 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: BassetHorn
Date: 2006-04-03 21:16
Hello there, this is a quick question for the bassoon players/doublers there: do the bocal numbers (i.e. #2) have any meaning? Does the bigger number mean better or whatever? Or is it meaningless except for identification purposes?
Also, who has actually played the Runyun bassoon mouthpiece? Care to share some experience/thought? I tried calling and emailing Runyun but not received an answer yet. Does it take Eb soprano clarinet reeds?
Thank you.
Willy
Post Edited (2006-04-03 21:17)
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2006-04-03 22:35
Bassoon crooks are numbered in length from 0 through to 4 (all whole numbers), with 0 being the shortest in length. But you can flatten by pulling the crook out a bit - provided the crook key pad covers the bush (check the hole in the crook vent - it should be 0.7mm) - that's why some bassoons have an oval-shaped pad.
There were a couple of Chedeville mouthpieces on eBay going back a bit - both an oboe and bassoon one up for sale, though they were a bit on the pricey side!
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=7396533496&rd=1&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWA%3AIT&rd=1
The Runyon bassoon mouthpiece uses an Eb clarinet reed - Bill Lewington (in the UK) used to stock these, though I'd think you can find them easier in N. America or Canada.
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Author: Fred
Date: 2006-04-04 03:20
Does anyone else find it odd that Runyon would make a mouthpiece for bassoon without making one for oboe? I would have thought that there would be more call for an oboe mouthpiece.
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Author: diz
Date: 2006-04-04 03:36
mouthpiece - no such thing (at least not for the double reed family)
Without music, the world would be grey, very grey.
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Author: reedplayernc
Date: 2006-04-04 03:54
I have a Runyon bassoon mouthpiece. In my opinion, it works rather well. I prefer using an actual bassoon reed, but the mouthpiece works really well in a pinch. The only flack i've gotten from using it on gigs is from other musicians who see the mouthpiece. If they couldn't see it, I don't think they'd have any clue.
Brian
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2006-04-04 13:14
This is the problem - there are a lot of anal retentives out there that are quick to disapprove of anything slightly different - I get this from a certain sax player who had a go at me for using metal mouthpieces as they seemed to think it's not the done thing. Mind you, I also got grief for using an A clarinet when the part went into 5 sharps for a Bb clarinet and got called a cheat by the same person - let's see if he has a go at me this evening for using an A clarinet instead of a Bb (even though it's more logical and practical to use an A clarinet in these circumstances), but fortunately he's on drums so I don't have to sit next to him.
I think Anthony Baines mentiond in his book that a soprano sax mouthpiece will work on a bassoon. But hollow out and turn down a wine cork so it fits on the crook.
If it works, then that's the main thing - plus the fact Eb clarinets reeds are much easier and cheaper than bassoon reeds, and also less expensive to replace if they split - and they're more consistant.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
Post Edited (2006-04-04 13:59)
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Author: Terry Stibal
Date: 2006-04-04 13:59
I've got a Chedeville (sp?) oboe mouthpiece, signature on the front and all, that I acquired many years ago with a cheap oboe that came my way. The main problem there was that the reeds were custom made items, and were not (even in the good old days) easy to come by.
The mouthpiece came in a nifty little wooden box with dovetails and a sliding wood cover, since lost by my casual with the belongings of others mother. It also came with its own little cap and single screw ligature.
It's cute as a bug, and I've retained it in my "music stuff box" for the novelty value, but I was never happy with the way that it worked. Working up some suitable reeds on my own may have helped, but I never (as a Book IV kinda guy) had the need.
Runyon's bassoon mouthpiece fits right onto the bocal, unlike the oboe mouthpiece which requires a staple stuck into same to work with the hollow-headed oboe. That's probably why Runyon hasn't bothered; the extra provision of the staple is a bit more work out of the normal mouthpiece line.
As for use, I'm of two minds. I have found that I am incapable of managing a normal oboe reed, so if I had to play oboe I would want to use the mouthpiece route. To date, however, my double reed experience has been on English horn (with a substantially larger reed) and bassoon (with a much larger reed). While the reeds are expensive and hard to adjust, they still worked well enough for me not to worry about getting the Runyon item.
As for the feelings of others, when they conform to my standards then I'll start conforming to theirs. What the sound is is what matters, and if it comes from metal, rubber, glass or plastic is less important that the final waveforms. (Well, that and being able to sit next to, and work with, others...)
leader of Houston's Sounds Of The South Dance Orchestra
info@sotsdo.com
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2006-04-04 14:08
I made an oboe mouthpiece out of ebonite and mounted it on an oboe staple - for reeds I split some soprano sax reeds and scraped them (as well as rounding the tip) so they worked, but it was hard work on the embouchure as it was neither an oboe, soprano sax or clarinet embouchure - and uncomfortable to say the least. But the sound was very thick, full and 'Germanic' - if only the mouthpiece was easier to get on with.
The 'Fibercane' oboe reeds are real embouchure wreckers as well!
If you want to try some good oboe reeds, I swear by these:
http://www.tordareeds.co.uk/
They're copied from the late Anthony Camden's favourite scrape (a 'U' scrape), and they work as they mean to go on.
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
Post Edited (2006-04-04 14:10)
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