 The Oboe BBoard
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Author: mjfoboe
Date: 2015-02-15 10:07
Hi,
Question ..... when to use gouged soft cane vs. medium hard cane?
Which is best for the summer and humidity and/or winter and dryness?
Or for other playing conditions.....tone flexibility, pitch etc.
I have a batch of three different tube canes ... with various levels of softness/hardness.
Mark
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Author: jhoyla
Date: 2015-02-15 23:17
All of the following is just my opinion - I am sure that other players will have different experiences and I hope they share them.
I only make reeds for myself. Occasionally I give reeds to colleagues who are very kind and praise them, but I am essentially a reedmaker with a clientèle of one. I don't own a gouger but I purchase gouged cane in batches of 30 - 50 pcs from the most consistent supplier I can find. I have always bought cane this way.
I live in a temperate Mediterranean climate and so don't have extremes of winter or elevation to contend with.
I haven't used soft cane for well over a decade. Reeds made from soft cane were unpredictable and would close up at critical moments. Surprisingly, they were no easier to play than reeds made from med-hard / hard cane! Again - this is entirely subjective.
I find it easier to make reeds from medium cane (the tolerances are greater) , but my best reeds, consistently, come from medium-hard and hard cane. They have the greatest dynamic range, the longest usable life and the best stability. They are also harder to make, are more expensive, have greatest "wastage" (e.g., crack during processing), take longer to play in and have a tendency to flatness that I have still not entirely resolved.
Nevertheless, I will never go back to soft cane if I can help it.
J.
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Author: cjwright
Date: 2015-02-16 07:57
I always choose hard cane for myself, for two reasons.
1. I don't want a reed to die on me in rehearsal. Soft cane dies too quickly and will be changing during my entire 4 hour rehearsal and i don't want to deal with that.
2. Hard cane catches better under the knife. The harder the cane, the better I can scrape it, even if my knife is less that 100% sharp, and therefore they are usually scraped better.
Blog, An Oboe In Paradise
Solo Oboe, Thailand Philharmonic Orchestra
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