 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: runner
Date: 2010-01-30 14:18
Last week one of my band students said her private teacher wanted her to start using size 4 reeds. The strongest I have ever used was a 3 1/2. Normally, I use 3. I thought asking a 4th grade beginner (this school year) to use 4 reeds made me feel I have been misinforming or misguiding my students all these years.
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Author: TianL
Date: 2010-01-30 14:59
yeah.. that's ridiculous..
to me, many people have, even many teachers, have this wrong concept of "the harder reed, the better". but i think that's just like fighting with oneself and cause many problems such as bad embouchure (possible strawberry chin), lip sore, body tension, etc etc.
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Author: kdk ★2017
Date: 2010-01-30 15:47
It doesn't seem likely that a beginning 4th grader would be using a mouthpiece that would play easily with #4 of any brand I've tried. If the mouthpiece is one of the standard stock mouthpieces that come with entry level clarinets or even a step-up commercial mouthpiece that isn't specifically designed with a very close, long facing (e.g. a Gigliotti P or a Vandoren M14), I'd question the private teacher and see what his/her reasoning is. Also listen to the kid play. You'll be able to hear if a #3 sounds too soft for her mouthpiece and whether or not a #4 sounds stuffy and hard blowing.
On its face it seems like moving a beginner to a #4 reed is pushing things too quickly.
Karl
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Author: Neal Raskin
Date: 2010-01-30 16:20
The student needs to know what band and facing the mouthpiece is, and then a reed strength can be determined from there. Reed strength has nothing to do with talent! Find out what type of mp your student has, and then check reed strength charts that go along with that mp. It is unlikely that your student would need to play a 4. Let us know what type mp she has, someone might know what strength would go with that mp.
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Author: Chris P
Date: 2010-01-30 16:56
It's unlikely a beginner will need a 3.5, 3 or 2.5 - most beginners start on a 1.5 or 2 with an average mouthpiece with around 1.10 to 1.15mm tip opening.
Am I missing something here?
How can a beginner start out playing on anything harder than a 2? And how can a teacher suggest they play on a 4? What kind of embouchure are they using to play on floorboards from the outset?
Sounds like a recipie for disaster.
And is 'strawberry chin' when the chin is all tensed up so it goes all dimpled?
Former oboe finisher
Howarth of London
1998 - 2010
The opinions I express are my own.
Post Edited (2010-01-30 16:58)
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Author: Ed Palanker
Date: 2010-01-30 17:17
First question is, is she a beginner playing the clarinet or someone beginning the 4th grade that's already been playing the clarinet? If she's not actually a beginning clarinet player how long has she been playing?
Question 2, what brand reed is she using? A Mitchel Lurie 4 is not nearly as strong as say a Vandoren or Grand Concert 4, especially after a couple days of playing it. So it depends on the students reed brand and mouthpiece she's using and how large a 4th grader she is.
When I used to take young students I would move them into a 2.5 or 3 as soon as I felt they could comfortably play it. I never started a student on anything less then a 2 and moved them up as soon as they could. It's been a long time since I taught beginners but I was very successful with the inexpensive Selmer Golden tone mouthpiece. Please keep in mind that I never took students younger then about ten years old unless they were big for the age because I didn't like to teach a student that could not reach all the keys. I've heard that back in the "old" days, some teachers would start young students on an Eb clarinet and there were even clarinets with "covered" holes like on a flute or saxophone but I've never seen one. My point is that my opinion is based on slightly older beginning students. ESP http://eddiesclarinet.com
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Author: Ed
Date: 2010-01-30 21:47
I know pros who use anywhere from 3 to 5 strength due to other factors. My suggestion would be to use what works and sounds best.
It all depends on what mouthpiece the student is using and the individual student. If she were using a Fobes Debut it may be possible. It is hard to know the answer to the question without other info. There are many individual factors.
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Author: clarinetist04
Date: 2010-01-30 22:38
Yeah, exactly. Who cares what the type of mouthpiece is at the beginner level. If they're truly a beginner, I can't imagine using anything harder than a 2 or 2.5 because the student has likely not developed a strong embouchure yet.
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Author: claritoot26
Date: 2010-01-31 02:34
I also have a young student playing a fairly hard reed. 5th grader on a 3.5 V12. I think it's because they bought the Vandoren M13 mouthpiece right of the bat, which plays better with a little bit harder reed. He seems to sound better than he did on the #3 traditional vandorens, which always played too loud and tended to squeak a bit. He still has some control issues, but for now, this is the type of reed that seems to sound best on his mouthpiece. Also, he is built like a wrestler, and blows pretty hard. He's working on toning it down a bit. :-)
Lori
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Author: grenadilla428
Date: 2010-02-02 00:54
This is going to sound simplistic, but I've known lots of 4th grade students...
Did her teacher mean size 4 reeds or 4 reeds? It's possible the teacher was talking about using more than one reed, but did so in passing and the student heard "4" and "reed" and took it to mean strength.
Just a thought and something you might want to double-check.
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Author: Jkelly32562
Date: 2010-02-02 02:13
In my beginning band...... If I have a clarinet player with a weak embouchure, or one I feel is not using enough air I will sometimes put them on a stronger reed to firm up the embouchure, but only for a week or two. I have had great success with these students when I switch them back to a 2 or or 2.5. It has solved the weak embouchure problem almost every time I have done it.
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