 The Fingering Forum
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Author: Tutti Flutti
Date: 2002-02-18 16:01
Hey Everyone~
I'm just learning the oboe. I was just wondering how long a normal reed lasts for. Also, how do you know if it's broken, and can you fix it?
These are some basic questions, but... Sometimes, when I play the oboe, all that comes out is a blunt sound, no matter what keys I press, they are all basically the same sound. Then, later, I play it again and everything comes out just fine. Then I stop playing for about a minute and I get the blunt sound again. Does anyone know what's wrong?
~TF
~By the way, this is an awesome site!
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Author: Torus Tubarius
Date: 2002-02-18 17:47
Hello there. How long your reeds are going to last depends on how much you play on them and the demands you make on them as you play. For instance I can take a reasonably good reed, play a bunch of really loud, really high technical stuff, and significantly alter that reeds playing characteristics in just one sitting. (And others wonder why oboists make such a big deal out of reeds.)
So my questions to you are: how much to you play on it? What kind of reeds are you playing on? How are you storing them? How are you wetting them before you play on them?
If you're a beginner playing on it maybe an hour everyday (?) then if you have a good reed, it should last about two weeks at the most. If you're playing on a storebought reed, then you need to find an oboist who sells his reeds and buy them from him/her since you will quickly outgrow storebought reeds. You cannot make progress on storebought reeds. You can find oboists who sell their reeds online, or at least find oboists who know who sells them online.
The most easily broken part of the reed is the tip, and you can see just by looking at it if any chips or nicks have been made in the tip. A small change in the tip will have a profound effect on the way the reed plays. Reeds can also crack. You can check for this by gently squeezing the sides of the reed together. The blades should make a nice curve as the diameter of the opening increases. If one of the blades is forming a point like a little housetop, then it is probably cracked down the length of the blade. Strangely enough, sometimes it is still possible to play on a reed with such a crack, though the response and intonation you get from it will be distorted.
My first instinct is to say that the blunt sound you're talking about is a reed problem, which also makes me suspect you're playing on storebought reeds. Is the blunt sound you talk about a definite pitch? If so, you might have a key that is leaking intermittently. Other than that, I really don't know what could be causing that. I don't know if I've ever had an oboe do that to me before. Good luck.
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Author: Tutti Flutti
Date: 2002-02-18 22:38
Thanks Torus!!! That's VERY useful info. Do you know where I can find reeds online? (That are not too expensive?)
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