What strength Reed should I use clarinet?

What strength Reed should I use clarinet?

Most reed manufacturers sell reeds in strengths from 1 to 5, often in half-steps. A 1 would be the softest, and a 5 would be the hardest. Some brands use "soft", "medium", and "hard" instead. For a beginner, a 2, or 2 /12 would be the best starting point.

What is the most expensive clarinet?

Most expensive clarinet I have bought is Wolf Gottmans full boehm (137.50).

What is the best brand of clarinet?

Synthetic reeds are made of composite materials that are designed to imitate the quality of a reed plant and sound as much as possible, just like their cane counterparts. Early Synthetics were plastics, and the newer Synthetic reeds are better sounding and more advanced aerospace materials.

What strength of Reed should I use?

Some manufacturers label strength with words instead, rating it "soft," "medium" or "hard." The standard scale for saxophone reed strength runs from 1 through 5, with 1 being the softest and 5 being the hardest reed. If you're a beginner, it's best to start with a softer reed, usually about a 2.

How much does a clarinet sell for?

A good-quality, brand-new student clarinet may be purchased for about $400. An intermediate instrument may cost about $700 and professional clarinets are generally $1,000 and up. If this is more than what you are willing to spend, there are two options.

How do I choose a clarinet?

Aside from choosing a brand, a clarinetist needs to consider a reed's strength and cut. Strengths range from soft to hard, typically rated on a 1-to-5 system (5 being the hardest). While a hard reed produces a fuller and thicker sound, a softer reed easier to play, making it suitable for most beginners.

What number reed should I use?

The normal range for reeds is 2 to 5: the lower the number, the thinner the reed, and the higher the number, the thicker the reed. The thickness of the reed will affect the tone and how easy or difficult the instrument is to play. In general, a thinner reed, say 2 or 2.5, will have a brighter tone.

What is the best reed brand?

To move up reed size you'd be switching instruments. To answer your question, there is no "need" to move up a strength even, unless a reed feels too soft to you or is not producing the desired sound or control. I've moved back and forth between 3.5 and 4 for years.

What does a harder reed do?

Reed thickness is most often expressed as a number. The normal range for reeds is 2 to 5: the lower the number, the thinner the reed, and the higher the number, the thicker the reed. … Reeds with a thickness of 4 or 5 are harder and thus require more skill to sound, but the tone is fatter, bigger, and warmer.

What do Reed sizes mean?

Reeds vary in strength in half measures – a bit like shoe sizes! – so they start at 1 ½, 2, 2 ½ , 3, 3 ½, etc. The number refers to how thick the reed is. … A thicker reed is more difficult to play but thicker reeds do offer a much better tone production and thus improve the sound of an instrument.

What size Reed do professional clarinetists use?

That is why to get a fuller range of notes, some thicker reeds are required. Clarinet reed sizes of 2, 3 or even 3.5 are recommended to those that have an idea on how to play the instrument.

How do you get a good tone on a clarinet?

Putting too much of your bottom lip on your reed, or playing your clarinet with a closed throat will result in a sound that's not ideal for your clarinet. To make the perfect embouchure for the best clarinet sound, place your bottom lip against your teeth so your chin is flat.

What is the oldest woodwind instrument?

The flute is the oldest of all instruments that produce pitched sounds (not just rhythms), and was originally made from wood, stone, clay or hollow reeds like bamboo.

Are all clarinet reeds the same size?

Reeds vary in strength in half measures – a bit like shoe sizes! – so they start at 1 ½, 2, 2 ½ , 3, 3 ½, etc. The number refers to how thick the reed is. This is not a standardized scale, however, and reed thicknesses and construction vary by manufacturer – Rico reeds are generally thinner than Vandoren, for example.

Are alto sax reeds the same as clarinet?

Alto saxophone reeds will work on an alto clarinet. … They would work a little better for jazz but technically, reeds are designed for the optimum performance for each instrument. A soprano sax reed can work but it's not the right cut and also clarinet reeds tend to be longer than soprano reeds.

What is a Legere Reed?

Légère produces premium synthetic clarinet, saxophone, bassoon and oboe reeds. They are used by players in the most prestigious orchestras and on stages around the world. Légère reeds produce a warm, vibrant sound while remaining consistent and playable for a very long time.

Why is my clarinet not making a sound?

If the reed is too high or too low, no sound will come out. 3) Is your embouchure (shape of your mouth) too tight or loose? If you are biting down or pressing on the reed too hard you won't get a sound. Similarly, if you are applying hardly any pressure, then you wouldn't make much sound.

Why are reeds so expensive?

Oboe reeds are really expensive, especially when you are comparing them to clarinet or saxophone reeds. So – why are oboe reeds so expensive? … Another reason is the reeds are very time-consuming to make. Even machine made oboe reeds will still take longer to make than clarinet or saxophone reeds.