 The Oboe BBoard
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Author: jn4jenny
Date: 2003-12-29 05:30
As a college student myself, I'd say you should really think hard about investing in a full reed-making tool set and cane/staples/thread/etc. The initial investment will be about $150-$200 just for your first full set of basic tools and the cane--and the less you spend on your tools the less time they'll last and the less calibration they'll give to your reeds. Which sucks.
It can be a very expensive proposition at first because, as the old maxim goes, "You have to make a laundry basket of reeds before you can make a good one." In my opinion, the best place to learn is from your private teacher, provided they have a kit and know how to do it. Most people take years perfecting their reed-making skills, and honestly, most people I know don't bother to learn until they take classes on it in conservatory or as oboe majors.
Store-bought reeds definitely stink. My oboe professor makes his own reeds, but as he says--unless you're planning to go pro, it's probably not necessary for you to know much more than how to adjust a reed with a basic reed knife. It's a waste of time, and it can be a huge waste of money. For a busy student, he recommends just BUYING handmades--and that's what I do. There's plenty of great suppliers like Forrest's Music, Charles Double Reed Company, Stuart Dunkel, OboeWorks, North Texas Oboe Reeds, blah blah blah--and bought in bulk, those reeds are only a few bucks more than a typical storebought (Emerald/Jones/Gower) and will last literally twice as long as a storebought with good care. So while reedmaking is probably a rewarding thing to learn in the long run, at this stage of your playing (high school having just acquired your first wood oboe), you're probably better off ordering other people's store-boughts and concentrating on improving your playing rather than on making reeds.
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phoenix_song |
2003-12-29 03:19 |
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jn4jenny |
2003-12-29 05:30 |
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Bucky Badger |
2003-12-29 15:14 |
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Clarence |
2003-12-30 03:24 |
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Bucky Badger |
2003-12-31 02:43 |
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Wes |
2004-01-30 03:15 |
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The Clarinet Pages
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