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Flat Oboe Reeds Are Instant Death!

Probably the worst thing that you can do when playing the oboe is play on flat oboe reeds. This is one of the most common reed problems and it can be a bit tricky to fix. Here are some things that you might want to try out and see if they help you.

After you get the basic construction of the reed in place, for example the back of the tip and the back, clip the reed to one millimeter longer than your planned final length. For example, it your finished reed length is 70 millimeters, then clip it right away to 71 millimeters.

After it is clipped, let the reed dry out completely before working on it again.

When you come back to it, it will be very resistant, but take your time and work on the tip first to get some vibration back into it. You will probably have to scrape the back and the heart a bit. Do not make drastic differences between the thickness of the parts of the reed.

What you will find is that the reed will hold it’s pitch better.

There are more things that you can do to fix flat oboe reeds, and I will talk about them in another post.

Hope this helps!

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How To Find That Oboe Sound

We all want to have that “great” oboe sound, but sometimes it is something that seems to elude us. One of the biggest problems is define exactly what that great sound is.

Many words are used to describe the sound of the oboe.

•Light
•Dark
•Bright
•3 dimensional
•Heavy
•Reedy
•Nasal
Take your pick.

The most important aspect which determines how oboe sound develops is the sound that you have “in your ear.”

It is a very interesting thing to see when an accomplished oboist sounds the same no matter what reed he plays on.

I remember when I was younger listening to a very famous oboist pick up a student’s oboe and reed, play on it, and sound exactly the same as always. The sound seemed to come from somewhere other than just the reed. This happened several times in the section rehearsal. When I pick up my colleagues reed and oboe, I still sound like me and she sounds like her on my setup.

Most oboists develop a sound concept at an early stage of playing, mostly conforming to what they are accustomed to heating at the time. It isn’t until later that one begins to understand what is happening.

The process of “finding your sound” can take a long time, but it isn’t that difficult.

If you’re a bit confused over what you want to sound like, just take it step-by-step. Listen to some recordings of some great oboists. Try and get that oboe sound in your ear, and imitate it. We live in a very good online world. YouTube is probably the best audio resource. Go through it and you will find some great examples.

Keep in mind to be aware of what it is you like or dislike about a particular oboist’s sound. But most importantly,

Practice, practice, practice.

Tons of long tones. This is the best exercise that you can do. Always relax and let the reed vibrate. Think about bringing out the lower overtones in your sound instead of cutting out the higher ones. Always support the air column well. One thing you can try is to stand up against a wall with your back, shoulders, and head touching it completely. Play through your longtone exercises this way. It will feel really strange at first, but will get your air column opened up.

Don’t get frustrated! A good oboe sound, just like a good wine needs time to mature and develop.

It will happen.

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Can you have a good responding reed with a lot of resistance? Yes. The thing is, resistance is a very personal thing. What is considered the perfect amount of resistance for me, may be too hard or too soft for you.

So let’s say you have what feels like a pretty good reed. Try this test:

Play a middle “G” very softly without using the tongue for the attack. Remember to play “piano” and just let the note come out. If the reed responds well, it should come out smooth and beautiful. If it honks out and you hear very strange sounds, there is a problem with the basic response of the reed.

This test not only shows me what is happening to the response, it is giving me information about how the tip of the reed is balanced. The vibrations start at the very tip, so if this is not the thinnest part of the reed, you are in trouble.

The second aspect of response is what I like to call (and I can’t take credit for calling it this) “the fast response”. I want enough resistance to blow against, but if it gets too much, the notes won’t come out nicely. I like to check this with a variety of soft and loud dynamics using different notes in different registers. I want the notes to come out without any effort and without any cracking of the sound.

This part of the response in my opinion, is affected most by the transition from the tip to the heart. If that area is too heavy proportionally, the fast response will feel “thuddy” “bulky”
Kind of the “bull in a china shop” feel. sometimes it feels like you are swimming in a pool with somebody’s finger pushing up against your forehead.

To fix this, make sure the opening of the reed is not too big. Then adjust the transition from the heart to the tip.

Ok, now that we have that fixed, it is time for the real response test. Play some low “C’s” and “C#’s” with fast sixteenth notes. They should all come out very clearly. If they don’t, first make sure you are not biting the reed. If everything is ok with your lips and air, look at the reed and see what the crow says. Check the end and corners of the tip of the reed to make sure that they are the thinnest parts. After that, check the integration from the heart to the tip.

Don’t forget also that a small bit taken out of the back of the reed can do wonders. If the crow drops, make sure to clip it back. Everything is give and take, or “balance”.

I hope these suggestions work. It is very important that every note sounds when you want them to sound, not when the reed wants them to.

Good luck

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