I've been playing for 24 years, went to college for music performance and this was the most helpful video or instruction I have ever seen for teaching others on breaking in reeds. and I saw it for free on RUclips. I absolutely love your videos!! you obviously know what you are talking about. you're an excellent teacher. thanks for making such good content!
I recently purchased a box of alto sax reeds from a certain, non-eco friendly packaging company, and only 3 of the reeds played reasonably, and I have never had a reed that wasn't good enough for me, from any company. I decided this was the perfect time for me to learn to adjust reeds. Naturally this was the first place I came to look, watched the video, ordered myself the the set from your website and just adjusted my first reed while watching the video, I CANNOT BELIEVE the difference this has made!!!! What have I been missing all these years?! Thank you SO very much for this video and of course the awesome polishing cloth/plaque combo package! Oh, and the Earspasm Music sticker was an AWESOME bonus!
Thanks for sharing that which I had suspected for years but as a Canadian who lives beside Toronto's biggest music store just buy reeds find a good one and rush to my gig. I will now hope to practice on boxes of reeds which have been stashed for years and never made it to gigs. I'm a hobbyist on Armenian Duduk and have several reeds which were picked for me but a world class player, but which have become almost impossibly stiff and stuffy in Toronto , which I think is a lot more humid.
I tried you’re technique today and working on four reeds at moment over five minutes a time I the reeds which were lifeless at first exploded into life, what a sound, I had almost given up with squeaking and squealing, very minute sand, then play then went over second time very minute, the reeds exploded into life , I am learning to break the reeds in slowly over the week and see if I have crossed a barrier, but my god the sound was brutally sharp and powerful thank you, thank you I am so appreciated,I’m daz from australia
I'm a tuba player but I love your videos so much. I don't get any use out of videos like this but the informative style of your delivery makes these really interesting for me to watch.
I watched this years ago, but am now taking notes on the many highly worthwhile details which I had impatiently glossed over. Great succinct but very nuanced detailing here and great playing also.
Dear Mr. Lowenstein, just wanna say your videos are extremely informative and educational. There needs to be more teachers like you around. Oh, btw, your recital and masterclass in Perth, Western Australia was superb! Sorry, but didn't get a chance to say "hi" to you that night... so here's saying "HI"!
I've been playing clarinet for not quite two months (after playing flute for over 20 years) and adjusted my first reed today; it went great! Drastically improved. Thanks for all your helpful content! (And yes I bought your reed adjustment pack.)
This is SOOO good!! I tried it; and works!!- Ordered the Planck and cloths. What a great presentation!!! Vandorn Supreme #3 down to what my ear likes. Discovery: reeds must be "fitted" to each different great mouthpiece separately.
Micheal, you have enlightened my life of chalumeau player! Now the 1st register sounds much better and I reach the second much easier and higher. I specify that I use a chalumeau without keys. To be more precise, I use a gauge to determine the free part of the rails. A huge thanks for sharing this video, you are inspiring for your music and your skills.
The most helpful explanation and demo I've found. Loved your multi-coloured diagram, starting at 3.20. Really clear and memorable. I've just used it to improve a stuffy tenor sax reed beyond recognition, at the very first attempt! Thank you so much.
Take this from a fifty-year-old who started his first wind instrument, the Yamaha Venova: this is THE most useful tutorial I found so far. You can work the rest of the technique by yourself, mostly. This, however, is something you would never work out, imho. Hint: just polishing your reed with a nail polish stick does miracles and it is safer than filing all the parts.
I purchased two sets of these, one for myself and another for a friend. Michael ships very quickly! I have been really struggling mostly with the bass clarinet reeds. I think I have 2 favorite reeds out of close to 15 reeds I can’t stand to try to play. I also have quite a few Bb reeds new in boxes that I know are unplayable until I learn how to do this. Great detailed info in this video. If anything, the clear plaque will help me flatten out my moist reed when the tips get a little wavy and it fits in my cases. Great RUclips channel❣️
Very precise and informative. My sax repairman told me about your video. I just wish you would have aimed the camera to the reed as you were sanding and polishing it. Fortunately, you verbally explain it well, but since it is a video, please always show the viewers as you're manually working on something. It would really help a lot. Thank you for sharing your expertise with us!
I was a none believer until I bought and polished my reeds just a little...instantly there was a different feel in the tongue like he said. Then when I played I was playing notes I had trouble with hit it with ease. Deep or high this was my game changer
Wow that was awesome and so motivating, tried it from another channel, but yours was vastly superior, excellent presentation and much appreciated I’m daz from australia
A really helpful video! This is the best video on the internet that explain how to work on reeds, I'm gonna share it right away! Thanks :D you're great!
1/4 in thick plate glass works amazing. You can just cut an old mirror with a carbide cutter and smooth the edges with a diamond bit, duamind file, or diamond paper.
