(Translated by the admired English bassoonist, Richard Newton, from the original article appearing in "Metodika obucheniya igre na dukhovykh instrumentakh" (Manual of Wind Playing), Issue 11. Moscow 1966. Reprinted here with kind permission of Yuri Nekliudov and Richard Newton. Editor's note: Some of the mechanical alterations to the bassoon mentioned in these comments of Mr. Nekliudov will seem extreme and unnecessary to Western instrumentalists, who often have skilled woodwind repairers available to make yearly adjustments for them. However, I think it is remarkable for all to note the thorough study of the bassoon Mr. Nekliudov has made before attempting these alterations - which are serving him very well in his own performance. And, I feel, instrument-makers and repairers alike will find this article most interesting.)
The music schools and conservatories of our country (i.e., U.S.S.R.) prepare performers on all the wind instruments. Students study how to master their instruments and are taught to read and intelligently perform music, whether it be from the orchestral, chamber music or solo repertoire. At the same time the students do not get that knowledge which is connected with the structural peculiarities of wind instruments so necessary to every performer in his daily work.
As is known, the bassoonist in his daily work meets the ever-recurring difficulty of finding his reed gradually going out of tune and having to replace it by a new one. This happens because reeds do not hold out against long use by reason of the depositing of salts and other compounds, contained in the saliva, impregnating the cane and being deposited on the inner walls of the reed. As a result of the action of these deposits, the reed begins to be spoiled, loses its elasticity and its response to control as well. After 20 to 30 days of service it goes out of tune. The bassoonist must always have a few reeds in stock. He has to accustom himself to a new one. It has to be "played in," and because of this there is during a certain time a change in the quality of sound from his instrument, which is quite undesirable when he is continually performing in the orchestra. True, new reeds can be played in beforehand in readiness for the changeover from the old one, but this practice does harm. Each reed has to be gotten used to, and to play all the time on different reeds means putting at risk the tone-quality of the instrument.
In this respect, players of the brass instruments, using metal mouthpieces, have a great advantage over the bassoonist. Many bassoonists have sought a way to solve this problem. Attempts have been made to make bassoon reeds on the lines of the clarinet single reed with mouthpiece. These attempts have not been crowned with success. The tone of the bassoon changes for the worse in this application and such mouthpieces have not formed for themselves adherents among bassoonists.
The author of this article has gone to much trouble on this question: he has made reeds from various materials--plastic, bone, bamboo, Nylon, etc.--hoping to make the "everlasting" reed, but usually nothing has come of it. The reeds sounded bad or gave out no sound at all.
After much pondering, tests and experiments the author decided to alter the construction of the reed, replacing the throat--the part most of all subject to deformity--by a brass metal part (see figure 1).
So was conceived the idea of making bassoon reeds on a metal staple. A twelve-year experience of performing on these reeds has shown that they are a lot truer and last longer than do ordinary ones. The period of service of reeds on metal staples has increased from 20 to 30 days (for ordinary reeds) to 7 to 12 months, depending on the quality of the cane.
Thanks to the staple, the regulating of the reed also improved. This regulating by means of squeezing does not destroy the inner diameter of the throat of the reed and so excludes a change in the timbre and pitch of the instrument which occurs by using the pliers on reeds made without a metal staple.
Above all, the fact has appeared that in making reeds on staples the risk of splitting cane - prone to this defect - is very much less. Certain professional bassoonists of our country, personal acquaintances of the author, have confirmed from their own experience the superiority of reeds made on metal staples and they have been playing on them for some years. Among them I may mention V. Gorbacher and F. Lakipof of the Moscow Philharmonic and D. Kuplikof of the Saratov opera and ballet.
It is a pity that many bassoonists do not know about this method of making reeds, and even if they do, they feel it impossible to go over to this innovation because they have no plan or measurements for making the staple.
The procedure for making reeds on a metal staple is as follows: The pieces of cane, gouged to a predetermined thickness depending upon the quality of the cane, are soaked, shaped on a shaper, tied together and dried off in a clip or clamp. This process is described in detail in "School of Bassoon Playing" by R. Terekhin. The length of the prepared pieces of cane should be, the author suggests, 41-42 mm. When dried out they are separated and carefully rubbed down on the inside with fine emery paper. In order to make them last longer the author then gives them one or two coats of shellac. When the shellac is quite dry the canes are soaked again and put upon the staple - are made even and are drawn together with two wires so that they are airtight. The upper or front wire (I) is placed exactly at the very tip of the tube of the staple, and the second wire (II) on the lower part of the cane on the staple. For ease in tightening the wires, the staple can be placed on a mandrel.
