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Re: 5 strength reeds

Author: kdk ★2017
Date: 2009-10-10 17:29

I haven't had time to go through the other replies yet, so I may be repeating what others are saying - I'm on my way out the door. But the idea that hard reeds necessarily are unresponsive or hard-to-play always fries me a little, so I want to get off a quick response.

The reed and the mouthpiece form an integrated system which then has to work with the instrument. There are mouthpiece styles in use by many skilled players that require a stiffer reed (#4 - #5 of most brands). On these mouthpieces a #5 is not a chop-buster but a way to get a clear, vibrant, responsive sound on a mouthpiece that with anything much softer tends to produce thin, edgy sound and too easy reed closure even with normal embouchure firmness and no jaw pressure against the reed itself.

It isn't that one strength is for skilled players and another is for less advanced ones. Good players tend to make their choices based on what will achieve a musical goal with the least effort. The reed must fit the mouthpiece much more than it must fit the player.

Whether or not a #5 is good for you to play on depends completely on how it responds on your mouthpiece. If it's a chop-buster, it's too hard.

Karl

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5 strength reeds new

Rapidcif

2009-10-09 02:05