I've been adjusting my reeds for years using one of those box cutter knives (that you can break off when they get blunt) for scraping. I've given many reeds an extended life even after they've been cracked or chipped at the end as well as those that won't play from the box. I also use a nail clipper to remove the damaged tip which just happens to be the same round shape. The clipper may be too narrow for the bigger reeds, so I clip off the sides to almost the correct angle and finish off the shape with fine sandpaper. However, this causes the reed to become hard and unresponsive, so I must scrape back the reed, including the heart to bring it back into a playable range. Though this treatment may sound unorthodox a bit rough to some, it has ressurected some of my best playing reeds particularly back when times were tough and I've been doing it ever since. Also I've found that some reeds aren't very flat on the flat side (high and low or soft and hard ridges in the grain) and that tends to leak a lot of air, which isn't good and so I gently and evenly scrape that side as well. Scraping the flat side where the ligature holds it, will lift up a reed that closes off, especially those Rico student reeds that stop after 10mins of play. After scraping, they don't start off very well until they settle in but they play a bit longer when they do. It's nice to actually see what sections of the reed do what and how adjusting them can affect the playing range. Thank you for making such an informative video... I feel I can now evolve into a slightly higher realm. ;)
From now on, reeds will not be pain in the butt:D!I learned very useful thigs about reed adjustments fom your video. Every single reed form the box will sound great! Thanks again!
Great job explaining this. I have never seen such a good explanation of this art. Would be awesome to have a document with a diagram showing the regions to touch based on how the reed responds.
If you can find an old book; "The Art of Saxophone Playing" by Larry Teal", you will find some good charts that correspond to this video. I think this video is better than Larry Teal's Charts. If I remember correctly, Larry Teal also explains how important it is for the back of the reed to be flat where the reed touches the table of the mouthpiece. Larry Teal didn't go into as much detail (as this video) on the vamp of the reed. He shows some areas on the vamp similar to this video, but this video shows more detail. I would suggest making your own chart from this video and trying this first. I've never seen anyone so good at adjusting reeds before.
Great video. My experience with reed adjustments has been that the major issue with reeds is the left/right balance. I can almost always improve a reed by playtesting both sides and then sanding the less responsive side. I was surprised you did not mention this. Do you never do this or do you consider it being more of a "how to fix a totally bad Reed" technique? Best regards Peter
@@Francois_Dupont there is a tehnique where you rotate the mouthpiece to dampen one side of the Reed so that only one of the sides are vibrating. Sort of playing with 45degree angle of the mouthpiece in your mouth.
A clarinet University professor showed me this concept. It's probably the best technical lesson I use today. Sax reeds are a little larger. I make less mistakes than clarinet reeds. I work every reed I play.
This was really, really interesting stuff, man! I have been playing saxophone ( alto and tenor) for almost 50 years now ( well maybe more like 45 since I had a break for learning guitar ) and have always thought it was annoying having to spend 25-30 bucks for in practice 1-2 playable reeds in i box.... And the really good ones you are very afraid to loose or break, especially closing in to a performance. Of course I have experimented with scraping reeds using a razor blade, but never with such detailed knowledge of which tiny parts of the reed that affects what parts of your playing. Can't wait to start learning and practising tips from this video. THX!! P.S. Forgot to say, that I found a glass jar in which I had stored three Vandoren JAVA 3.0 tenor reeds totally submerged in "Plantation Barbados" RUM for seven years, and they were perfectly playable, very nice sounding and with a delicious flavour right out of the jar! D.S.
... wonderful advice. Thank you very very much. It sounds like magic and thanks to you all of us can now do magics too ... ... best wishes from Prague, the Kingdom of Bohemia ... 👍⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐👍
Great video again, Michael. You're putting them out faster than I can watch! My comment/experience is that often if a reed is hard, I start by sanding the bottom half (often just the shoulders), and I feel like it frees up the whole reed. Have you experienced this? Then I move toward the tip to improve response and balance.
After having taken up my clarinet some years ago after a 35 years of break , I thought that meanwhile somebody must have invented something to avoid this reed nightmare. And it as. I fond many companies making synthetic reeds, but didn't like them until Legere launched the European cut. They do the job and cane reeds, cutters, files or whatever is stored away together with most of my frustration. I*m playing a Bb Buffet RC, Vandoren B45, sometimes 5JB and reed #2,5.
have you ever tried the Vandoren Reed Resurfacer and Reed Stick? the reed stick is fantastic and is pretty much a sandpaper pen that lets you work exactly where you want, its made of etched glass. and the resurfacer lets you take off about a quarter strength really easily. if you find the sandpaper a little hard to use , the reed stick might be a good alternative, though it isnt super cheap
"Break-in" the reed first before working on reeds (typically a few days of the reed adjusting to being used) DON'T TOUCH: The tip and the heart 1:26 - Tools 3:20 - Parts of a reed 5:18 - Reed too hard 6:28 - Bad altissimo articulation 7:05 - Fuzzy tone, especially when tonguing in the clarion register 7:59 - Heart of the reed 8:40 - Poor response in clarion register (still) 9:04 - Bad/fuzzy sound in lower register 10:07 - Demo 13:08 - Polishing
I want to start with thank you this and all your other videos, as a saxophone professor and clarinet/saxophone teacher I sometimes struggle to fit so much information into lessons, and even though I had some CDs of yours I was so excited when a young middle school (now high school) bass clarinet/clarinet student asked me if I had seen this RUclips channel. He is a voracious learner and joyfully consumes the knowledge and ideas found here. As a fellow teacher and musician, I'm not sure if I can express my gratitude for how you've inspired my young student and helped him enjoy music, even though you've never met him. The second part is 2 questions, I often find keeping the back flat with a ReedGeek really helps many of my reed issues, but I'm just curious because it seems perhaps it is an issue you don't have, after having seen your reed videos. I don't often play it but I know my optimum is a strong enough screw/ligature that it can help reeds seal and play even if not perfect, but do you just not have this? 2nd is you said you don't touch the back half rail, but often on reeds (3-4 out of a box) I find that some of the bark/cuticle is left even on the back half, it stifles the reeds vibrations so it is one of the first things I check before adjusting elsewhere. Is this not really an issue because of the facing length of the bass clarinet mouthpiece?