After the binding, the finished reed can be scraped in the usual manner with a knife and Dutch rush. It is better to scrape a dry reed. The bark of the cane should be taken off at the last moment, that is, immediately after the cane of the reed now on the staple has completely dried out. It is well to cover the throat of the reed with colorless varnish to seal it hermetically. Moreover the author soaks the finished reed in a solution of "tea-soda" for 2 to 3 hours (one teaspoonful of soda to a glass of water); a periodic dipping of the reed can be made in this same solution - it removes the deposits inside which appear after constant playing.
The end of the crook, to ease putting the staple on and to ensure an airtight seal, can be wound with a single wrap of cotton reed thread #40 and given a coat of glue (BF2), warming the glue after its application to dry it quickly. Such a lapping at the end of the crook will last a long time.
In general, the metal staples for the reeds are not made by the bassoonist himself, but by an experienced metal turner. For him, there is given here a diagram of the staple (figure 1--A) with all the measurements. The inner diameter of the staple must be arrived at by experiment for each instrument within the limits of 4.1 mm and 4.5 mm. The smaller the diameter, the higher the pitch of the bassoon -- enlarging the diameter, we lower the pitch. Therefore it is important to choose the correct aperture of the staple for each instrument in particular.
Five to eight made-up staples are sufficient for the bassoonist to have and he will be provided with reeds for a long time. When one reed wears out, it is taken off the staple and the latter is then ready once more for another reed to be made on it. The staple as constructed will have an even circular neck upon which the cane is put. The tip of this neck should be lightly compressed with a pair of pliers and the cane put on the neck to conform to the squeezed place, one section above and the other below.
Playing in the orchestra, the bassoonist often meets a solo passage marked pianissimo (pp). Sometimes conductors demand such a pianissimo that the player with the best will in the world cannot produce from his instrument. Then the player covers or stuffs the opening of the bell of the bassoon with a handkerchief or a so-called "sausage" made of soft material, and for all that, as a rule, he does not achieve the desired result. Covering the bell only while playing affects very little, and a pocket handkerchief sticking out of the bell makes an unlovely impression.
Many bassoonists, knowing that they are due to play some important 'pp' solo as, for instance, the opening of Tchaikovsky's 6th Symphony (the Pathetique), prepare for it in advance. They make a soft reed and play it in and so on and so forth. One can cite numerous examples from the repertoire where the composer has written pianissimo for a bassoon solo side by side with important passages to be played with the fullest tone, but where there is no time to exchange a soft reed with a stronger one. The player finds he has to play on one reed. The consequence is that the bassoon solo does not come through as it should nor as the composer intended.
In order to facilitate the performances of such nuances, the author has constructed a mechanical mute for the bassoon which is placed inside of the instrument and is operated in the same way a throttle valve in an automobile does. The mute obviates the changing of reeds and the stuffing up of the bell of the instrument while playing.
The mute is set inside the bass joint (long joint) of the bassoon between the D and D-sharp keys. (see figure 2) Its precise location in every instrument must be established by trial and error by finding such a position which will secure the best and most even tone for the whole row of notes starting from the low E. On the author's bassoon, a Heckel instrument #5709, the mute is placed 79 mm higher than the center of the low D hole (Ed. probably means the low E hole which is covered when low D is sounded.)
The mute is made up of a small metal disc, put in motion by means of a steel rod, the spindle of the mute system. The spindle is passed through the wood of the instrument through a hole, drilled by an auger of less diameter than the spindle itself - of from 0.1 to 0.2 mm. The metal disc, with thin layers of leather glued to the two surfaces, is fixed to the spindle by soldering with tin. In its closed position the mute completely covers the tube of the long joint, letting no air through, just like the pad of a tone hole. The presence of the smallest escape of air around the edges of the closed mute -- even to the size of a pinhead -- lessens its effectiveness. Nothing less than hermetically sealing will do. In its "off" state the mute is disposed sideways to the column of air within the long joint and does not create any impediment to the emission of sound or spoil the timbre of the instrument.
The metal disc is cut out of tin or brass of a thickness 0.1 to 0.2 mm with a diameter I mm less than the inner diameter of the long joint at the place where the mute is installed. On the disc, two slashes or cuts are made for fastening the mute to the spindle by means of clamping and soldering with tin. In addition, the disc is stuck over on both sides with a fine soft leather with its nappy side outwards, glued with BF-2 or B8 or any other suitable adhesive. The leathered disc must be of a larger diameter than the metal disc by itself.
