 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: tww
Date: 2002-07-22 15:57
Generally speaking, is there a correlation between the strength of a reed and the length of its "life"? My instinct would tell me that harder reeds on a close mouthpiece would last longer than soft reeds on an open mouthpiece because the hard reed would travel less distance in their vibrations and hence experience less vibrational stress. But, that's just a wild guess and I could be way off base. If I purchased a closer-tipped mouthpiece and used harder reeds would they last longer?
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Author: GBK
Date: 2002-07-22 16:03
"...is there a correlation between the strength of a reed and the length of its "life"?..."
Short answer: No
Longer answer: Only through careful break in (which have been outlined on this board numerous times) can you optimize the playable life of the reed...GBK
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Author: ChattyClar
Date: 2002-07-22 16:32
Within a box of reeds, the harder ones last me longer than the softer ones. Even though as GBK said you can break in a reed and build up its endurance, it is a fact that reeds get softer as they get older for numerous reasons. Saliva in the mouth (even when you dip reeds in water) eats away at the fibers and fibers loosen from all the vibrating with age. I'm sure we've all had the experience where a reed was perfect when we first took it out of the box and a couple times later is too soft and a reed that was a bit hard turns out to be just right.
This applies to clarinets too. My clarinet was very free blowing and responsive when I purchased it five years ago. Over the years it's opened up, and now is too open.
Mike~
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Author: GBK
Date: 2002-07-22 16:41
".... My clarinet was very free blowing and responsive when I purchased it five years ago. Over the years it's opened up, and now is too open...."
Uh oh...sounds like clarinet "blow out".
On second thought, I didn't say that - so let's not start ANOTHER thread on "blow-out"...GBK
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Author: Mark Charette
Date: 2002-07-22 17:59
ChattyClar wrote:
>
> Saliva in the
> mouth (even when you dip reeds in water) eats away at the
> fibers
Nope. There's no enzymes in saliva that can eat away at cellulose (check the Klarinet archives for the discussion and answers by people "in the know" - biologists et al.).
There are <b>other</b> things in saliva which may affect reeds (and probably do), but "eating away" at the reed isn't one of the effects.
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Author: nzdonald
Date: 2002-07-22 20:14
oh no, PLEASE not another "blow out" thread.... on the other hand, i could write another 300 words on how i tie a string ligature....
more seriously- i have heard it suggested that the thicker blank reeds (not the "stronger" ones) may last longer/give less trouble as they MIGHT be less prone to warping.... BUT i've also heard that these reeds don't last as long- as the thickness of the reed design means that the cane at the tip is from further into the tube and thus weaker/less durable. (compared to a thinner reed where the cane at the tip is, aparently, stronger and more durable).
this theory is undoubtedly both correct and incorrect at the same time (or at different times), like so many things about the clarinet.... but i just thought it was worth mentioning.
donald
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Author: GBK
Date: 2002-07-22 20:55
"...on the other hand, i could write another 300 words on how i tie a string ligature...."
Don't ...GBK :-)
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Author: David Pegel
Date: 2002-07-23 02:28
Ehhhhhh... First step: decide to replace your ligature with something cheaper...
I find my reeds can get softer just by sitting out of the case for a long time. Almost like decomposition.
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Author: john gibson
Date: 2002-07-23 04:10
I've found that too much discussion weakens reeds tremendously. Therefore I do not talk about mine. I simply use them. The good ones I keep. The bad ones I work on. If they then don't behave I throw them over the neighbors fence for the cat to play with.
John
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Author: nzdonald
Date: 2002-07-23 09:31
my sister still has ear-rings made out of old reeds.
also- i have a very good reed that i made from a blank (Gonzales cane from Daviecane) that the cat had eaten- it has tooth marks on the underside and on the bark, it even has a toothmark on the underside of the vamp, but it still works quite fine. I couldn't face throwing out the blank, and decided to "give it a go", so i slapped it on the Reedual and turned it into a reed. It's not my best reed, but it's in the "upper level mediocre" range...
as it's a touch on the soft side, i DO find it works well with my string ligature, did i ever tell anyone that i got my string from a nice little shop on Feldstrasse (Hamburg?)
oh, ok, i'll shut up
donald
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Author: nzdonald
Date: 2002-07-23 11:37
actually, maybe i should feed ALL my reed blanks to the cat
should i coat them with oil first, or after?
what flavour oil do cats like?
is there a type of oil that is good for cats AND reeds?
donald
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Author: David Dow
Date: 2002-07-23 12:33
Its best to use a variety of reeds instead of the same one all of the time. Rotatating reeds promotes longer reed life.
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Author: Bob
Date: 2002-07-23 15:25
If a panda played clarinet would his saliva breakdown the cellulose in a reed....
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Author: Fred
Date: 2002-07-23 17:07
David, I tried rotating my reeds, but the other end was just too hard for me to blow.
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Author: JMcAulay
Date: 2002-07-27 04:07
GBK: As you know, I generally use fairly soft reeds... say 2 to 2 1/2, occasionally a bit stiffer. Some time ago, I tried an experiment where i kept three reeds "at the ready" in the case, so I could use any one of the three at any time. There was a 2, a 2 1/2, and a 3 1/2. The 3 1/2 lasted far longer than the softer reeds, but perhaps that was because I never used the thing.
What might you think?
Regards,
John
Oh, yes, Fred, if you think the north-south rotation is tough, just try turning one upside-down.
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Author: GBK
Date: 2002-07-27 05:28
John...Your "findings" on reed longevity sound perfectly valid to me.
I'd contact "The Clarinet" magazine and publish it, before someone else takes the credit.
I suppose since I'm the one who gave you those #2 reeds, I'll be getting 1/3 of the future royalties. Thanks in advance...GBK
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