Hey Ben, thanks for the note. Let me try to answer your two questions: 1. I have a reed geek but I never use it. I keep my reeds in a bag with a two-way humidifier (mercantile alert! I sell them... goo.gl/oTHFtr) which keeps them from warping. 2. I haven't seen that issue on Vandoren reeds in a long time, but you're right: if that cuticle (great word BTW!) is still there, you need to remove it.
I was thinking of asking you how to 'work on reeds' the whole day and I came to youtube and whaddda you just uploaded this! Hahaha I am definitely getting that from your website. I was just feeling crap because out of the whole Vandoren grey box, I have one reed that has the 'halo' and the others total shit. Now I can change their fate hahaha. Thanks Michael! I was also listening to your Sway album today.
Hey Michael, is there any chance you could make a printable version of that diagram you drew for where you should sand the reed and perhaps also show what effects each area you sand has please? If you could that would be amazing. Also, I love your videos and your playing is amazing! Keep the videos coming.
Hello Mr. Lowenstern! I have been playing clarinet for years, and in all these years I have never tested the hygro reed cases. It realy works? Is it a good idea buy one? and Which one? Good work!
This is great, thank you so much. I think I'll have to be extra careful because where I live a box of reeds is so expensive that I have to buy 1 or 2 at a time. And very few times they are reeds that I actually end up using a lot.
This is video conveys all about reeds in only 16 minutes! My biggest trouble with cane reeds, is inconsistency! I mean the reed behaves very akward, after a few plays! I try always to rotate these two categories of reeds: 1) The super-ready to play reeds and 2) The reeds which have potential to perform from decently to very good! My latest problem with cane reeds, is that in the bottom reeds my tone "clacks" and the note seems that it will "break" somehow! So my question is: How is it possible, if it is possible, to adjust a cane reed to respond in a very well manner through all registers and not to lose it's vibrating behavior...Allow me to describe it as "punchiness"! I hope it's not my embouchoure or a leak on my alto saxophone!!! Thanks!
I does exactly what it says on the tin. Cool, thanks working fantastic.....supposedly it makes a better difference than trying different reed brands, after all those reeds are all made from the same bamboo....
I know this video is old but I’m getting into a more in-depth Reed break in process that lasts 2 weeks. I know I should polish the Reed during the break in process but do you work on the read like this during the break in process? Or do you wait until it’s fully broken in?
Don't use sand paper, microscopic pieces of sand get in the reed veins or tubes, also reeds that have been worked on using sand paper can introduce friction to the mouthpiece resulting in wear and tear of the facing.
Excellent. I will use this method on my reed french horn. the reed horn doesnt sound very good. I wonder if I should use a bass clarinet mouthpiece in stead of the clarinet mp on my horn. then again, i could always go back to my farkas mp and resign from this invention / experiment. Hey - i could polish my metal mouthpiece. Inside and out. Brilliant!!!
Would you maybe play the bass clarinet solo "Deepwood"? I am gonna play with it for my qualifing exam for the army band and I would really appreciate another interpretation on it. Thanks anyways. *Sorry for the repost, I just want to make sure Micheal reads it *
Sometimes I find it hard to line the tip up with the mouthpiece, only to find that the stock is not square on the table, and one seems to throw the other off.
I am a huge fan of your work! I have been playing bass clarinet for about 3 years now I'm starting to notice that my band music is getting too easy and I want to get better. What do you suggest doing in order for me to become a better steonger bass clarinet player?
Well, it's all about how you challenge yourself. If you have a private teacher, you can ask them what s/he recommends. But if it were me, I'd just try to pick some more challenging music, or try to learn a different style (jazz, etc), maybe join a youth orchestra if there is one in your area, decide to go to a music camp like Interlochen in Michigan next summer, etc, etc.
Watched this video and immediately bought this off your site. My professor has been telling me I need to learn.. my thing that I'm confused about is the strength of the sandpaper.. how do I know which one to adjust the reed with? And will the polisher be labeled as the polisher when I receive it?
Very interesting and informative about reeds!! I wanna buy a set on you’re website. But I live in Sweden. Can you ship international? Doesn’t seem like on you’re site...
Hi, as usual this video is very helpful for us all reed instruments enthusiasts. Please let me ask, is there a way to recover a reed that you feel it's got good quality sound, but it squeaks a lot even after you've sanded it? Thank you! Best Regards from Portugal!
