 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: NOLA Ken
Date: 2021-11-10 22:14
Per Walter Grabner's suggestion I have tried the Legere American Cut tenor sax reed on one of his new bass clarinet mouthpieces and rather like it. Has anyone tried playing a Legere American Cut alto reed on alto clarinet? If so, what has been your experience?
- Ken
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Author: Ken Lagace
Date: 2021-11-10 22:39
A cut on any reed has to match the facing on any mouthpiece. Best way is to try, because any feedback here may or may not work on your setup.
Walter's suggestion is correct, "try it".
Post Edited (2021-11-10 22:40)
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Author: Hugues Fardao
Date: 2021-11-10 22:44
Not an American cut but a Studio cut, with a Selmer C*. I play with sax reeds, mostly Selmer but also Légère, on both alto and Bb clarinet. Great response and easy playing with Legère sax on my alto clarinet, with punch and a warm sound in low register. Really worth a try.
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Author: Djudy
Date: 2021-11-10 22:56
Having trouble getting material during the confinement and not liking the Vandoren reed reeds, I tried a bass Legere 2.75 that I whacked down in width with an exacto knife - amazing but it gives a lovely warm tone and is comfortable and very easy to articulate. I later tried a Legere alto sax signature 2.5 and found it very fuzzy and airy, not at all to my liking. The bass fibracells also work on the alto B40 mp; didn't have to cut them down and didn't bother because their honky sound is only good enough to use on the backup Bundy when I'm transposing from Bb and need an instrument just sitting out.
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Author: NOLA Ken
Date: 2021-11-11 00:51
Admittedly by asking this question I'm seeking information before dropping another $50 on another yet reed that might turn out to not work well. Supporting my stable of clarinets has gotten expensive and I'm trying to dial the cost back a bit by asking for information first.
I usually play Bb soprano. Until now alto has just been something I messed around with occasionally for fun. I have recently been handed my first opportunity to actually play alto in a band performance - a rather exposed part - so I'm attempting to sort out a suitable set-up. I've tried the Legere Studio Cut and Signature alto sax reeds. I also found them stuffy and airy and generally not satisfactory. I have also not found an assortment of cane alto clarinet and sax reeds to my liking. The one reed that is working for me at this time is a Fibracell 1.5, which works very well on several of the mouthpieces (Fobes, Grabner, Hite, Coast). The combination is very free blowing, has a very wide dynamic range, and has a sound that is very rich but a bit unrefined in the lower range where I will be playing. I'm basically wondering whether a Legere American Cut alto sax reed (which go to 1.5; the Signature only goes to 2 and that definitely is not working for me) might give a somewhat smoother sound while still being freeblowing and having the dynamic range and resonance in the low range. I probably have the mouthpiece in my collection that will work (I have three fist fulls of alto clarinet mouthpieces new and old); I'm just looking for the right reed. I know that is a bit back asswards, but right now it seems to be working for me. Any other info about the Legere American Cut alto sax reed will certainly be welcome for future reference.
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Author: HANGARDUDE
Date: 2021-11-11 05:36
NOLA Ken,
Perhaps segwaying a little bit, I've tested the Legere American Cut tenor sax reeds(#3.5s) on my Fobes AP mouthpiece(more open than Walter's) and quite liked them too, maybe even more than the Euro cut bass clarinet, at least for now. I'll need to figure out the right size for alto sax reeds and test them on my 2 Fobes Debut alto clarinet pieces and get back to you.
Josh
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Author: NOLA Ken
Date: 2021-11-11 07:06
Hangardude wrote:
<I've tested the Legere American Cut tenor sax reeds(#3.5s) on my Fobes AP mouthpiece(more open than Walter's) and quite liked them too, maybe even more than the Euro cut bass clarinet>
Interesting. I haven't tried the Legere European Cut tenor reeds on my bass, but I did not like the Legere Signature bass reeds. They seemed too stiff and stuffy in all strengths I tried down to #2. I was using Fibracell Premium tenor reeds on the bass until I tried the Legere American Cut and immediately switched to those in #3. Just as responsive as the Fibracells and much smoother sounding on the Grabner White Velvet mpc. That's why I am interested in the American Cut alto sax reeds on the alto clarinet. I'm looking forward to hearing your experience.
An important quality I'm looking for in an alto clarinet reed for this particular performance is that it will play well at a whisper. The piece we are performing stays between a whisper and piano for almost the entire piece with one rise to mezzo forte for a measure or two. The Fibracell Premium #1.5 does that extremely well and is very easy for me as a less-experienced alto player to control. I would just like to make it a bit smoother sounding. It seems to me that the Fibracell reeds I have tried are in general more responsive but sound a bit rough around the edges compared to the Legeres.
Djudy wrote:
<I tried a bass Legere 2.75 that I whacked down in width with an exacto knife . . . .>
I LOVE your inventiveness! I'll have to keep that one for the next time I'm flooded in with an alto clarinet, a bass clarinet reed and an X-acto knife. 
- Ken
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Author: super20dan
Date: 2021-11-11 17:57
i have used both the american and studio alto sax legere reeds on my alto clarinet with good sucess. my mpcs used were vandy b44, bay and yamaha 4c . only my noblet mpc didnt work with them as it is narrow and was desighned for actual alto clarinet reeds. other synth reeds i have had sucess with on alto are bravo and forestone heideki but the bravo are execellent.
