A Guide To Reeds

Most instruments in the woodwind family require a reed to be placed on the mouthpiece; one notable exception is the flute.

Single Reeds are used by saxophone and clarinet.

Double reeds are used by oboe, bassoon and English horn.

Most big brands of reeds are made from European Cane which is then finished in Europe or the USA. Reeds are made from genuine cane, it is sliced in specialist machines to the shape that you will be familiar with.

Reeds vary in strength, with single reeds the softest reed is usually denoted by the number 1 or 1 1/2 and the hardest 4. With double reeds rather than numbers they usually say on the packet, soft, medium soft, medium, medium hard or hard.

In very basic terms the newer you are to an instrument the softer the reed you will require, as you progress and get used to playing you will move on to harder strengths. This of course has some variation a beginner who is a 20 yr old man may require a slightly harder reed than a 10 year old girl, however the starting point for most students is still always strength 1 ½ or medium soft.

Single reeds for clarinet and saxophone cannot be interchanged; equally a tenor saxophone and an alto saxophone will have different sizes of reeds. Similarly an oboe and bassoon double reed are very different shapes, always make sure you buy the correct reed for your instrument.

Single Reed Brands and Quality

Traditionally there are two big reed manufacturers in the student world, they are vandoren reeds and rico reeds. Both vandoren and rico then have a number of sub-brands. Vandoren is usually seen as a better reed as it is slightly thicker cut, rico however would usually represent the best value for money.

Double Reed Brands and Quality

Double reeds are slightly different from single reeds in that they are more difficult to mass produce, each reed must be tested individually by a trained oboist. Fr many years rico dominant the student market however they have now left the double reed making business. Many UK shops are now stocking Elite “Rico Style” Oboe Reeds, an oboe reed made in the style of rico that is the same tip length and wire, you would expect to pay c. £6-£8.00 for a god quality oboe reed. Oboe reeds also exist as a cottage industry with many teachers making their own and selling them for anything between £5 and £20 each.  

Reed Storage

Reeds are very fragile and should always be kept in a plastic reed holder, a player should also single out one reed and play on that until it wears and then select another. A double reed can last for very different lengths of time but one would expect a single reed with regular use to last c. 2 weeks. Special humidity controlled cases are available for both single and double reeds. Reeds are very fragile and should be handled with care, one chip and the reed should be discarded.

Synthetic Reeds

Synthetic reeds are popular with two groups of people, the first group is allergy suffers. Some people will have a reaction to natural cane and synthetic reeds are an ideal solution. Although the same tone can never be achieved from synthetic they are excellent for allergy suffers who don’t want to give up playing.

Synthetic reeds are also very popular with parents of young children, especially those who play oboe. An oboe reed as discussed above is very fragile and costs c. £7.00. If your child is breaking one or two reeds a week it can quickly become an expensive pursuit. Many parents will encourage their children to practice during the week on a synthetic reed and then use a cane reed at practice with the teacher or in orchestra etc, they can be a very handy training aid for young oboe and bassoon players.