What strength of reed should I use?

What strength of reed should I use?

Most teachers recommend that a first-year musician use a 2 or 2.5 (soft or medium soft) reed. Anything stiffer may make it difficult to produce a sound while anything more flexible may produce a weak sound. Your teacher should let you know when it is time to switch to a different strength reed.

What reed strength should I use for alto sax?

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.

What is saxophone reed strength?

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.

Are stronger reeds better?

A harder reed will keep you more consistently in tune than a softer reed will. However, it can also help your intonation if you are more easily able to bend (that is, if you play on a softer reed). If you wish to be constantly adapting to play more in tune, softer reeds will make it easier to do so.

How do you know if your reed is too soft?

If you’re playing on a 3, then move down to 2.5. When the reed is too soft, you’ll get a buzzy sound right out of the box. People compare this to playing on paper.

When should I move up a reed size?

Recognize the signs. Move up if it’s hard to get a warm sound on the high notes or the pitch is flat. Move down if the sound is stuffy and articulation isn’t clean. Reed strength needs to match the mouthpiece you’re playing on.

Why do harder reeds sound better?

Harder reeds allow for a louder, heavier, darker, or fuller sound, but they require strong support and a developed embouchure (mouth muscles). This is the result of the performer overcompensating to bring the pitch up because of the softer reed. A softer reed will also tend to speak too easily.

When should I move up reed strength?

Are softer reeds quieter?

All things considered, it’s usually easier for most beginners/intermediate players to learn to play more softly by using softer reeds that vibrate more easily with less air (= less volume) than by using harder reeds.

How long does it take to break in a saxophone reed?

4-5 days of adjustments is plenty of time to tell if a reed can be made good. I can usually tell after 2 to 3 sessions (with adjustments). Most can be made into great players, but some just don’t seem to be worth the effort.

Does a Saxaphone have a reed?

Without the shaved bit of cane on the mouthpiece, a saxophone would be merely a collection of valves and brass tubing. With the reed, it becomes a soulful, vital member of any marching band or orchestra. A reed is usually made from natural cane, thick at the bottom, thinning gradually to the slightly curved top.

What Reed does a saxophone use?

V16 (saxophone) This reed is often used by jazz players. It is unfiled and has a thicker tip to the reed, giving brilliance to the sound. The unfiled French style to cutting a reed provides a brighter, edgier sound.

Does the saxophone have a reed?

The saxophone uses a single-reed mouthpiece similar to that of the clarinet. Each size of saxophone (alto, tenor, etc.) uses a different size of reed and mouthpiece. Most saxophonists use reeds made from Arundo donax cane, but since middle of the twentieth century some have also been made of fiberglass and other composite materials.

What is the size of an alto sax reed?

The alto is close to 25 inches long, and the tenor is roughly 28 inches long. The bell on an alto is about 4 inches in diameter, and a tenor’s bell is about 5 inches across. Reed sizes vary as well; an alto sax reed is about 2.75 inches by 0.625 inches, while a tenor sax reed is about 3.2 inches by 0.68 inches.