 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Laura
Date: 2002-09-28 23:08
I know of a professional clarinetist that gets a new clarinet every 10 years not because he has to promote a product, but because he says it's "life" is over after 10 years. I was wondering if the same applies to a mouthpiece's life.
Typically how long to hard rubber mouthpieces last if they are played everyday? Do the original dimensions gradually change after years of use?
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Author: james
Date: 2002-09-29 04:13
I know people who switch mouthpieces every six months and then I know people who have played on the same mouthpiece for more than 40 years. If you take care of it, and never use a swab in the mouthpiece it should stay pretty good. Really its the player that changes, not the mouthpiece.
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Author: Simone
Date: 2002-09-29 16:04
James,
how do you dry your mouthpiece after having played the clarinet?
Simone
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Author: Burt
Date: 2002-09-29 20:29
I've used the same hard rubber (Woodwind, if that's relevant)mouthpiece for 49 years. It's a bit discolored, but I see no sign of it degrading either physically or musically. I read somewhere that 50 years is the useful life, and I've also read that there is no real limit. In any case, if my mouthpiece were going to fail in 50 years, it should be showing signs of it by now, and it isn't.
I don't clean my mouthpiece after use. Swabbing it out for 49 years could cause wear. Every month or so, I wash in in warm, soapy water.
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Author: chris
Date: 2002-09-29 20:34
As for changing the clarinet every 10 years I don't agree and neither does my clarinet teacher. I have recently 'inherited' a Bb and A clarinet off my brother that are some 30 yrs old. After a good overhaul, they are 'sweet' as can be (Noblet Artiste by the way).
The change of mouthpiece depends on how much grief you have been giving it and if your taste for music changes. Use of different reeds for other ranges of music also can lead to mouthpiece changes.
Keep on blowing
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Author: Bob Arney
Date: 2002-09-29 21:35
Laura, when you see him/her again and it's time for a "burial" just pass on my address, please!(Assuming it would be a gift. Right?)
Bob A
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Author: Kat
Date: 2002-09-29 22:19
FYI, Q-tips are really good for cleaning out mouthpieces and they don't add wear to the tip or rails...
Katrina
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Author: Bob
Date: 2002-09-30 13:09
Kat said <they don't add wear >
I think it's a matter of degree,Kat. Cotton is in fact an abrasive material. Since mouthpieces are susceptible to slight changes in dimension then...theoretically at least...over time there will be some change in dimension. As an aside, paper is one of the most abrasive materials there is...
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Author: Ken Shaw
Date: 2002-09-30 14:59
At a workshop a few years ago, there was a mouthpiece makers' round table, with Tom Ridenour, Charles Bay, James Pyne, Ralph Morgan and several others. I asked them how long one of their mouthpieces would stay in prime condition with daily use, and they agreed that it should be touched up after about a year.
They said that one of the signs of wear is that tongued notes in the clarion become "tender" or unstable.
Tom Ridenour said one way to tell extreme wear is to wet the lay lightly, hold the mouthpiece on the bottom of a piece of plate glass and roll it forward along the lay, looking at it from the other side of the glass. If you see circular patterns along the lay, or if there are any places where the water doesn't make an even seal, then the mouthpiece is in serious trouble.
Best regards.
Ken Shaw
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Author: Kat
Date: 2002-10-01 02:39
Well, Bob,
I suppose it's what you do with the Q-tip... 
I don't actually wipe the rails and tip with them, just the bits inside that get gunky. I actually use my silk hankie swab (homemade with a white tennis shoe string...) to dry the lay, tip and rails. And I don't do this every day...mostly because I'm LAZY...lol
Thanks for the info, though, I had no idea about cotton's abrasive quality. I'm assuming silk is a little friendlier?
Katrina
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