My sanding kit just arrived in the mail. Thank you. A couple of questions: 1) would it help to cut the cloths into smaller squares? and 2) what would help with octave jumps to the altissimo register, e.g. clarion e to altissimo e or clarion c to altissimo f?
I usually fold mine into quarters rather than cut them. That way I can open them up if I want to do a pass over larger reeds in "polish mode." And to answer question #2, go for the green dot (from the video).
I made adjustments to my Reed and now my upper and lower registers sound excellent. But my open G, A, and Bb (but especially open G) are very fuzzy sounding. What area on the Reed do I work on for those awful notes? Thank you for your videos.
i've really enjoyed the way you've briefly broken down the styles of Coleman Hawkins and John Coltrane, and explained part of what it is that makes them sound the way they do. maybe a Wayne Shorter or Stan Getz solo would be an appropriate choice since they both have such distinct styles, or you could change it up and look into the style of a baritone sax player, like Harry Carney's Sophisticated Lady. P.S. thanks for the quick shipping on the reed sandpaper
Thanks Michael! This will be great as an introduction for some of my students, I definitely picked up some stuff for me myself. Do you flatten the table of the read on your plaque? I was taught to do this first by polishing on printer or notebook paper, then taking the warp out of the table of the read with sandpaper on the glass plaque. Wondering your thoughts on this.
Great video. A concise and lucid presentation, and pleasantly entertaining as usual. What are your thoughts about flattening the back of the reed? I was taught to do this - by a student of Joe Allard. When a reed begins to play stuffy (stuffily?) I check the flatness using a straightedge (reed knife or anything handy) held across the back of the reed and held up to the light. I often find it has warped and correcting this almost always makes the reed more responsive, though I am aware it takes cane away from the heart of the reed, so maybe there are drawbacks? A reed knife works well for this if you like that sort of thing ( I see that's not your style). The Vandoren glass gizmo mentioned above is a terrific tool for flattening the back. It amounts to a superfine flat file so it removes minimal cane, and it's foolproof. It's very hard to abruptly destroy a reed with it. It comes with a sort of glass version of a reed rush, or a superfine glass cylindrical file, which I haven't much used. Good tool but sort of expensive. Both are gentler approaches than healing with honed steel. The little cylindrical gizmo might integrate well with your approach. Also: I was taught to avoid taking any material off of the very rail. Instead, I was told to go just inside the rail and parallel to it, maybe by 1 mm, and take off material in a channel or alley between the rail and heart. I have just taken it as received wisdom that you don't touch the rail. I look forward to trying your shocking heresy. I don't always take the time to smooth the vamp of the reed but I'm always glad when I do. When your kit arrives I'll try the high polish. It makes sense this would extend reed life by sealing the pores somewhat. Saliva is full of digestive enzymes. I'm pretty sure reeds don't wear out. We digest them. Thanks for the new ideas.
Dear Michael, great video(s) ! I ordered one your sets (and some fun stuff), but I have a question on reeds : some reeds consume a lot more air than others - even though they might sound allright, any suggestion on how to tackle this ?
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I've been playing for 24 years, went to college for music performance and this was the most helpful video or instruction I have ever seen for teaching others on breaking in reeds. and I saw it for free on RUclips. I absolutely love your videos!! you obviously know what you are talking about. you're an excellent teacher. thanks for making such good content!
Will this work for my flute
Laura Bee 😂😂 yeah just make sure its consistent all throughout
You can try, but I don't think you can make it sound as good as an Alto Sax by sanding.
Yes
Wait a minute
ha ha i think.....
I recently purchased a box of alto sax reeds from a certain, non-eco friendly packaging company, and only 3 of the reeds played reasonably, and I have never had a reed that wasn't good enough for me, from any company. I decided this was the perfect time for me to learn to adjust reeds. Naturally this was the first place I came to look, watched the video, ordered myself the the set from your website and just adjusted my first reed while watching the video, I CANNOT BELIEVE the difference this has made!!!! What have I been missing all these years?! Thank you SO very much for this video and of course the awesome polishing cloth/plaque combo package! Oh, and the Earspasm Music sticker was an AWESOME bonus!
Shane Bentley I
I got your web!
Thanks for sharing that which I had suspected for years but as a Canadian who lives beside Toronto's biggest music store just buy reeds find a good one and rush to my gig. I will now hope to practice on boxes of reeds which have been stashed for years and never made it to gigs. I'm a hobbyist on Armenian Duduk and have several reeds which were picked for me but a world class player, but which have become almost impossibly stiff and stuffy in Toronto , which I think is a lot more humid.
Your hook is irrelevant, but ok
... this video is like a miracle for all of us ...
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
I tried you’re technique today and working on four reeds at moment over five minutes a time I the reeds which were lifeless at first exploded into life, what a sound, I had almost given up with squeaking and squealing, very minute sand, then play then went over second time very minute, the reeds exploded into life , I am learning to break the reeds in slowly over the week and see if I have crossed a barrier, but my god the sound was brutally sharp and powerful thank you, thank you I am so appreciated,I’m daz from australia
Thank you so much for this video, you are a clarinet god.
