Author: Ken Shaw ★2017
Date: 2013-02-09 17:16
Karl -
The grooved ones were the Vibrator brand. They were the worst reeds ever made -- unplayable and with a nasty, spoiled taste, as if they had been made from century-old rotted cane.
When I began playing, back in the days of the dinosaurs, Ricos came in brown boxes. They had the advantage of being quite consistent and the disadvantage of making that nasty "beginner" tone.
Other beginner brands were Roy Maier and Charpen, which had a 1/8" hole drilled partly through the cane at the top of the vamp.
In 1958, I learned about Vandorens, which then came in boxes of 12 and 25. They were a bit less inconsistent than they are today, and about half of them were playable out of the box. The good ones had a fresh, slightly sweet taste. Most important, they sounded MUCH better than Ricos. I still have an unopened box of 12 Hard (#5) strength Vandorens from 1958, which I keep as a souvenir.
Ken Shaw
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The Clarinet BBoard
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