 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: clarisax
Date: 2005-04-26 05:41
so my private teacher walks into a musical pit rehearsal yesterday with a new contraption...a "ligaphone."
she was very pleased with it and swore that it improved her tone in the throat register. of course she made me try it to see what i thought. at first i honestly couldnt tell a difference between it and my super revelation lig that ive used for a year or two now. according to her i had it on wrong. she took it off, centered it just right and told me to try it again. after she put it on in the position she liked it really did *seem* to make a difference. im not sure if i would actually sound any different to an audience but i am 100% positive that it felt different and sounded different to my ears. i hate using terms like dark and bright, but it seemed to make my tone slightly more dark in the higher notes. even though my tone was more covered then before it didnt lack any of the projection i got with the bg. infact, my tone seemed to carry better through the auditorium when i was using it. again, i hate to sound like a walking advertisement for a product, but it improved my stoccato as well. even though i did have success with this ligature...and even tho it is better than the bg (for me and my set-up) im still not sure if i want to buy one. ive heard that some people think these ligatures arent all that great and not worth the price.
has anyone on here tried it recently? if so, what are your thoughts about it? am i just crazy for thinking that a weird looking ligature could actually make me sound better? basically, is the ligaphone as accepted as the more well known brands like vandoren, bg, bonade, etc. ? im going to college next year and i dont want to get strange looks when i show up with a crazy looking lig. ive already gotten some looks and comments about an oleg i used a few years ago. to me anything that will improve my clarinet playing is worth it. i know, i know, practice will make me sound amazing on even the cheapest set up...but lets face it, if you find something that can take you a step higher you might as well buy it.
thank you all for your time.
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Author: clarnibass
Date: 2005-04-26 06:21
"i hate using terms like dark and bright, but it seemed to make my tone slightly more dark in the higher notes."
Strange, but so often on the BBoard pepole do exactly what they say they hated a second before 
"basically, is the ligaphone as accepted as the more well known brands like vandoren, bg, bonade, etc."
A nobel prize winner recommended that people should not do only what is acceptable, and should always aim to find new and different things. If he would only study what was acceptable, he would not be a nobel prize winner today.
Not exactly the same thing as a ligature choice, but good advice in any art or science.
Personally I use the Vandoren Optimum and here is why. It only has one screw, it's metal so it's doesn't strech like leather (I think it's leather) ligatures I had, it doesn't slide like some metal ligatures when taking off the mouthpiece, and it sounds good. I found other ligatures that sound just as good, but don't have all the other advantages.
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Author: Morrigan
Date: 2005-04-26 08:43
Woohoo finally someone else who likes the Ligaphone!
For me, the Ligaphone is the 2nd best ligature in the world. 1st is the Bonade, obviously. But if I ever need to 'darken' my sound (i.e cut off the higher partials) I use the Ligaphone. It has good articulation but I found that you have to put it on EXACTLY in the right position (centered) for best effect, and must be tightened just right (which for me is just tight enough to keep it in place).
Which model does your teacher have? It comes in black, gold and silver I think? And according to my teacher, the gold makes a difference, however I've only ever tried the black. He uses his mainly for basset horn, and since the thread is so long, you can use it on any clarinet. I cut the lig short because I only use it with my Bb & A.
"i dont want to get strange looks when i show up with a crazy looking lig"
If anything, they'll be jealous and ask what it is and where you got it.
I wouldn't worry whether it's a mainstream product or not - it's just a really good lig and even if you don't end up using it as your main one, you will still have it as an option if sometime during your college years someone says "Hey, can you play this with a darker sound?".
I would highly recommend the Ligaphone.
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Author: clarnibass
Date: 2005-04-26 08:53
'you will still have it as an option if sometime during your college years someone says "Hey, can you play this with a darker sound?".'
To which I'd reply, "sure, can you turn off the lights?"
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Author: super20dan
Date: 2005-04-27 02:15
i have had a ligaphone lig for several years and have come to the conclusion that all it has going for it is it fits almost every size mpc there is. give me a bg traditional or bay any day
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Author: GBK
Date: 2005-04-28 14:19
I have one and have used it occasionally.
No better or worse than many others.
As previously stated, it will fit practically any mouthpiece. I have used it with my Morgan Eb mouthpiece (the inverted Bonade lig was too small in diameter).
Just be careful to trim off, with a scissor, any excess wire or you can accidently take an eye out ...GBK
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