I'm a tuba player but I love your videos so much. I don't get any use out of videos like this but the informative style of your delivery makes these really interesting for me to watch.
Does this work for a piano?
No! You can sand the hammers, but be very careful.
I watched this years ago, but am now taking notes on the many highly worthwhile details which I had impatiently glossed over. Great succinct but very nuanced detailing here and great playing also.
Dear Mr. Lowenstein, just wanna say your videos are extremely informative and educational. There needs to be more teachers like you around. Oh, btw, your recital and masterclass in Perth, Western Australia was superb! Sorry, but didn't get a chance to say "hi" to you that night... so here's saying "HI"!
^Imagine writing a youtube comment like this unironically
I've been playing clarinet for not quite two months (after playing flute for over 20 years) and adjusted my first reed today; it went great! Drastically improved. Thanks for all your helpful content! (And yes I bought your reed adjustment pack.)
I've read much and watched lots of similar videos and this video is among the better of them - thanks as always
This is SOOO good!!
I tried it; and works!!-
Ordered the Planck and cloths.
What a great presentation!!!
Vandorn Supreme #3 down to
what my ear likes.
Discovery: reeds must be "fitted" to each different great mouthpiece separately.
Micheal, you have enlightened my life of chalumeau player! Now the 1st register sounds much better and I reach the second much easier and higher. I specify that I use a chalumeau without keys. To be more precise, I use a gauge to determine the free part of the rails. A huge thanks for sharing this video, you are inspiring for your music and your skills.
The most helpful explanation and demo I've found. Loved your multi-coloured diagram, starting at 3.20. Really clear and memorable. I've just used it to improve a stuffy tenor sax reed beyond recognition, at the very first attempt! Thank you so much.
Take this from a fifty-year-old who started his first wind instrument, the Yamaha Venova: this is THE most useful tutorial I found so far. You can work the rest of the technique by yourself, mostly. This, however, is something you would never work out, imho. Hint: just polishing your reed with a nail polish stick does miracles and it is safer than filing all the parts.
I purchased two sets of these, one for myself and another for a friend. Michael ships very quickly! I have been really struggling mostly with the bass clarinet reeds. I think I have 2 favorite reeds out of close to 15 reeds I can’t stand to try to play. I also have quite a few Bb reeds new in boxes that I know are unplayable until I learn how to do this. Great detailed info in this video. If anything, the clear plaque will help me flatten out my moist reed when the tips get a little wavy and it fits in my cases. Great RUclips channel❣️
Very precise and informative. My sax repairman told me about your video. I just wish you would have aimed the camera to the reed as you were sanding and polishing it. Fortunately, you verbally explain it well, but since it is a video, please always show the viewers as you're manually working on something. It would really help a lot. Thank you for sharing your expertise with us!
This!
agreed
agreed. my bad, and I'll be better in the future.
This changed my life I just bought two sets AND the staff sticky notes THANK YOU
Thank you sooooooo much!❤❤❤
I bought too many reed that were too hard and now i can use them with minor adjustments to get the sound i want tysm!
I was a none believer until I bought and polished my reeds just a little...instantly there was a different feel in the tongue like he said. Then when I played I was playing notes I had trouble with hit it with ease. Deep or high this was my game changer
Wow that was awesome and so motivating, tried it from another channel, but yours was vastly superior, excellent presentation and much appreciated I’m daz from australia
A really helpful video! This is the best video on the internet that explain how to work on reeds, I'm gonna share it right away! Thanks :D you're great!
1/4 in thick plate glass works amazing.
You can just cut an old mirror with a carbide cutter and smooth the edges with a diamond bit, duamind file, or diamond paper.
I've been adjusting my reeds for years using one of those box cutter knives (that you can break off when they get blunt) for scraping. I've given many reeds an extended life even after they've been cracked or chipped at the end as well as those that won't play from the box. I also use a nail clipper to remove the damaged tip which just happens to be the same round shape. The clipper may be too narrow for the bigger reeds, so I clip off the sides to almost the correct angle and finish off the shape with fine sandpaper. However, this causes the reed to become hard and unresponsive, so I must scrape back the reed, including the heart to bring it back into a playable range. Though this treatment may sound unorthodox a bit rough to some, it has ressurected some of my best playing reeds particularly back when times were tough and I've been doing it ever since. Also I've found that some reeds aren't very flat on the flat side (high and low or soft and hard ridges in the grain) and that tends to leak a lot of air, which isn't good and so I gently and evenly scrape that side as well. Scraping the flat side where the ligature holds it, will lift up a reed that closes off, especially those Rico student reeds that stop after 10mins of play. After scraping, they don't start off very well until they settle in but they play a bit longer when they do.
It's nice to actually see what sections of the reed do what and how adjusting them can affect the playing range.
Thank you for making such an informative video... I feel I can now evolve into a slightly higher realm. ;)
Yes!! The flat side must be flat!!!;
Get a high quality reed clipper
Your master reed class video was great! I see the sanding of reeds in a new way. Thank you.
Great presentation!
A little different from my knife school of thought. but similar to the file/polishing aspects my sax instructor favored.
