 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: moeboy
Date: 2005-11-03 02:04
This is just a short tip/what i have noticed in a while sort of post. When i first played i used a stock ligature (the clarinet was an artley) which was the normal screws to the front. After a couple years with that my teacher showed me a rovner ligature, and since then it has been all i believe in really. I have two clarinets, one for school and one for home, and only one of those uses the rovner ligature. One day i decided to put the older ligature on backwards, prolly by accident, and found the sound to be much cleaner, purer. It changed so dramatically, it seemed like one of the expensive rovners. Seems that it acts almost as the rovner does. Has anyone ever done this and found it to work as it did for me? Some have said it was wrong, and i just ignored them. Well hopefully some will read this and save themselves a couple dollars.
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Author: Paul Aviles
Date: 2005-11-03 11:59
Reap the benefits of a good, cheap fix. The principle of the standard ligature used "inverted" is the same as those designed that way - you ensure that you have a more even pressure pulling the reed down to the table rather than binding the reed across its surface. The only "inverts" to my taste that offer any difference are those that hold the reed with varying degrees of LESS surface area, ie Pomarico and Brancher.
Hey you know what else if fun to try, and cheap? The old string thing. Take cording (easy to find nylon which will work but 100% cotton is best), make it about 5' long, knot the ends, pass through 100% beeswax three or four times for tackiness, holding reed on with thumb, hold string running straight up the front side of mouthpiece with a couple of inches of knotted end sticking past bottom of mouthpiece, now begin wrapping string from the top to the bottom of the reed, once you get to bottom of reed cross the string over on itself. If you size this correctly, you will have a couple of inches at the bottom to tug on to make tighter at the bottom. The knotted end sticking straight down at the front will tighten the top upon tugging - pretty ingenious for a simple idea. Aside from the 100% beeswax (this can be both hard to find and a little pricey) you get a great ligature for about 60 cents !!
.............Paul Aviles
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Author: Brenda
Date: 2005-11-03 13:47
Beeswax might be found at fabric stores that also sell sewing supplies. It's used for lubricating zippers and other things. From what I remember it's sold in small cakes. Last I knew it was very inexpensive.
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Author: Don Berger
Date: 2005-11-03 14:09
Congrats, Moeboy, Many of us have discovered this ligature "thing", a search here will bring up A LOT. I like the inverted Bonades, Luybens, and invert Rovners at times, and feel my sounds are better. As to beeswax, I still have a couple of "votive-candle-shaped" pieces, which I used to lube and secure nylon cord for tying oboe reeds. I use it now on cracked-repaired clarinets to further seal any leaks. Luck, Don
Thanx, Mark, Don
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Author: Shorthand
Date: 2005-11-03 16:44
A good kite shop will actually have beeswax for similar purposes (making strings bind well and hold their shape.) if you can't find another source.
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Author: moeboy
Date: 2005-11-03 19:26
thanks everyone for the tips on the string ligature. I remember my teacher telling me how a rubber band would even suffice in an emergency. I am looking forward to trying out the string ligature!
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Author: donald
Date: 2005-11-04 03:22
i played for years, and won a big competition (though i also lost a few) and two pro orchestral auditions playing Yamaha Silver ligature, inverted. Very cheap- it came free with my old pair of Clarinets (actually, i had two of them- one i gave to a student). The nickel Yamaha lig, inverted, plays very well- a lot of "jump" in the sound (instant presence) without being too bright.
donald
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Author: Synonymous Botch
Date: 2005-11-04 10:58
I like the Rovner for it's simplicity - it works right out of the box.
It's also nice not to have much risk for mishandling.
Two of my favorite alternatives are a velcro cable organizer or "O-rings".
Both of these are available under $1.00 USD!
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