 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: rmk
Date: 2002-01-03 04:17
Has anyone noticed that these mouthpieces seem to change over time? The facing seems to get closer and the response gets worse.
This has now happened to three of my student's mouthpieces (which I play tested myself). All of a sudden they are having tremendous reed problems. I have them try one of my mouthpieces (mostly professional model Pynes and Johnstons) and they sound fine. My reeds don't work on them either. This was certainly not the case when I selected them.
Could it be that the material that Pyne uses for these is less stable than either the polycyrstal or clarion models?
I would just be curious to know if anyone else has experienced this before I write to him to complain about it. After all, for $100 the mouthpiece ought to last more than 6 months!
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Author: jm
Date: 2002-01-03 06:40
Okay, this is probably too obvious, but are these student mouthpieces clean and free of internal gunk buildup?
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Author: Wes
Date: 2002-01-03 07:35
One might suspect that they may have warped a little. It doesn't take much. After all, they are temperature cycled from room temperature to almost body temperature when they are played. Internal stresses being relieved could result in mouthpiece lay changes. Do you have a local mouthpiece fixer person who could check the lay??
Good luck!!
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Author: William
Date: 2002-01-03 14:38
Outside of "junk" buildup or physical damage, any mouthpiece should last for years before the table, rails or tip areas become warped or worn. Your problems may be more a result of what we all experiance in changing reed conditions. Climate, variances in the cane supply--even box to box, or possibly a change oin our embouchures could mimick a mouthpiece problem. And, reeds that work well on one mouthpiece may not work well on the next. I'm certain that you are probably well aware of all of this, but I felt compelled--as usual--to throw in my two cents worth in trying to help. Good Clarineting and Good Teaching--the music community needs more dedicated and caring individuals such as yourself to provide individual guidence for our young musicians that often cannot be provided for in the public school.
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Author: Ken Shaw
Date: 2002-01-03 17:37
rmk -
The Pyne site has identical descriptions for the rubber used in the Sinfonia and Signature models, so he seems to be using the same material for both.
Kalmen Opperman told me you should always find the right spot for the reed by holding it on with your thumb and then carefully putting the ligature on. He said any rubbing around of the reed (as by putting on the ligature first and then sliding the reed around) accelerates wear.
Have your students demonstrate what they do when they take the instrument apart. Are they angling it up to "really clean" the tip? Are they rubbing the lay with the swab to get it extra-shiny?
At a workshop several years ago, Pyne said that a mouthpiece in use for several hours per day would need to be touched up after about a year.
Still, your students' amount of wear seems excessive. I'd send a couple of the mouthpieces to Pyne and ask him if he can tell what's happening. Come off curious rather than confrontational, asking for advice on how to help your students.
Best regards.
Ken Shaw
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