dry, sunny spring days (only to retreat back to winter cold).
The upshot is that I've found this one reed to be very stable and useable in all situations. It may be nearing the end of its life, but I think it still plays well enough for performing (I just played Peter and the Wolf on it yesterday) and I think I'll get at least another week from it. I do have two successor candidates in my reed case, and I also carry several Légères in case of sudden and catastrophic disappointment, but this approach has worked very well for me with this reed. Time will tell if there's something unique about it or not.
It does make me suspect the possibility that my weather-related reed worries over the years (decades) were *my* problems, not *reed* problems.
Karl
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Author: chamberguy
Date: 2018-04-26 18:46
I have used the Reedjuvenate for four months now. It keeps 3-4 reeds ready to play, free from mold, and properly and constantly damp. You can find out more on the web site Clarineat.com and order one there.
It keeps the reeds from going through a wet-dry cycle and extends their useful life that way.
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Author: Paul Aviles
Date: 2018-05-01 04:01
kdk,
Hats off to you for continuing the pursuit of new ideas (I attempt to do the same).
The single cane reed thing is a bit too scary for me. I would be afraid that I am getting "used" to that one reed.....then start all over. I was doing that with a my successful run of Legere reeds but I think that even they need a break. I rotate amongst four for now.
...............Paul Aviles
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Author: Wes
Date: 2018-05-02 07:18
Yes, I like to stick to one reed for a long time. After playing, I always sort of clean it off and return it to the mouthpiece. If the pitch were to lower too much in the high end, I might try another, but that rarely happens. There are always two or so good reeds if needed, but they are not tried very much.
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