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Author: ACCA
Date: 2021-11-12 12:38
not alto, but I have a vintage stencil C clarinet that I use a Legere soprano sax reed (signature 2.25). Selmer C85-120 mp. I've found this is the best setup for response and intonation on this instrument.
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Author: NOLA Ken
Date: 2021-12-14 04:57
Well, I decided to jump in and order some more reeds to experiment with in hopes of more opportunity to use the alto in our community band. In my initial tests the Legere American Cut #1.5 strength alto sax reed turns out to play surprisingly like the Fibracell Premier #1.5 on my Leblanc model 420 alto with a Fobes San Francisco mouthpiece and Rovner Light ligature. The Legere American Cut does seem to play a bit brighter, edgier and more "sax like" in general, especially from the throat tones up. The Fibracell Premier produces a smoother and more resonant tone than does the Legere American Cut especially in the lower range. I can't yet say that I can tell that one articulates any better than the other, which suggests that they are very similar in that respect. The Fibracell seems a bit easier for me to control than does the Legere, but that is just my experience. I think I like them both, but for different types of music.
I also tried a Fibracell Premier #2 alto sax reed, and for me it appears to be an incremental improvement over the Fibracell Premier #1.5. A bit more resistant but perhaps a smoother tone, a bit easier to control in the upper range and just as resonant as the #1.5.
Moving back and forth between the reed collection I have thus far, I still find the Legere Signature #2 alto sax reed and the Legere Studio Cut #1.75 alto sax reeds, as well as the higher strength reeds of both makes are very stuffy on this setup and not at all like the ones I've tested here. I'll eventually have to order a Legere American Cut #2 alto sax to round out this test.
Previous posts seem to suggest that people have different experiences on other mouthpieces and instrument makes. These here are just the results I've gotten on my particular setup, but hope that some will find it informative. My readings seem to suggest that others find the Leblanc swan neck altos notorious stuffy, and I seem to have found a way to overcome that at least for myself.
I must add that I much prefer the little cases that the Fibracells come in to the big coffin-like cases that accompany the Legere sax reeds. The Legere alto reeds come in the same size case as do their tenor sax reeds. I'm certain that there is a production and cost economy for the company in having only one size of case, but in the case of the alto sax reeds it is wasted plastic and just unnecessarily takes up case space.
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Author: super20dan
Date: 2021-12-14 06:14
i have been experimenting with several brands of synth reeds also on my alto clarinets. one a bundy the other a noblet. a variety of mpcs also with said reeds. i have tried legere original and studio cut., bari ,forestone hinoki and forestone black bamboo and finally bravo. i found i could be happy with any of these but the forestone black bamboo had best sound while the hinoki best articulation. the suprise was the low cost bravo. execellent and aval in strengths that more closely match rico reeds in strength. all the others its more of a crapshoot in terms of matching strengths to cane . of course all these are alto sax reeds as no one makes synth alto clarinet reeds. both forestone black bamboo reeds i recieved had warped tips and played badly but after a stay in the lavoz reed gaurd-the tips returned to shape and the reeds played very well. these were the most like cane reeds in terms of sound and feel but i am hesitant to order any more due to the defects in both samples i recieved
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Author: HANGARDUDE
Date: 2021-12-21 17:26
NOLA Ken wrote:
<Interesting. I haven't tried the Legere European Cut tenor reeds on my bass, but I did not like the Legere Signature bass reeds. They seemed too stiff and stuffy in all strengths I tried down to #2. I was using Fibracell Premium tenor reeds on the bass until I tried the Legere American Cut and immediately switched to those in #3. Just as responsive as the Fibracells and much smoother sounding on the Grabner White Velvet mpc. That's why I am interested in the American Cut alto sax reeds on the alto clarinet. I'm looking forward to hearing your experience.>
Just to clarify, there is both an American Cut tenor reed AND a Euro Cut bass reed from Legere, but NOT a Euro Cut tenor reed(Legere initially planned for that, but they later evolved the idea into the more unique American cut reeds, perhaps for all the better reasons). I'd rank the American Cut Tenor reed as the best sounding Legere, followed the Euro Cut bass then Legere Sig tenor, then barely passing the test the Studio Cut tenor. The others just don't make it for me.
I've tested the Legere Sigs on both Bb & Bass and were not happy with them. Lacked the roundness of sound and the complexity of overtones, though the sax Sigs have been somewhat better albeit lacked body. It seems that the conventional cane reed cut profiles DO NOT work well for Legere's polymers, and they've really taken the time to figure that out, and it's really paying off! I tip my hat off to them for that!
Josh
Post Edited (2021-12-22 22:16)
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Author: super20dan
Date: 2022-01-30 06:17
i just got the american cut alto reeds and can report they are better than the signature reeds. by far the best synth reed i have tried on alto clarinet. i like these so much i may replace the euro reeds on bass clarinet. the sound on alto is rich and dark and very natural with very good volume. i dont see how a synth reed gets any better than this on alto clarinet
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Author: Jarmo Hyvakko
Date: 2022-01-30 12:39
According to legere the american cut sax reeds follow quite a bit the design of european cut clarinet reeds
Jarmo Hyvakko, Principal Clarinet, Tampere Philharmonic, Finland
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