YESSS! I'm so glad you posted a video about this. You've helped me so much and I hang on every video and word you say! Thank you!
Oh great! Something I have wanted to know for decades!
From now on, reeds will not be pain in the butt:D!I learned very useful thigs about reed adjustments fom your video. Every single reed form the box will sound great! Thanks again!
Great job explaining this. I have never seen such a good explanation of this art. Would be awesome to have a document with a diagram showing the regions to touch based on how the reed responds.
If you can find an old book; "The Art of Saxophone Playing" by Larry Teal", you will find some good charts that correspond to this video. I think this video is better than Larry Teal's Charts. If I remember correctly, Larry Teal also explains how important it is for the back of the reed to be flat where the reed touches the table of the mouthpiece. Larry Teal didn't go into as much detail (as this video) on the vamp of the reed. He shows some areas on the vamp similar to this video, but this video shows more detail. I would suggest making your own chart from this video and trying this first. I've never seen anyone so good at adjusting reeds before.
By the way, thank you, sir, for this amazing helpful information!! Been looking for an answer to sound problems for years.
'sand cloth' is called 'emery cloth' usually, just for people who might be searching for it online or w/e
Great video. My experience with reed adjustments has been that the major issue with reeds is the left/right balance. I can almost always improve a reed by playtesting both sides and then sanding the less responsive side.
I was surprised you did not mention this.
Do you never do this or do you consider it being more of a "how to fix a totally bad Reed" technique?
Best regards
Peter
what??? how do you play test one side? wat?
@@Francois_Dupont there is a tehnique where you rotate the mouthpiece to dampen one side of the Reed so that only one of the sides are vibrating. Sort of playing with 45degree angle of the mouthpiece in your mouth.
@@Francois_Dupont search for Tom Ridenour videos, he explain this perfectly
... and why no mention of non-flat backs of reeds? which can really cause problems too
I do appreciate making this informative and great video!!
You saved lots of my abandoned reeds. : )
Brilliant video. So informative on areas to tackle and those to leave well alone.
Grahame Easthope if woy want the reed to be thicher use 1-10 micron but if you want to be thinner use 11-30 micron
A clarinet University professor showed me this concept. It's probably the best technical lesson I use today. Sax reeds are a little larger. I make less mistakes than clarinet reeds. I work every reed I play.
This was really, really interesting stuff, man! I have been playing saxophone ( alto and tenor) for almost 50 years now ( well maybe more like 45 since I had a break for learning guitar ) and have always thought it was annoying having to spend 25-30 bucks for in practice 1-2 playable reeds in i box.... And the really good ones you are very afraid to loose or break, especially closing in to a performance. Of course I have experimented with scraping reeds using a razor blade, but never with such detailed knowledge of which tiny parts of the reed that affects what parts of your playing. Can't wait to start learning and practising tips from this video. THX!!
P.S. Forgot to say, that I found a glass jar in which I had stored three Vandoren JAVA 3.0 tenor reeds totally submerged in "Plantation Barbados" RUM for seven years, and they were perfectly playable, very nice sounding and with a delicious flavour right out of the jar! D.S.
... wonderful advice. Thank you very very much. It sounds like magic and thanks to you all of us can now do magics too ...
... best wishes from Prague, the Kingdom of Bohemia ...
👍⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐👍
Hi, Just wanted to say thank you for this tutorial, It actually worked for me although it will take practice, Thanks very much once again :-)
Great video again, Michael. You're putting them out faster than I can watch! My comment/experience is that often if a reed is hard, I start by sanding the bottom half (often just the shoulders), and I feel like it frees up the whole reed. Have you experienced this? Then I move toward the tip to improve response and balance.
Thank you Michael!
After having taken up my clarinet some years ago after a 35 years of break , I thought that meanwhile somebody must have invented something to avoid this reed nightmare. And it as. I fond many companies making synthetic reeds, but didn't like them until Legere launched the European cut.
They do the job and cane reeds, cutters, files or whatever is stored away together with most of my frustration. I*m playing a Bb Buffet RC, Vandoren B45, sometimes 5JB and reed #2,5.
have you ever tried the Vandoren Reed Resurfacer and Reed Stick? the reed stick is fantastic and is pretty much a sandpaper pen that lets you work exactly where you want, its made of etched glass. and the resurfacer lets you take off about a quarter strength really easily. if you find the sandpaper a little hard to use , the reed stick might be a good alternative, though it isnt super cheap
"Break-in" the reed first before working on reeds (typically a few days of the reed adjusting to being used)
DON'T TOUCH: The tip and the heart
1:26 - Tools
3:20 - Parts of a reed
5:18 - Reed too hard
6:28 - Bad altissimo articulation
7:05 - Fuzzy tone, especially when tonguing in the clarion register
7:59 - Heart of the reed
8:40 - Poor response in clarion register (still)
9:04 - Bad/fuzzy sound in lower register
10:07 - Demo
13:08 - Polishing
That's the way I work on the reeds, and every time someone ask me as how to fix them, I find it difficult to explain... Thanks for this video !
