Saxophone Mouthpiece Cap

Saxophone Mouthpiece Cap at Amazon

Standard alto sax mouthpiece cap. Helps to protect and save mouthpieces from chipping or cracking.

Reeds are fundamentally a piece of cane (wood) that is cut down to be very thin on one side and thicker on the other. The reed works by blowing air throughout it and then it starts to vibrate and make a high “squeally” sound.

First, if you spend any time at a music store, you will observe numerous brands and styles of reeds. Let’s talk when it comes to a good deal of options. It is for less to buy reeds in a box rather than individually. Always buy reeds for your type of saxophone i.e. alto buys alto reeds, tenor buys tenor reeds etc. You will also see that reeds are sized in numbers 1-5, and in another system that goes soft to hard. Most reeds are using the number system. More highpriced does not mean better. I would get started out with a Rico Royal size 2.5. If you go with a Vandoren reed (a little more expensive) go with a size 2. The Vandoren reeds and the Rico Royals come in a assortment of dissimilar cuts. On Vandorens choose the one in the blue box. They also make Java, V-12 etc. but just choose the regular old blue box reed. On Rico Royals, just pick the Rico Royal brand.

Not the Jazz cut and not Rico. Rico is not the same quality as the Rico Royal. The size of reed you choose has to do with a couple of factors. The biggest factor is probably the size of your mouthpiece. Another element is embouchure strength. After a couple of months of steady practice, you may want to move up a 1/2 size.

In ordinary reeds need to be soaked before you may play them. A reed may be soaked in a cup of water, or in your mouth. All constituents of the reed will have to be wholly soaked before it will play it is best; this commonly means regarding two minutes in the mouth. Don’t forget to soak the back! Take care that you don’t nick the tip of the reed with your teeth. If the tip appears to be “wavy” soak it longer. After three minutes you may set the reed on a flat surface and rub your thumb from the back of the reed to the tip and off the end. NEVER rub the reed from the tip back up, you may harm the tip and make the reed worthless. Once the reed is decently soaked, take your mouthpiece and lick the table. Now take the reed and line up the tip of the mouthpiece with the tip of the reed. I prefer to line it up just a little short of the tip of the mouthpiece. If the reed is over the tip, it won’t play the same. You may never be too picky on the placement of your reed. ALWAYS make sure it is utterly lined up.

Now, take your ligature and slide the big end onto the tip of the mouthpiece. Be careful not to touch the tip of the reed with the ligature. The ligature will always be placed with the screws on the right side when the reed is facing you. Sometimes the screws are on the top and at times on the bottom, but always on the right. You’ll observe that the ligature is tapered (big and little ends). Your mouthpiece is also tapered. You will need to put the big end on primary so it slides down to the big end of the mouthpiece. Put the ligature back far sufficient so that it is on the bark portion of the reed. Fasten the screw(s) tight sufficient so that the reed will not move around on the mouthpiece.

A word on reed care. Reeds are pricey and delicate. They will effortlessly break if you touch the tip of the reed with your finger. To move the reed around on your mouthpiece always use the sides and back of the reed to move it and NOT the tip! If you live in a arid climate, your reed could arid out while you are resting for a few minutes. Always keep your reed wet when it is on your mouthpiece. If you are in school and your teacher is talking to another section, you may put your mouthpiece cap on your mouthpiece to keep it wet. A good trick is to lick the reed first, then put the cap on. I prefer taking a good deal of tape and covering the holes on the mouthpiece cap. If you live in a humid climate, you won’t have as numerous difficultnesses with reeds drying out. Keep in mind that air conditioners and heaters take the moisture out of the air.

Another utile tip to help reeds last longer is to rub the reed with your thumb from back to front pushing very hard. This ought to be done on a flat surface. This will crush the fibers in the reed and make the reed “waterproof”. When you are done playing you will have to always remove your reed and place it in a reed guard. Several companies make reed guards. I’d probably get one that holds four reeds. You must always have four good reeds that you rotate on a every day basis. When one is no longer usable, replace with a new one.

Wipe off your reed before you place it in the reed guard. The key to keeping a reed from warping is to let it arid out slowly. If a reed dries out quickly, the thin ends arid original and the reed warps up. When it is warped, it will no longer lay flat on the table of the mouthpiece, and will need to be sanded down. This subject is a little complicated, and I won’t address it in this article. You may prevent reeds from drying speedily by putting them in the reed guard, placing the guard in a plastic bag and folding it once. You don’t want it to be air-tight. If it is air-tight, you will grow mold on your reeds. Wash it off, and don’t fold so tightly next time. If mold proceeds to be a problem, take a teaspoon of rock salt and wrap it in a heap of old pantyhose. This will keep the mold away.

The intermediate reed will last in regards to 20 to 30 playing hours. If you break the tip or take a good chunk out of it, it may last only 30 seconds! You will recognise when a reed is no longer usable, because it will be broken at the tip, or the reed will feel soft when you play. It will blow genuinely easy, and close off when you play higher. If a reed is not sounding good, and it sounds like there is too much air in your sound, the reed may be too hard, or may not be on straight. If you do play on a reed too long, it may become water-logged. It will appear to have water inside of the reed and will look darker in sure spots. You want to keep away from this by switching reeds daily. TAKE CARE OF YOU REEDS AND THEY WILL TAKE CARE OF YOU!

A note on synthetic reeds. I have played a lot of reeds in my day, and came across that the plastic reeds in general don’t sound as good. The only exception to that is the Fibracell reed. I love these reeds. They sound splendid and may be played for up to a year. They will break, but are water proof, always flat on the back and will not warp. I’d start out out with a cane reed, and later if you want, try a fibracell with a similar size to the cane reed that you are playing. Just lately I’ve had good success with a brand called HAHN. It might be worth checking out!