 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: clarinetdaddy
Date: 2007-12-18 21:01
Has anyone heard of a "plastic" reed causing your facing to change on your mpc? Someone here had told me that while attending a class this subject was brought up. I never have heard this. It seems that the more I have been using "plastic" reeds I have started to "squeak" more. Not so much with wood.
Thank you all,
clarinetdaddy
"The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do
nothing".
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Author: Neal Raskin
Date: 2007-12-18 22:53
hmm, haven't heard about it changing the facing. but... i would steer clear of plastic reeds unless you're using them for marching band. in which case the may be able to produce more volume. i have found that tone production/quality lacks with plastic reeds.
Neal R.
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Author: tictactux ★2017
Date: 2007-12-18 22:56
> i would steer clear of plastic reeds (...)
Shoo! They're my Safe Spot on Bad Reed Days.
--
Ben
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Author: hans
Date: 2007-12-19 02:48
Legere's reeds work fine for me. If you're starting to squeak more, it could be for a lot of other reasons.
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Author: Iceland clarinet
Date: 2007-12-19 04:05
I lost so much overtones when I play the Legere reed so I stay with cane. But on a hot and moist day it could be nice to have it while playing outside but we don't get that kind of weather often here in Iceland. It's mainly during summer 15-20°C and a bit windy and +5- -5 to -10 and moist during the winter. Like now we've got rain for like 2 weeks for almost every day.
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Author: Roger Aldridge
Date: 2007-12-19 16:48
Which Legere reeds are being talked about? Legere currently has 3 kinds in production that work on French-style mouthpieces: regular cut, Quebec (1 dot), and Ontario (3 dot). There is considerable difference between them. My personal preference is the Quebec. I don't care for the regular cut on soprano clarinet. At least for me, the regular's quality of sound is not as good as Quebec or Ontario.
As far as having more squeaks with a synthetic reed....
It took me several weeks of heavy shedding to become comfortable with Legere reeds when I first started experimenting with them several years ago. My first suggestion is to see if your embouchure may be loosing control because you haven't spent enough time yet with a synthetic.
Second, some ligatures do not seal Legere reeds correctly along the side rails. A quick way to tell if you're having a problem with your ligature is to put a cane reed on the mouthpiece (with ligature) and measure the distance from the reed tip to the fulcrum point where the reed separates from the facing curve of the mouthpiece. Then, put on your synthetic reed and measure the distance. If there is a noticable difference in the lengths it may help to explain why you are having squeaks. An inexpensive ligature that works well with Legere reeds is the Vandoren Masters. It might be worth a try to see if using a Masters gets rid of the squeaks.
Third, Legere reeds work better on some mouthpiece facings than others. This is a subtle area of mouthpiece design that I do not know enough about to explain. Never the less, I know from experience that Legere reeds can sound absolutely terrible on some mouthpieces. However, on other mouthpieces the same Legere reeds have a stunningly beautiful sound. Finding a good reed-to-mouthpiece match may be a matter of trial & error. Personally, I get superb results with Legere Quebec reeds on Walter Grabner's Kaspar-style mouthpieces. I've also had good results with Legere on Gregory Smith's mouthpieces.
It has not been my experience that using a synthetic reed will somehow change the facing of a mouthpiece.
Hope this helps, Roger
PS, I just thought of something else..... For whatever reason, Legere reeds are more sensative to tip placement on the tip rail than cane reeds. Thus, the particular tip placement can make a huge difference in tonal quality. I place my Legere reeds so their tip covers the tip rail (when I press on the reed with my thumb) without going over the tip rail. For me, this is the magic spot for having the best quality of sound and level of response. Lastly, the position of the ligature can also make a difference. Normally, I place the front edge of my ligature slightly behind the back edge of the U-shape cut in the reed. Perhaps 1 or 2 mm. It's been my experience that if I have the ligature further back on the mouthpiece my sound loses resonance. Anyway, just a suggestion.
Post Edited (2007-12-19 17:09)
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Author: seafaris
Date: 2007-12-20 03:25
Roger,
I always enjoy your posts. All of your suggestions are right on. I have been playing Legere reeds now for 2 years. I have been using the Ontario now for about 6 months. I like the sound although it is brighter than the Quebec. What I like best is its responsiveness. I do try the Quebec now and then and the tone is darker, but for me it is just a little less responsive. I am still using my Fobes 4L and it plays the same as it has for the last 2 years. I haven't noticed it wearing away. :-) I have pretty much settled on my Eddie Daniels ligature. The thing I love best about the Legere reed is the consistency. Maybe they don't play quite as well as the best cane reed, but then I don't have to worry about finding those reeds either. It just never enters my mind anymore that any of my problems is the reed. I now just play (jazz/standards), enjoy, and work on my technique.
...Jim
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Author: clarnibass
Date: 2007-12-20 05:37
>> I lost so much overtones <<
Have you looked under your bed...? 
From my experience with Legere I learned to not just compare plastic with plastic and cane with cane, or plastic vs. cane. Of course there are things that are unique like the advantage because of reeds drying and the feel in your mouth is a little different with plastic reeds. But eventhough I didn't like Legere reeds so much, there are cane reeds I liked even less, at least in terms of response and sound. So I don't think anyone can generalize and say cane reeds have better sound/response than plastic, or vise versa.
The only plastic reeds I've tried are the Legere. I've tried both the regular and the Quebec, and also bass clarinet reeds. I've tried several strengths. Unlike Roger I didn't find much of a difference between the regular and the Quebec. Actually one of the ligatures I tried with Legere was the Vandoren Masters that Roger mentioned which is an excellent ligature regardless (on soprano clarinet I've tried another ligature with Legere).
The problem was mainly not as good response in the upper clarion. The sound was a little different too and maybe was more "neutral" and maybe slightly less "bright". I'm not sure how to describe it but I prefer the sound of my regular reeds. I think my mouthpieces didn't work very good with Legere and they were possibly made with Vandoren reeds in mind (my bass mouthpiece definitely, my soprnao mouthpiece most likely).
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Author: Roger Aldridge
Date: 2007-12-20 15:21
Jim,
I cannot help but wonder if a Vandoren Klassik string ligature might give you improved response with Quebec reeds. I haven't noticed any response problems with my set up.
The Ontario reed is very good indeed. I plan to spend more time with it over the Holidays. However, I'm totally into the darker sound of the Quebec. A few days ago I spent time working with V12 and Black Master reeds on my Grabner K14 and K11e mouthpieces. I especially like the Black Master. It has what I'd describe as a "sweet" tonal quality. Personally, I prefer Black Master to V12. However, as often happens after playing on cane reeds for a period of time I begin to hear things that bother me. I then switched back to my trusty Quebec reeds and I was happy once again. What can I say?.....A Quebec and a Grabner Kaspar-style mouthpiece really does it for me. I only wish that I could have had this set up YEARS ago.
Roger
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Author: skygardener
Date: 2008-01-02 19:31
Quick Legere question- where can one buy the Onterio and German cut? I have only been able to find the Original and Qubec. Thanks...
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