 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Eric
Date: 1999-12-15 18:56
Any thoughts on David Pino's idea of using a shoelace for a ligature? benefits or disadvantages?
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Author: Mark Charette
Date: 1999-12-15 19:35
String ligatures are "the" original ligature. Check in the BBoard Search function for string ligature. Ken Shaw's written a posting or two on them.
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Author: paul
Date: 1999-12-15 20:40
In a pinch, sounds like your own tennis shoe lace would work. The thing is, very few of us would know how to band and bind the lace to provide a good strong grip on the reed. Got any suggested lacing procedures?
Failing that, I always carry a spare lig in my case, with a spare mp, and lots of broken-in reeds.
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Author: Katfish
Date: 1999-12-15 20:40
I have been using a shoe string ligature for three months now and I love it.Once you get use to tying it you can do it in under twenty seconds and the sound is great' Just follow the directions in the book.
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Author: Daniel
Date: 1999-12-15 22:59
I went through a phase when i wasn't happy with any ligature i tried. So i used a shoelace. Was very happy with everything, except that it takes slot longer to wind up than a screw... especially on bass clarinet. I got faster as i used it more. But it just wasn't convenient enough when i needed to re-wet or change reeds.
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Author: Greg
Date: 1999-12-16 03:34
Daniel wrote:
-------------------------------
I went through a phase when i wasn't happy with any ligature i tried. So i used a shoelace. Was very happy with everything, except that it takes slot longer to wind up than a screw... especially on bass clarinet. I got faster as i used it more. But it just wasn't convenient enough when i needed to re-wet or change reeds.
**********************************************************
I would agree with Daniel about the impractical aspect of re-wetting, adjusting, re-setting....all of those things one does to optimize a reed just prior to or mid-concert. On my Wurlitzer (Oehler) clarinets that I play along side my Buffets in the orchestra - depending on the repertoire at hand - my german mouthpiece on the Wurlitzer has the ability to accomodate the string but I use a screw type ligature to make sure that I have the flexibility to adjust the reed. Many of the modern german professional clarinetsts often use metal screw ligatures now(in the Berlin Philharonic for example).
I have to admit though that a good reed and string ligature combination on a german mouthpiece on the Wurlitzers has different possibilities to it that I don't hear or feel with the screw-type ligatures.
Greg Smith
Chicago Symphony
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Author: Arnold the basset hornist
Date: 1999-12-16 06:43
Well, let's say, there are two categories of string ligature users I've seen, the 'soft winders' and the 'hard winders' - I would place me in the second group.
The 'soft winders' wind the string loosy enougth to move to be still able to move it (mainly to the side) and prefer to have the place dry where the shaft of the reed touches the table.
The 'hard winders' place the reed very carefully, wet the reed a lot, (warm up the mouthpiece, too, by breathing slowly through it - or even place the reed on the table of the mouthpiece, put their mouth over the whole reed while the mouthpiece is hold horizontally an breath through it slowly), and prefer the reed to be hold adhesive (spelling? - hole by a thin water film). When they find, they have to rewind it again (in hurry), the prefer to switch to a new reed and mouthpiece, and then perhaps prepare the original combo to switch again.
I hope, my observations were interesting enough for you all.
By the way, I do not use round shoe laces, I bougth my last ones at a haberdashary store (sateen twine, cotton and viscose).
Arnold (the basset hornist)
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Author: paul
Date: 1999-12-16 20:03
I figured that the standard recreational shoe lace (round style) would be no good for this application. I assume that dress style shoe laces with a very ribbon-like flatness would provide the controlled grip necessary for a lace ligature.
For the folks who don't have "the book", could one of the experts describe the lacing and knotting style so the rest of us can experiment with it later? For instance, I assume that you would wrap the (flat style) lace around the reed and mp in several parallel bands and then tie the ends with a simple, yet adjustable knot. What kind of knot is it? What knot style do you prefer and why?
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Author: barry
Date: 1999-12-16 22:32
String theory? I found velcro works just as well -- another idea in Pino's book.
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Author: Willie
Date: 1999-12-17 04:13
I knew a man who used a couple of #64 rubber bands on his pro instrument for years. I tried it a couple years ago when my lig broke on concert night. It not only works, but sounds pretty good if you set 'em up right.
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Author: Arnold the basset hornist
Date: 1999-12-17 07:41
The best idea would be, to come to germany and visit me - with a digital camera - and we can ask Mark for uploading some pictures of my wrapping. :-)
"Long ago" (before this BB look started, where you can search your old posts) I posted the following HOWTO:
<i>
Well, now it's my turn to tell you, how a cord is used to fix your reed on your mouthpiece. Fist, you need a cord or shoestring (diameter approx 2 mm
resp. 1/10 or 1/16 inch or so) with a length of approx. 1.6 meter (resp. 5 ft.). I prefer a cord with both synthetic and cotton fibres. Lay it from the cork
end at the back side of your mouthpiece to the front and hold it with your fingers, the index finger at the position you're going to start to wrap in around.
Hold the reed with your thumb at the desired position. Begin warping and lay the new loops just next to the last loop going to the cork end loop by
loop. After you've done a few loops check the position of the reed again. The force you're winding the loops is up to you (if you finally have two short
cords, it was too much), but increase it rapidly from the first loop to reach the maximum at the third loop or so and then decrease it slowly to the end.
Just cross the free end under the last loop to fix its position.
It's helpfull if ther's a shoulder or a notch at your mouthpiece, but it will also work without (I tried it, when I overturned the screw of an alto sax metal
ligature). If you're going to file a notch with a tiny round file in your mouthpiece be carfully not to demage the table - you may pevent it by binding an
piece of wood on it and you'll only need to file the notch over 180 or 270 degrees or so, near the table allways file in the direction from the table to the
back of the mouthpiece.
Save this information together with a cord in your clarinet case, maybee once during a perform your ligature is broken :-)
P.S. I use a 'sateen twine' (german: Atlaskordel) 2 mm diameter, 60 % cotton (60 % Baumwolle), 40 % Viscose - bought at the haberdashary (resp. notions) departmet
- a knot at each end to prevent of splitting.
Make a 'plateau', 'front peek' or 'twin peaks' tying, but avoid to make the first loops to week!
</i>
Arnold (the basset hornist)
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Author: Daniel
Date: 1999-12-18 00:28
Round shoelaces work just fine, and i don't recall seeing any string ligatures made from flat twine or string. Also you don't tie the end, you merely tuck it under the last couple of wraps. Tying would be even more time consuming.
paul wrote:
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I figured that the standard recreational shoe lace (round style) would be no good for this application. I assume that dress style shoe laces with a very ribbon-like flatness would provide the controlled grip necessary for a lace ligature.
For the folks who don't have "the book", could one of the experts describe the lacing and knotting style so the rest of us can experiment with it later? For instance, I assume that you would wrap the (flat style) lace around the reed and mp in several parallel bands and then tie the ends with a simple, yet adjustable knot. What kind of knot is it? What knot style do you prefer and why?
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Author: pepin
Date: 1999-12-18 01:04
I use velcro instead of the string. Same results without the hassle. However for jazz, I return to a Bonade metal lig.The sound is not a criteria anymore but I need the projection and the bigness of tone
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Author: Roger Merriam
Date: 1999-12-21 19:59
I used for quite some time a string---it was a piece of fishline that I coated in beeswax. After a few years the string got so that it would not hold. One day I will buy a new piece of the material. Sorry I cannot tell you what kind of line it was---it was given to me by my teacher (a FSU phd in performance on clarinet student)
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