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Re: Ligatures, Clamps and Physics

Author: SecondTry
Date: 2023-07-04 06:52

lydian wrote:

> SecondTry,
>
> No ligature can apply perfectly even force. Just one spot of
> slightly more or less force can create a leak. Like you, I’ve
> played woodwinds for around 50 years on countless instruments
> using many different reeds and ligatures. One constant is that
> both under tightening and over tightening negatively affects
> reed response. I can do a simple pop test on an over tightened
> ligature, and they either don’t seal, or the tip is no longer
> perfectly flat. Regardless, if you experiment, you’ll find
> that too much force compromises the reed in some way mainly
> because cane simply can’t take a lot of force without
> changing shape.

Ok. I guess any improvement I get in reed stability through clamping has its limits at a point where reed deformity presents more of a negative.

I'll certainly concur, and the basis for this thread, that at a point, increased clamping does not, at the very least, improve things, is not also make them worse.