Author: doublereeder2
Date: 2006-07-14 21:52
Agreeing with the age of reeds being a factor and mscmidt's assessment of the spine and staple, etc., another possibility is that the "rails" may too thin, or the sides of the plateau (heart) have also been scraped too thin.
>>So...the harder the reed, the less prone it is to weaken and collapse???<<
No, sorry, but I disagree. I believe that "hard" reeds make the oboist muscle the reed (bite) more, often causing the reed to collapse. A reed does not need to be hard to stand open. The gouge, shape, your scraping, the staples, et al. contribute to reed openings, as does the diameter of the cane.
If your reeds usually close as you play them, it probably has something to do with embouchure, IMHO.
Ohsusan:
Regarding hardness of cane: I have been making reeds for 30+ years dislike hard cane immensely - it just is too difficult to make vibrate. Too soft and shreddy cane is no fun either. A nice medium cane works best for me (in the perfect reed world). Unfortunately, most cane is not like that.
Welcome to part of the complexity of the oboe!
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