Reeds Reeds and their preparation...

Jules · Mar 19, 2008

following Thomsax' post concerning reed preparation- how do you folks treat this tricky subject? Do you carefully nurture each one of the little monsters to it's best possible fitness using arcane and esoteric methods, or are you of the "if it works fine, if not- bin it" school of reed useage?
I spent years playing a Dukoff D9 on tenor and a Runyon Smoothbore on bari. Subtle it wasn't, but both were incredibly forgiving on reeds- you could put amost anything on them and they always sounded pretty much the same! Having recently got more 'discerning' in mouthpiece choice and having recently changed my playing embouchure, I've opened a big can of reed worms for myself! how are you all dealing with the minefield that is the humble cane reed....

jonf · Mar 19, 2008

I bung them on, play them, and if they're really duff, bin them. About as much as I'll ever do is give them a rub with something abrasive - my thumb - if they feel a bit clogged with reed dust stuff.

Some mouthpieces are definitely more tolerant than others. Lawton = fussy beggar. Customised Otto 10* monster = tolerant. Runyon Smoothbore Bari = reed, lolly stick, tongue depressor, all sound the same. :w00t:

Mikec · Mar 19, 2008

I used to try and get all the reeds in a packet to play, then realised I could play more with the ones that do work and not waste time, so now I'm a confirmed try 'em and bin 'em bloke. I should buy shares in Vandoren.

philthd · Mar 19, 2008

im a strict rotator

if a reed isnt working i mess with it a little in a halfarsed way, if its still not working it goes back to the back of the rota

once it is barely playable it goes in the emergency rotation

once it is totally unplayable i chuck it

jools · Mar 19, 2008

Hmmm - "halfarsed" ... Pete? Does that count?

:laugh:

Yep I went from a "nurture nerd" to a "try 'em and bin 'em boy" in about 5 years. Too much faffing. Like PhilthD I do a bit of rotation too. Ones that work go in a clip til I have about 3 on the go.

Pete Thomas · Mar 19, 2008

Jools wrote:
Hmmm - "halfarsed" ... Pete? Does that count?

If we are going to be logical, then I guess we are allowed four of these.

mfox · Mar 20, 2008

Ttry it -bin it here, life is too short

Tenor Sax · Mar 20, 2008

I use Jazz select.

From a full box one or two will play well for a session and then dive into the depths of despair. However on the other side of the coin, those with no life can rejuvenate after a couple of wettings and drying. I put this down to the small changes in the grain. If that fails...IN THE BIN.

phil_edwards · Mar 20, 2008

mfox wrote:
Ttry it -bin it here, life is too short

Me too.

Phil

losaavedra · Mar 20, 2008

I seem to be rotating around 4 or 5 reeds out of 15-or-so I have here. I've numbered all the loose ones with a permanent marker, unless they're still in their sealed wrappers as are some of the yet untried Vandorens. Without the numbers they all look the same!!

jools · Mar 20, 2008

yeh, I did that too. I used to put a bit of a description on them too: "bright"; "fat" etc and a date. The older ones, I found, always sounded better tho.

thomsax · Mar 20, 2008

I spend quite a lot of time prepping reeds. Saoking, file, scrape, playing, soaking, file, scrape, playing ....

I use LaVoz MH or H on all saxes. They are working very well for me on metal mouthpieces. From a box of 10 I can usally play on all of them after preparation. The reeds should be a least 5 years old before I use them. The boxes I use now are bought 1996-2001. Don't ask me why, but I think the reeds are better when the have been laying in the drawer for a couple of years.

When I'm ready with the preparation I wipe them off and dip them in Absolut Vodka (Scandianvian Vodka) before i keep them in a reedguard. One schnapps for the reed and one for the player!!!!

Thomas

onecat · Mar 20, 2008

I don't soak my reeds or adjust them before playing. I just suck on the reed for a minute and if it's a decent one, it will play. Most of my reeds play for me (7 out of 10 or so) but some are too stuffy. At that point I would buy new reeds, throwing the bad ones into my drawer. I have never had much luck with sanding/filing reeds or presoaking, but I definitely recommend a glass Selmer reed case, this helps them keep from getting warped, and better to rotate between a few reeds in the case.