I want to start with thank you this and all your other videos, as a saxophone professor and clarinet/saxophone teacher I sometimes struggle to fit so much information into lessons, and even though I had some CDs of yours I was so excited when a young middle school (now high school) bass clarinet/clarinet student asked me if I had seen this RUclips channel. He is a voracious learner and joyfully consumes the knowledge and ideas found here. As a fellow teacher and musician, I'm not sure if I can express my gratitude for how you've inspired my young student and helped him enjoy music, even though you've never met him.
The second part is 2 questions, I often find keeping the back flat with a ReedGeek really helps many of my reed issues, but I'm just curious because it seems perhaps it is an issue you don't have, after having seen your reed videos. I don't often play it but I know my optimum is a strong enough screw/ligature that it can help reeds seal and play even if not perfect, but do you just not have this?
2nd is you said you don't touch the back half rail, but often on reeds (3-4 out of a box) I find that some of the bark/cuticle is left even on the back half, it stifles the reeds vibrations so it is one of the first things I check before adjusting elsewhere. Is this not really an issue because of the facing length of the bass clarinet mouthpiece?
Hey Ben, thanks for the note. Let me try to answer your two questions:
1. I have a reed geek but I never use it. I keep my reeds in a bag with a two-way humidifier (mercantile alert! I sell them... goo.gl/oTHFtr) which keeps them from warping.
2. I haven't seen that issue on Vandoren reeds in a long time, but you're right: if that cuticle (great word BTW!) is still there, you need to remove it.
Thank you so freaking much for this
Don't you check for balance by rotating the instrument from side to side?
Awesome video. Thanks so much for posting.
Can you also do a video on solo improv? Specifically for jazz?
I was thinking of asking you how to 'work on reeds' the whole day and I came to youtube and whaddda you just uploaded this! Hahaha I am definitely getting that from your website. I was just feeling crap because out of the whole Vandoren grey box, I have one reed that has the 'halo' and the others total shit. Now I can change their fate hahaha. Thanks Michael! I was also listening to your Sway album today.
This is excellent information. Do you ever feel the need to sand the back of your reeds?
For reed work, scrap the flat side flat with a high quality Italian reed knife or single edged razor blade.
Hey Michael, is there any chance you could make a printable version of that diagram you drew for where you should sand the reed and perhaps also show what effects each area you sand has please? If you could that would be amazing. Also, I love your videos and your playing is amazing! Keep the videos coming.
Hello Mr. Lowenstern! I have been playing clarinet for years, and in all these years I have never tested the hygro reed cases. It realy works? Is it a good idea buy one? and Which one?
Good work!
I don't use one...
Same thing for sax reeds? Thank you.
You are great man !!!
This is great, thank you so much. I think I'll have to be extra careful because where I live a box of reeds is so expensive that I have to buy 1 or 2 at a time. And very few times they are reeds that I actually end up using a lot.
Excellent video.
Awesome vid I need the kit!!!
This is video conveys all about reeds in only 16 minutes! My biggest trouble with cane reeds, is inconsistency! I mean the reed behaves very akward, after a few plays! I try always to rotate these two categories of reeds: 1) The super-ready to play reeds and 2) The reeds which have potential to perform from decently to very good! My latest problem with cane reeds, is that in the bottom reeds my tone "clacks" and the note seems that it will "break" somehow! So my question is: How is it possible, if it is possible, to adjust a cane reed to respond in a very well manner through all registers and not to lose it's vibrating behavior...Allow me to describe it as "punchiness"! I hope it's not my embouchoure or a leak on my alto saxophone!!! Thanks!
Thank you, it is magic!
Thanks for everything now I know what to do
thanks for your time!!
You're the best !
An alternative to sandpaper is a nail file/buffer
Thank you.
amazing lesson thanks so much!!!
I does exactly what it says on the tin. Cool, thanks working fantastic.....supposedly it makes a better difference than trying different reed brands, after all those reeds are all made from the same bamboo....
Wowww
Amazing video.
Really enjoyed it.
Thank you so much..
Regards
Mario Malette
Great video!
I know this video is old but I’m getting into a more in-depth Reed break in process that lasts 2 weeks. I know I should polish the Reed during the break in process but do you work on the read like this during the break in process? Or do you wait until it’s fully broken in?
Don't use sand paper, microscopic pieces of sand get in the reed veins or tubes, also reeds that have been worked on using sand paper can introduce friction to the mouthpiece resulting in wear and tear of the facing.
Good info , Thank You
Thank's man, you are the best!
6:39 that reed g spot
Thanks for your explanation, fine
Excellent. I will use this method on my reed french horn. the reed horn doesnt sound very good. I wonder if I should use a bass clarinet mouthpiece in stead of the clarinet mp on my horn. then again, i could always go back to my farkas mp and resign from this invention / experiment. Hey - i could polish my metal mouthpiece. Inside and out. Brilliant!!!
Ezelent video. Thanks God bless you
Would you maybe play the bass clarinet solo "Deepwood"? I am gonna play with it for my qualifing exam for the army band and I would really appreciate another interpretation on it. Thanks anyways.
*Sorry for the repost, I just want to make sure Micheal reads it *
10-4. That's on the docket for this weekend.
