 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Drenkier_1
Date: 2005-10-31 01:10
Well it's funny. Ok, I wake up the next day, and try to play on my reeds and 15 out of 20 are sounding kind of weird, whats weird about them is they are making the kind of Stolzman style sound, you know, not heavy at all, very light. Must be the weather in Texas is causing a really big change in the reeds, because my teacher had a few of those reeds that he said "sounded like Stolzman".
Weird.
Kevin Collins
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Author: GBK
Date: 2005-10-31 01:55
Listen to Richard Stoltzman's recordings of the Brahms Sonatas, the Quintet, or the Copland concerto.
You would do well to learn from the way he controls his sound ...GBK
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Author: DrGrip
Date: 2005-10-31 06:21
Oh, i agree... his sound is beautifully controlled and he cuts out alot of the top end partials, sounding very 'chocolately' as my teacher puts it. It seems your reeds are cutting out these harmonics also... is it a particular brand?
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Author: Paul Aviles
Date: 2005-10-31 10:18
Seems like trouble with the change of seasons and the humidity levels. My test is to hava a Legere handy that is 1/4 less the strength of my trusty Vandoren 4s. If the Legere sounds better, it's time to pull out the humidifier/humidor.
.............Paul Aviles
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Author: pewd
Date: 2005-10-31 15:14
>Must be the weather in Texas is causing a really big change in the reeds
4 weeks ago it was 104 and about 25% humidity.
today its 70 and raining , humidity about 80%, tonight temp's going down to the 40's.
so sure - the reeds are playing differently today - as fast as the temp's dropping , the ones i used this moring wont work so well tonight.
you should keep a selection of different strengths on hand for when the weather changes like this.
- Paul Dods
Dallas, Texas
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Author: Ken Shaw ★2017
Date: 2005-10-31 16:23
Richard Stoltzman makes his own reeds. He's a Kalman Opperman student, and Kal is a genius reedmaker who teaches it to all his studients. I've seen Kal make a great reed in about 2 minutes.
Ken Shaw
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Author: mnorswor
Date: 2005-10-31 23:17
Ken,
Mr. Stoltzman does NOT make his own reeds anymore. He uses Vandoren White Master reeds which he carefully breaks in and subsequently adjusts.
Michael
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Author: Paul Aviles
Date: 2005-11-01 01:12
O.k., so why would anyone with a French style mouthpiece use reeds cut to German specifications (MUCH smaller mouthpiece)? I am not picking on Mr. Stoltzman, just want to know.
.............Paul Aviles
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Author: mnorswor
Date: 2005-11-01 02:46
Well, I use German cut reeds (Vandoren Black Masters). Kal Opperman actually suggested this to me (as I'm sure he did to Stoltzman). True, they are a bit thinner, but they fit any french mouthpiece that I've run across. In my opinion, I think they actually work better than French reeds.
They have more material in the heart of the reed and a different cut in the vamp and what I call the "ears" of the reed, meaning the shape of the topmost part of the reed on the corners. They offer me greater flexibility tonally, I don't have to play such a hard reed to get enough resistance (a major concern for us double lippers) and they allow me to play for a much longer period of time because of the lesser resistance.
However, the mouthpieces are all the same. We (Stoltzman and I) use Opperman mouthpieces which are made on French blanks from various sources as Kal finds something he believes will make a great mouthpiece.
Also, with these German reeds, I get MUCH better consistency from box to box of reeds. On average, I get about 6-8 reeds per box that are playable with about 4 concert quality reeds. That's better than I ever did playing V12 or blue box reeds from VD. Perhaps they quality control the German reeds because the German players are more discerning or have a reputation for consistency?? That I don't know, I just know I like 'em and they work for me
IMHO,
Michael
P.S. FYI, Stoltzman is spelled with a T after the L, so it should read Stoltzman
Post Edited (2005-11-01 02:47)
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Author: Aaron
Date: 2005-11-01 03:13
I don't know about the black masters, but when I tried the white masters on my Richard Hawkins, they were WAY too small to get to the edges of the rails.
I shortened the reed by cutting at the end and they fit my Eb mouthpiece perfectly.
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Author: Paul Aviles
Date: 2005-11-01 09:13
Thanks for the clarification. The Black Masters are "Viennese," and are a little bigger than the White (Hammerschmidt makes their stuff the same size as Wurlitzer but that's what Vandoren says).
I suppose that the heart being more concentrated over the window makes the reed more user friendly. I have the same experience with "French Cut" Steuer reeds on bass. The footprint of the reed is the right size but Steuer made the vamp much shorter - result, killer sounding reeds. Now if I could only find a current supplier for bass reeds like this again !!!!
...........Paul Aviles
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Author: William
Date: 2005-11-01 14:50
Reeds that make you sound like Stoltzman??? If you don't like them, send them to me--I'll even pay for shipping. I can play them without the big vibrato..............
When I heard RS play last year in our large Wisconsin (student) Union Theatre (with Emanuel Axe on piano), his sound was absolutely beautiful and filled this large hall seemly without effort on his part--even in the most ppp passages. Of course, there was his signiture big vibrato. but his extrodinary musicianship was eveident in everything he perfromed that evening. If a reed will make me sound like him, I'll take a dozen, please.
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Author: Paul Aviles
Date: 2005-11-01 17:21
Here's another side bar to the thread. There are a number of players who get rapped for their sound when heard on recording, but sound so different in person. I understand that the clarinet is even more difficult to record than to play. Perhaps these more "controversial" figures just have more of the "harder-to-get-down-on-tape" stuff in their sound.
.............Paul Aviles
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Author: mnorswor
Date: 2005-11-01 18:41
Aaron,
Who ever said the reed has to get to the edge of the rails?? For me, this isn't a requirement at all. If it plays well, I don't really care whether or not I can see the rails or not. On my mouthpiece and on many Vandorens I have, these reeds cover the side rails just fine. Perhaps you're using something extra big?
--Michael Norsworthy
www.michaelnorsworthy.com
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Author: Grabnerwg
Date: 2005-11-01 19:59
I made my own reeds for over 15 years, and played on them in graduate school and part of the time I was playing professionally full time. (I finally got too busy to make my own).
On any given mouthpiece you can have up to over half a millimeter difference in width at the tip and still have a reed that plays acceptably.
I have made reeds as narrow as 12.5 and as wide as 13.2 mm . This WILL give you different playing characteristics, all other things being the same. A more narrow reed will respond faster, a wider reed will have a "darker" sound (again, all other variables the same).
A reed does NOT have to fully overlap the side rails to work.
Walter Grabner
www.clarinetxpress.com
Neat clarinet stuff!
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