Saxophone Forum


by tempomaster
(36 posts)
11 years ago

Ligature Questions

The ligature's function is to hold the reed in place on the mouthpiece - right?  I understand there is a certain precision factor involved - the reed has to stay exactly where the player wants it to stay.  So the question (s) ; if one were to buy a $200-500 mouthpiece that came with a ligature wouldn't the quality of that ligature be reflective to the price of the mouthpiece?  And shouldn't that ligature be sufficient to meet the player's requirements for stablizing the reed / mouthpiece interface?  Is it often the case that one pays $375 for a mouthpiece and then discards the ligature and buys a stand alone ligature for another ± $50? 

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  1. by GFC
    (842 posts)

    11 years ago

    Re: Ligature Questions

    Different ligatures hold the reed in slightly different ways and respond to the vibration of the reed differently.  It does color the sound and change the response.  Whether those differences are critical or not depend upon the player and what they are trying to achieve.

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    1. by tempomaster
      (36 posts)

      11 years ago

      Re: Ligature Questions

      Thanks for the response.  I purchased a new Bobby Dukoff steel mouthpiece for my tenor.  I have been using the ligature that came with it.  Later I bought a Otto Link and the seller suggested I buy a stand alone ligature to use with it.  I took the seller's advice and bought the stand alone ligature.  I bought the mouthpiece to get a bit warmer, softer sound and the ligature does seem to help with that.  Once again, thanks for the input. 

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