Hi there, fellow blowers of Saxophones. I thought I'd start out with a topic near and dear to us all. The search for the perfect reed. I'll begin with a few general tips. First, never even touch the tip of the reed with your fingers. Handle it by the butt end only. Second, always put the ligature on first, then slip the reed under the ligature. It's too easy to nick the reed when you put the ligature on after the reed. Try to buy your reeds in unopened box. That way you won't be looking in a box that's been picked through. If you have to do it that way then make sure the reed isn't split at the end by running your fingernail very lightly across the tip of the reed. Look for a nice amber color in the woody part, some players prefer the wood to be speckled. Make sure the
vamp (cut part) of the reed is symmetrical. Look at the butt end of the reed and imagine the size of the piece of reed cane it came from. It should be about 1 1/2 to 2 inches in diameter. This should look symmetrical also. Of course you will find reeds that go against every one of these guidelines and still work great. The opposite is also true. Go figure. I am a big fan of Alexander Superial DC reeds. In thirty years of searching for a "good" reed, these come the closest. Stick with the better known brands at first, but as you progress try different brands from time to time. You should have three or four playable reeds on hand at all times. Rotate between them so you are playing on relatively fresh reeds. When reeds go bad, it's time to replace them. For me, if I feel the reed just doesn't respond like it should or the altissimo register just won't pop out like it usually does, or I get the general sound of a kazoo over the whole range, then I switch reeds. Anytime you're having some problem with sound, switch reeds, it's the easiest thing to try first. Well, good luck on your search. Practice hard!