Thank you so much :)
Sometimes I find it hard to line the tip up with the mouthpiece, only to find that the stock is not square on the table, and one seems to throw the other off.
I am a huge fan of your work! I have been playing bass clarinet for about 3 years now I'm starting to notice that my band music is getting too easy and I want to get better. What do you suggest doing in order for me to become a better steonger bass clarinet player?
Well, it's all about how you challenge yourself. If you have a private teacher, you can ask them what s/he recommends. But if it were me, I'd just try to pick some more challenging music, or try to learn a different style (jazz, etc), maybe join a youth orchestra if there is one in your area, decide to go to a music camp like Interlochen in Michigan next summer, etc, etc.
very educative,,much appreciated thanks...
Good stuff!
Watched this video and immediately bought this off your site. My professor has been telling me I need to learn.. my thing that I'm confused about is the strength of the sandpaper.. how do I know which one to adjust the reed with? And will the polisher be labeled as the polisher when I receive it?
TheBrocolia they're all polishing cloths. You'll see the strengths listed o. A sheet it comes with.
Very interesting and informative about reeds!! I wanna buy a set on you’re website. But I live in Sweden. Can you ship international? Doesn’t seem like on you’re site...
Hi, as usual this video is very helpful for us all reed instruments enthusiasts.
Please let me ask, is there a way to recover a reed that you feel it's got good quality sound, but it squeaks a lot even after you've sanded it?
Thank you!
Best Regards from Portugal!
Hm, usually the reed is dead at that point, I'm afraid.
My sanding kit just arrived in the mail. Thank you. A couple of questions: 1) would it help to cut the cloths into smaller squares? and 2) what would help with octave jumps to the altissimo register, e.g. clarion e to altissimo e or clarion c to altissimo f?
I usually fold mine into quarters rather than cut them. That way I can open them up if I want to do a pass over larger reeds in "polish mode." And to answer question #2, go for the green dot (from the video).
Do you have any tips for easily flustered fingers?
I made adjustments to my Reed and now my upper and lower registers sound excellent. But my open G, A, and Bb (but especially open G) are very fuzzy sounding. What area on the Reed do I work on for those awful notes? Thank you for your videos.
do you have plans to make any more "become a more flexible player" videos?
any ideas on how you'd like me to be more flexible?
i've really enjoyed the way you've briefly broken down the styles of Coleman Hawkins and John Coltrane, and explained part of what it is that makes them sound the way they do. maybe a Wayne Shorter or Stan Getz solo would be an appropriate choice since they both have such distinct styles, or you could change it up and look into the style of a baritone sax player, like Harry Carney's Sophisticated Lady.
P.S. thanks for the quick shipping on the reed sandpaper
love ya bro great class!!!
I recently bought a used conta alto that came with Plasticover reeds. Can they be adjusted like regular cane reeds?
Thanks Michael! This will be great as an introduction for some of my students, I definitely picked up some stuff for me myself. Do you flatten the table of the read on your plaque? I was taught to do this first by polishing on printer or notebook paper, then taking the warp out of the table of the read with sandpaper on the glass plaque. Wondering your thoughts on this.
Nevermind. You address this in another video
Great video. A concise and lucid presentation, and pleasantly entertaining as usual.
What are your thoughts about flattening the back of the reed? I was taught to do this - by a student of Joe Allard. When a reed begins to play stuffy (stuffily?) I check the flatness using a straightedge (reed knife or anything handy) held across the back of the reed and held up to the light. I often find it has warped and correcting this almost always makes the reed more responsive, though I am aware it takes cane away from the heart of the reed, so maybe there are drawbacks? A reed knife works well for this if you like that sort of thing ( I see that's not your style).
The Vandoren glass gizmo mentioned above is a terrific tool for flattening the back. It amounts to a superfine flat file so it removes minimal cane, and it's foolproof. It's very hard to abruptly destroy a reed with it. It comes with a sort of glass version of a reed rush, or a superfine glass cylindrical file, which I haven't much used. Good tool but sort of expensive. Both are gentler approaches than healing with honed steel. The little cylindrical gizmo might integrate well with your approach.
Also: I was taught to avoid taking any material off of the very rail. Instead, I was told to go just inside the rail and parallel to it, maybe by 1 mm, and take off material in a channel or alley between the rail and heart. I have just taken it as received wisdom that you don't touch the rail. I look forward to trying your shocking heresy.
I don't always take the time to smooth the vamp of the reed but I'm always glad when I do. When your kit arrives I'll try the high polish. It makes sense this would extend reed life by sealing the pores somewhat. Saliva is full of digestive enzymes. I'm pretty sure reeds don't wear out. We digest them.
Thanks for the new ideas.
That's a well-deserves 'like subscribe and comment' for me. What a homie
Is this available in Canada?
How long are you expecting a reed to last? Serious question btw, I'm a raw beginner.
Dear Michael, great video(s) ! I ordered one your sets (and some fun stuff), but I have a question on reeds : some reeds consume a lot more air than others - even though they might sound allright, any suggestion on how to tackle this ?
The reed that "consumes" more air: do you mean it takes more air to make it vibrate? If so, it's a harder reed.