 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Scott S
Date: 2006-09-25 11:30
Last Winter I purchased an inverted Bonade ligature for my Buffet R-13 Bb Soprano Clarinet. My Greg Smith mouthpiece and this ligature created just the sound I was looking for, along with the articulation speed and dynamic control I was looking for.
However, in the middle of a concert the lig began to slip up the mouthpiece.
Has anyone else experienced this? What did you do? What do you do to modify these quality ligs to make them fit?
Thanks!
Scott S
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Author: Ed
Date: 2006-09-25 12:16
This seems to come up very regularly on the BB. Lightly sand the inside of the lig with fine sand paper. The plating makes it a bit slick so you need to roughen the surface slightly so it will grab. You will have no problems.
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Author: GBK
Date: 2006-09-25 12:54
Slippage of the newer Bonade ligatures can be remedied as mentioned above by either of 4 different ways:
1. adding small pieces of masking (paper) tape to the inside of the bands which go around the mouthpiece.
2. the same as suggestion #1, but, instead gluing thin pieces of cork around the inside of the bands. This may change the response/sound/tone quality of the ligature. Some players think this is a worthwhile experiment to try.
3. roughing up the inside of the surrounding bands with fine sandpaper.
4. using a few pieces of mouthpiece patch, around the mouthpiece, to help the ligature stay in place.
...GBK
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Author: Ralph G
Date: 2006-09-25 12:56
You can also try putting a little Scotch tape on the insides of the ribs, but make certain that no tape comes near the reed contacts. Also make sure the tape doesn't force the lower part of the ribs to contact the reed. A little adjustment with needle-nosed pliers will keep 'em out of the way.
Had this same problem with my Greg Smith -- on the first note at a concert a couple of years ago I blew the reed right off the mouthpiece. Good thing it wasn't a solo part.
________________
Artistic talent is a gift from God and whoever discovers it in himself has a certain obligation: to know that he cannot waste this talent, but must develop it.
- Pope John Paul II
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Author: Ed
Date: 2006-09-25 14:12
The reason I don't add anything to the inside of the ligature is that I always feel that it dampens the sound or adds some coloration to the sound, also changing the response.
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Author: Gregory Smith ★2017
Date: 2006-09-25 14:30
Ralph G said:
"Had this same problem with my Greg Smith..."
_________________________________________
Thanks for the mention Ralph. Actually the Bonade, when adjusted back to it's originally intended shape, fits the Zinner exterior dimension perfectly.
Of the above mentioned remedies, the needle nose pliers works best for me. By prying the bands outward at the joints closest where the bands meet the reed, one is able to return the ligature to it's originally intended design. Only the parallel pieces of metal that hold the reed should be touching the reed.
Why LeBlanc (now Selmer) continues to overlook quality control remains a mystery. Perhaps it's not enough of a money maker to pay attention to.
On edit: After reading GBK's suggestions, slippage can be addressed after shaping the ligature correctly. Many times, little or no ligature-creep will result after making the needed adjustments with pliers.
Gregory Smith
Post Edited (2006-09-25 16:40)
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Author: Paul Aviles
Date: 2006-09-26 12:49
Lest we forget, the Vandoren Optimum with the "wavy plate" is a Bonade ligature that works.
.........Paul Aviles
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Author: Ralph G
Date: 2006-09-26 12:53
Does anyone know of a photo available showing the intended shape of the inverted Bonade? I've adjusted mine so that nothing but the contact ribs touch the reed, but it's not too much different from how it was out of the box. Still, without the tape it still has the slippage problem on my Smith piece. Frankly, I like the sound I get now, so I'm not too eager to mess with it further, but it sounds like there's a lot more work to be done on it to judge by the comments posted all over the board.
________________
Artistic talent is a gift from God and whoever discovers it in himself has a certain obligation: to know that he cannot waste this talent, but must develop it.
- Pope John Paul II
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Author: Ed
Date: 2006-09-26 13:51
Greg Smith queries
"Why LeBlanc (now Selmer) continues to overlook quality control remains a mystery. Perhaps it's not enough of a money maker to pay attention to."
It is the same as how some of the classic etude books are published with errors in them for countless years. Why bother reprinting when they can just continue with no added investment and make profit?
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Author: Gregory Smith ★2017
Date: 2006-09-26 18:40
I believe a diagram of the originally submitted patent appears in the book on Bonade called:
"Daniel Bonade: A Founder of the American Style of Clarinet Playing", by Carol Anne Kycia.
Gary Van Cott caries it - a sponsor of this bboard. You may want to ask him if the book contains the diagram before ordering. At any rate, no clarinetist should be without this book.
Gregory Smith
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Author: GBK
Date: 2006-09-27 00:03
Greg is correct - the original patent design and diagram of Bonade's ligature is in the appendix of Kycia's book: "Daniel Bonade: A Founder of the American Style of Clarinet Playing" ...GBK
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Author: DAVE
Date: 2006-09-27 14:26
Having played Bonade ligs for many years, I would like to recomend the Bonades that Phil Muncy is offering. He strips them and replates them in silver and they are only about 26 dollars. Not only do they look better, they actually play better than ANY lig I have ever played. It is a total mystery to me why this is, but everyone I know who has tried one immediately gets one. All the players here in Nashville have discarded their ligatures for this silver Bonade. There is just something about this ligature.
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Author: D Dow
Date: 2006-09-27 15:07
It seems a number of players have had problems with the Bonade ligs popping off...this can occur when one changes from the Bb to A clarinet if you have little time to do so...I agree with Greg on this one...properly adjusted the Bonade sometimes have to be "bent" into the contour of the mouthpiece.
I have found as of late a number of the Bonade ligs can be quite cheap and the screws lack the proper fit to the housing thread...but this may be a bad batch I encountered.
The Bonade lig if adjusted and tightened properly work very well and are a relatively inexpensive ligature for students on a tight budget. My Bonade is 30 years old and still works great...
David Dow
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