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Re: Music should be fun, right?

Author: kdk ★2017
Date: 2010-11-08 22:12

andrewsong wrote:

> Sometimes
> the reeds are too hard, sometimes theyre too soft, sometimes
> theyre are stuffy, sometimes they are not even useable. I know
> how to adjust my reeds and alter them, but they still give me
> trouble. I spend almost all of my "practice" time just messing
> around with them.
>
> I'm not just a beginning student. I am a junior in high school
> and have played 7 years and made All-State and other things.
> But if I am too bothered with this reed aspect of the clarinet,
> should I move on to a different intrument?

No, you don't need to move on to a different instrument. Any instrument presents mechanical obstacles that need to be overcome to allow the kind of freedom you want.

You say you "know how to adjust my reeds and alter them," but the problems you describe say that, while you know *something* about adjusting reeds, there's still a part of that skill you don't yet have. It's even possible that some of what you already "know" isn't right or being correctly applied. That said, knowing how to adjust reeds doesn't guarantee you'll never be confronted with a stuffy one or one that isn't playable, but you won't need to spend so much time "messing around with them." As your skill with reeds increases, you'll know more quickly what needs to be done to an individual reed and whether or not you want to put the effort into doing it. That's not something most players know after 7 years of study - it takes many students longer than that to know what a good reed actually feels like, and you can't make a reed play well if you're still unsure about what "playing well" is.

If you have a private teacher, definitely discuss your discouragement about reeds with him/her. If you are only studying at school with a band director, think about private lessons *with a skilled clarinetist.*

As a start, you might reconsider the reeds you're using. Try a strength up or down and see if you get more reeds that play acceptably (even if they aren't WONDERFUL) out of the box. Adjusting reeds is easier if the starting point is within a playable range, even if every reed you try isn't perfect.

What you describe isn't an insurmountable problem and we all deal with it to some extent. Reed solutions (players arrive at different ones as they gain experience) are part of the skill set needed to play a reed instrument well. You just need to keep at it.

Good luck,
Karl

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