PaulyT · Mar 20, 2008

I'm going to try a fibre reed - All the reports say they play great and last a while so I reckon it's worth investing twenty or so Euros to have a try.
Anyone here had any experience of them?
PaulyT

losaavedra · Mar 21, 2008

Hmmm ... just for the hell of it today I sprayed one of my unused Rico 2s on both sides with two or three very light coats of clear cellulose lacquer. I just tried it out ... with no pre-wetting at all I might add. It actually sounds pretty good to my newbie ears ... slightly more 'honky' but also, in some ways, more 'precise' in both lower and upper registers. I'll give it a good bash tomorrow and report back any final conclusions!! If it holds up then I'm going to run through my whole spray paint can collection and have reeds in lots of pretty colours! On another subject I'm re-roofing one of our outbuildings. The old ceiling was bamboo slats with pan tiles on top. and the whole lot is coming off. So I have masses of 30-year-old (at least) very well seasoned bamboo poles here that I intend to have a go at reed-making-from-scratch with. To make life simpler I'll almost certainly make the things in two parts ... a 'universal' rounded top flat bottomed piece that fits under the ligature (actually I reckon that could be just an everlasting shaped plastic shim) ... and a long flat piece that gets clamped under that and extends out to the tip of the mouthpiece. This madness will continue until it occurs to me that I'm supposed to be learning to play the sax ... not fiddle with the design of the parts!!!! If anything useful turns up out of this exercise I'll be back here with a note of the results ... else I'll just go very quiet!!
Have a nice Easter break guys 'n gals!

Pete Thomas · Mar 21, 2008

Are you sure this isn't toxic?

You can use nail varnish which probably isn't toxic, though you can never tell without asking all the poor bunnies it was tested on.

losaavedra · Mar 21, 2008

Good point ... but I'll check the cans first. Today's experiment will involve a further sacrificial Rico being pickled in olive oil for a few hours to see what effect that has!

Pauline · Mar 21, 2008

Pauly - I use a Fibracell reed.

I know I'm a beginner but it honestly sounds fine to me. Always the same and needs no wetting and lasts ages.
I'd say they are at least worth a go.

I just don't have the time for faffing about with reeds, it's tough enough trying to find time to practise.

Pauline

jools · Mar 21, 2008

Pete - I've tried the nail varnish technique and that works fine. It does tend to taste a little odd though, but the effect is so simiilar to Plasticover, I figured I'd just buy some of those instead.

Thomsax - I've also soaked them in alcohol. Which is very nice indeed. 🙂 - a teacher of mine used to keep his in a jar of whisky on top of his piano. This has two effects: they remain soaked and sterilised. However, some spirits have a 'stickyness' about them (Southern Comfort for eg) which is best avoided for the build up of gunk.

I've also drilled tiny holes in the heart (Similar to a brand from way back called "The Scientific" - which had a WAX heart) - Was ok, no significant difference.

I've cut tiny triangles out of the tip, to get a breathy sound.

I've rubbed the surface with the back of a spoon to flatten the fibres. That 'feels' good and tends to soften up the resistance making it a wee bit brighter.

Fibracells are fine. Bit pricey, but they do last. The sound is 'right there' when you need it, but the 'signature' sound is on the whole 'bright' (IMHO)- I know Bobby didn't like them, it's a personal taste thing. Also it's hard to find a strength that works for you as they are not graded the same as 'normal' reeds- soft / med soft/ med/ med hard/ hard... !?!?! whatever that means. Seems to have no direct comparison if you're used to a 2 half, say. Seeing as they tend to be a bit stiffer anyway. Oh, and the other thing about these is that after a good few months of playing, the top coating starts to peel off on the table. It's like a very thin layer of cellophane, which gives the reed a 'buzz' - but not in a pleasant way, can lead to squeeking. That's the point that you need to buy a new one.

I've also tried Bari Gold Star - fully transparent plastic. Again, a reed that has the sound 'right there' and consistent every time. Although that sound is LOUD and edgy. And they feel wierd under your lip.

One of the best tricks I picked up was from when I was researching Charlie Parker. It's not reported much, but as it came from a direct quote of his, I am inclined to believe it. He used to use tenor reeds on his alto. A trick he got from Lester Young, who told of how a lot of the tenor players used baritone reeds on the tenors. Now this involves quite a bit of shaving and carving to get it to fit correctly, but a bit of carpentry later and you have a fantastic - full-on - sound. Mind you, Parker used No 4 or 5 reeds and had the diaphragm of an elephant, so I wouldn't suggest going up a strength. But the principal stands, and it worked for me. But, like I said, I don't mess with them any more. I just like to "blow, and go"

It's a LOT OF FUN trying stuff out tho. 🙂