Author: JRC
Date: 2012-04-03 03:21
It all depends... but usually days, meaning, few complete drying between touch ups. Never try to finish at any time. I never expect to have "perfect" reed at any point. I do not believe in "perfect" reed. When good enough, I use it a day or two then move one to the next one. I try to make them about as same hardness as I can make them. I try to keep 6-12 good enough reeds in my case and rotate them. I usually line them up in my reed case in the order of brightness of the sound it produces. I always practice with the "worst" one and touch up. Some reeds, I keep touching up for weeks... some still get to stays in my case and some ends up in trash. So... some takes a long time to get made or trashed. I add, on an average, one reed a week if I have less than dozen or so half way decent reeds in my case. Therefore, it takes from a week or so to a month to make a reed.
By the way,... I never take out my knife in public. Matter of fact, I do not carry reed making tools unless I am traveling for an extended period of time. I look at fixing reeds in public like a woman touching up her make-up, or adjusting underwear in public. Reed is my problem and my problem alone. Public do not need to know what or how I do this. Neither do they need to know when and how I do what I do in the bathroom. They just need to enjoy my oboe playing. I do not dare complain or give excuse for my less than capable handling of my problem. I know some oboe players who complain, fuss, and make excuses for complexity of oboe reeds and instrument adjustment, in public, as a part of showing off. I am confused on that.
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