I set up cane drone reeds in my Concert Pitch set (Froment) about 2 years ago when I got the set. I’m no stranger to setting up cane reeds (it’s a craft unto itself… using the right sealing wax, the right wax on the hemp for the bridles, the right wax on the hemp at the reed seat…on and on…) and they play rock steady in both octaves. BUT… over the last several months they have started to use more air and I would like to decrease their volume a bit. Any suggestions? I can make new reeds as well, so I would welcome suggestions on either changes to the existing reeds to make them quieter and more air effinceint, or on what features to incorporate in making new reeds to accomplish this.
Thanks…and Happy Holidays!
Of course, the obvious suggestion is to close the tongue very slightly with the bridle. Close it too much and the reed will close down. If a tiny movement of the bridle doesn’t do it for you, you can add a small blob of wax or etc. to the tip of the tongue. This will flatten the pitch, which is made up for by closing the bridle slightly, which will sharpen the pitch. Sometimes the combination will decrease volume and air demand. Some reeds will not respond to any manipulation and may need to be replaced with a new one. Often, only one reed is the biggest offender in drinking air. Fixing it may bring the reeds back into balance. Some reeds may last for decades, while others have a shorter life.
hi jeff,drone reeds ,a perrenial problem as are all reeds.i have found that if you use the right internal bore of cane and most importantly remove all of the residual pith,as much as you can,by using a needle file or a drill bit until the body of the reed is so thin that when you split the tongue that you have a perfectly formed cylinder.the tongue should be split from the body as thinly as possible so that the tongue vibrates freely.i have found that with this method very little waxing or bridling of the body is necessary if you get the initial length right,it is not rocket science and a little experimentation will get you there.right bore,thin body and you are cooking.merryxxxxxx allan.
Very cool Allan! Might you give us some lengths and apprx bore (drill bit sizes..yup drill bits topic again:-) to start with for ten, bari & bass?
First of All. stop.. and don’t do anything crazy just yet… If you’ve had a great run with these reeds and all of the sudden they’ve started taking more air there may be a simple solution. I don’t remember where I picked this trick up from, but I think it may have been Al Purcell.
Sometimes dirt or dust collects along the drone reeds and needs to be cleaned out. the recommendation I had was to buy a pack of cigarette papers.. take one of these very thin papers and slide it under the tongue of your reed. then press the blade gently down on it, and pull the paper out. You’ll probably see a line of dirt that comes off when you do this. do it two or three times. on your reeds and see if that doesn’t straighten out your air problems.
All the best and I hope that helps.
Dr. Eric
First of All. stop.. and don’t do anything crazy just yet… If you’ve had a great run with these reeds and all of the sudden they’ve started taking more air there may be a simple solution. I don’t remember where I picked this trick up from, but I think it may have been Al Purcell.
Sometimes dirt or dust collects along the drone reeds and needs to be cleaned out. the recommendation I had was to buy a pack of cigarette papers.. take one of these very thin papers and slide it under the tongue of your reed. then press the blade gently down on it, and pull the paper out. You’ll probably see a line of dirt that comes off when you do this. do it two or three times. on your reeds and see if that doesn’t straighten out your air problems.
All the best and I hope that helps.
Dr. Eric
“… over the last several months they have started to use more air and I would like to decrease their volume a bit.”
In view of this relatively rapid change and the time of the year - couldn´t it be due to the change from summer to winter? The cane got dryer over time and this time it couldn´t “keep up” with the summer-winter change any more? The body shrinks more than the tongue - which then lifts. “Roll the reed between the palms of your hands” came to my mind immediatly.
Wouldn´t it be helpful to have a set of “winter-dronereeds” at hand?
In view of this Allan Moller´s way especially makes sense to me: You remove the softer part of the cane that will soak up/dry off relativly more humidity and thus get less “humidity-changing” reeds.