 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Randy
Date: 2001-09-20 01:27
Just out of curiosity how many mp's and reeds am I going to go through before I find the ones that I like. I already have enough reeds to build baby Moses a new basket to float down the nile and its getting frustrating and expensive.
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Author: William
Date: 2001-09-20 02:19
Maybe its your mouthpiece. Try a VanDoren M-13 Lyre and see if that helps. I also recommend--from personal experiance--Greg Smiths custom mouthpieces which are modeled after the old Chedeville and Frank Kasper products. Also, I recommend VanDoren V-12, #3.5-4.0 reeds. If this doesn't work, perhaps a career in watercraft sales and rental should be revisited. Good Clarineting!!!!!!!!!!
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Author: KevinS
Date: 2001-09-20 04:11
Randy,
I second the vote for the Greg Smith's and Vandoren V-12's. Also, take a look at Ben Armato's Reed Wizard. It's been a godsend. I can literally take any reed out of a box (I've used Vandoren regular, V-12, Rico Grand Concert Thicks and some Vintage Australian Reeds) Run the Reed Wizard across them a few times, and they all play! Most come out well enough to play in rehearsal and practice, and more than usual end up concert quality! about 4 out of a box of 10.
Greg's mouthpieces are awesome! My sound has been forever changed for the better since purchasing my Cicero moutpiece from Mr. Smith.
Both the Reed Wizard and the Greg Smith Mouthpiece will run you a few hundred dollars, but it's truly worth every penny to avoid the frustration of fighting reeds and mouthpiece to get the sound you want.
Good Luck!
Kevin
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Author: Anji
Date: 2001-09-20 13:10
Not to worry, discarded mouthpieces make excellent caps for Lawn Gnomes.
Discarded reeds are highly prized on construction sites to level door jambs.
Larry Guy has a great text on reed adjustment (others are good, too) that will help cut down on the waste. I buy reeds of heavier strength and whittle away.
(It keeps me off the streets, anyway.)
May I recommend that you contact the mouthpiece makers in the resource section? Chris Hill and Dan Johnston are methodical, and accessible guys.
The 'Big Dogs' can be a little harder to reach, but well worth the trouble.
Me, I bought a couple of M13s and widdled one into playable shape.
Scrape - toot, scrape - toot until you have a decent sound.
The hard part is to leave well enough alone afterwards.
We feel your pain! Just be glad you don't play the oboe.
anji
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Author: Ed
Date: 2001-09-20 14:11
Learn to work on your reeds. It will take some trial and error, but find books and articles on the subject, maybe a teacher or pro who can help you. It is important to find reasonable equipment and then make it work for you. Do not become a member of the mouthpiece of the month club. Good Luck.
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Author: Sylvain
Date: 2001-09-20 15:16
Randy,
The bad news: the quest will never be over...
The good news: you can find a very nice setup, with just a little patience.
If you are really frustrated, I suggest you put the $$ in a fine mouthpiece.
Greg Smith, Clark Fobes, Hawkins and more are all fine mouthpieces for about 200US. You can also get in touch with our own Dave Spiegelthal who refaces mouthpieces.
Having a fine mouthpiece should mean less worry and very little adjustement on your reeds. You have to learn how to balance the tip and break in your reeds properly. Most mouthpieces do well with V12 and I find that it is better, faster and less frustrating to learn how to adjust a V12 than look for another brand of reed...
I don't know your level, but before you do any of this, you might want to check your embouchure and see if the problem is not coming from you. The best player can make anything sound good. I find that you should always start with something with a medium opening and a medim facing. Once your embouchure is set try something more open and something more close and move towards what you like.
Best of luck,
-Sylvain
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Author: Eileen
Date: 2001-09-20 23:22
I like the baby Moses and the basket of reeds! Quite amusing.
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Author: Meri
Date: 2001-09-21 00:34
Work with what you have. Too often, we can get caught up in the equipment wars so that we waste a lot of money, don't develop ourselves as clarinetists. Not only that, it takes attention away from what is really important--a good sound. No one (except maybe some other clarinetists) cares whether you play on a good student-grade mouthpiece or a really expensive premium-grade mouthpiece as long as you have a good sound.
Meri
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Author: Sandra Franklin Habekost
Date: 2001-09-21 01:16
Try Vandoren Blackmaster reeds (quite like Moree reeds). I also find that it's best to use a stronger reed and use an oboe or a bassoon knife and scrape the reed (not the tip) to adjust. Be sure not to tighten your ligature too much. Many clarinetists end up with warped mouthpieces because they've ruined them with too-tight ligatures. Different mouthpieces work with different reeds, so try one or two mouthpieces and then different reeds in different sizes. Don't be afraid to ask others what their "set-ups" are. You can gain alot of insights that way. I've done the reed and mouthpiece tryouts, too! P.S. I use Moree reeds 2.5 (equivalent to a Vandoren 4) which are no longer available, Vandoren mpc B45, and a Bonade inverted ligature (Inspect these. Sometimes the reed rails are uneven). I've also used other setups, but this is my favorite. One of my former teachers uses a P34 Gigliotti, Vandoren Black Masters 3-3.5, and a regular Rovner ligature. ...And yes, I'm quite thankful that I don't have to make oboe reeds.
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Author: Peter
Date: 2001-09-21 23:19
Vandoren 5RV and B-40 mpcs have worked well for me, and I still use Vandoren reeds, although I'm about ready to try others, since their quality and consistency gets worse instead of better with time.
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Author: Sneakers
Date: 2001-09-22 00:12
Randy - What mouthpieces and reeds have you tried?
And to add my two cents worth about what I like - I have used Borbeck mouthpieces for several years and am very happy with them. I use traditional and Vandoren V-12's. Sometimes I like them and sometimes I want to do really bad things to them.
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Author: Brenda Siewert
Date: 2001-09-22 14:09
Ditto on the Greg Smith and Vandoren V-12s. My Greg Smith wood mouthpiece sounds great on a 3. Don't be afraid to go down to a 2 1/2 on the V-12s because that's like a standard 3. You might start there and then gradually move up to a 3.
I use a harder strength on my Greg Smith Kaspar model.
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