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Re: Should beginners use soft reeds?

Author: Chris P
Date: 2007-02-21 20:17

For easy response and control, I'd say definitely begin with a soft reed - you will learn how to control it after a while so the tone becomes much fuller. But as with all reeds, don't struggle against too hard a reed as this won't get you anywhere.

Even though a hard reed may give the impression that the tone is thicker, it won't be easy to get a good clean attack on and will make playing the low notes difficult if you're not up to playing on a hard reed.

But reeds can vary in their tone depending on the scrape and how they've been scraped - a lot of reedmakers are using a profiling machine to do the majority of the work on the scrape (the area towards the tip of the reed which has the bark removed in a variety of styles depending on the maker's choice) and then do the finer finishing by hand so the reed responds to the maker's system of grading.

Always soak your reeds for around 5 minutes before playing, and when adjusting reeds yourself, make sure they're soaked well so they're more pliable and the chances of them splitting is reduced.

Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.

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