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Re: Short scrape vs Long scrape reeds

Author: oboist2
Date: 2017-11-08 02:13

My experience with long scrape reeds, and I switched to making them about 20 years ago, is that you have to play with a more relaxed embouchure, especially if you trim them as much as American players do, to about 70 mm. I regard my reeds as sort of a hybrid ( as I did when I made shorter scrape too) in the fact that my reeds are trimmed to 71.5mm to 72 mm and I need a tighter embouchure than the classic American reed. I also probably make less of a rail, and the tip is a little shorter, and I blend my heart to the tip in more of a shallow inverted U compared to the inverted V that seems to be favoured in the American scrape. With the classic American scrape, you have to imagine your embouchure as more of an "O" rather than an "E" and the embouchure plays a much lesser part in the adjustment of pitch etc. If you play one of these reeds as you would play a short scrape reed, you would find the third octave sharp. THe lower abdominal muscles and the relationship between air speed and air pressure is much more crucial in an American reed. I try to make a reed where both are equally as important and my reeds are quite flexible as far as the intonation is concerned - therefore I am always listening and adjusting - it actually makes it easier in ensemble in my opinion. Remember, there are many roads to Rome, and you ultimately find the one that gives you what you want. it is an evolving process. I experiment all the time, because I can ( as a non professional player).

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