The place for installing the mute in the long joint must be found in the following way: make a plug of soft cloth with one side of it cut straight. This plug, a mock-up of the mute, is introduced into the bore of the long joint with the straight side lower. Then the bassoonist plays the instrument and picks out the position for the mock-mute which allows the emission of equal sounds in tone and timbre over the whole range from the low E to the highest notes of the register. Thus chosen, the place for the mute must be marked by a ruler on the long joint to the exact millimeter. After that the hole for the spindle is drilled at exactly this spot. The hole must pass through the wood absolutely centrally; no deviation from the centre is admissible. In that case, the mute would not completely close the bore of the bassoon. The rod of the spindle, 1 to 1.5 mm in thickness, is passed through the drilled hole, and with its pointed tip must go into the opposite wall of the joint up to 3 to 4 mm, not coming out on the outside (as a rule, the thickness of the walls of the long joint are 6 to 8 mm). This gives stability and security to the whole device.
The end of the rod of the mute's spindle (outside the bassoon) is bent through an angle of 90 degrees, where the communicator-gearing leads up to it. This point must be in reach of the thumb of the left hand. The communicator can actuate in any method which the expert making the mute may choose, to install the mute on the instrument. The author made a longitudinal cut 8 mm wide and 40 mm long in his long joint, through the center of which he passed the spindle of the mute. This method has the advantage that the mute can be entirely made ready for installation outside the bassoon on the cut-out strip of wood, adjusted accurately to its position by trial and error and then together with the strip of cut-out wood can be glued into the long joint. The gluing in of this piece needs the help of small wedges of wood, and the chinks resulting are coated over with shellac afterwards. The glue used is also BF-2. Such a way of putting the mute into the instrument makes it possible, if need be to take it out of the bassoon for examination and repair.
Some players are installing the mute without the cut-out in the wood. This variant is possible but does not guarantee complete air-tightness in the bore when the mute is in the closed position - because the consolidation of the mute with the spindle by tin soldering does not succeed in this case.
Work on the problem of muting the bassoon mechanically is only beginning, and the goal to be aimed for is to make it possible to play with the mute "on" in all the registers of the bassoon.
Practically no woodwind instrument is exactly in tune over all its range even when brand new. We have in mind the not quite precise distances, speaking about intonation, between individual notes and between intervals. Every instrument, even if having an almost ideal scale, seems to possess one or two imperfect notes. There are, for instance, on most bassoons the e-flat in the second octave, the low F, G, and A-flat, the high c-sharp' and a number of others. Every instrument has its deviations from the norm, but the notes mentioned above as not being perfectly in tune give trouble, as a rule, on the instruments of all makers and even on the bassoons of the illustrious firm of Heckel.
The majority of players blow these various notes in tune with their lips. If the shortcomings in intonation on an instrument are insignificant then the artist himself plays the imperfect notes in tune almost automatically. It is not without cause that a player, having acquired a new instrument is not always able to play on it at once in the orchestra. One has to adapt oneself to a new instrument. In fact, once having gotten used to the defects of one's own instrument, it is impossible to play with the same corrections to those intonation defects on a strange instrument.
But tuning incorrect intervals on the bassoon with the lips is not always successful. Often it happens to be practically impossible. Many bassoonists, and front rank players among them, do not know that defects in tuning of a bassoon can easily be corrected by several means: regulating screws; then one can insert a bushing into the holes or paint them with varnish; widen tone holes; increase or decrease the distance between holes; and change the thickness of the gasket under the metal U-tube on the end of the boot joint of the bassoon.
All this can be carried out by the player himself with the aid of simple tools. If the bassoonist cannot do it himself then, knowing what is necessary to be done to improve the instrument, he can give appropriate instructions to a musical instrument expert.
Regulating the height of the keys: The positional height or lift of a series of keys over holes on the bassoon influences the tuning of the instrument. It is possible to regulate their height by means of gluing on pieces of cork, but this is exacting and ungrateful work. It is far better to fix regulating screws to the places where they are necessary. On his own instrument, the author has set five regulating screws which help not only towards tuning the instrument but also towards the removal of wobbling of parts of the key mechanism, caused by the constant friction.
Regulating is particularly useful after replacing a pad on a key. Also, after every 4 to 6 months, the need will arise to tighten or adjust the regulating screws in the interest of good maintenance. The result will be that the instrument is always in good order.
The first regulating screw put on was the F key of the low octave. The height of this key over its hole influences the intonation of a number of notes in the middle and upper octaves, namely: a, b-flat and b in the former and c' and c#' in the latter. The tuning of these sounds depends on the exact height of the F key. This is easy to verify: play the note "a" in the middle octave and gradually depress the F key. Slowly the influence of this action on the pitch of "a" will speak for itself. By lowering the F key the sound sharpens; on allowing the key to rise again, it flattens. In setting a regulating screw on the F key, one must find that opening or position of the key with which all the notes named above will be in tune. The screw is inserted into the F key on the spot shown in figure 3.
The second regulating screw is on the low G key. On the opening of this key depends the tuning of A, B-flat and B of the lower octave, a, b-flat and b of the middle octave, and the notes c', c#' and f'. The screw is affixed as shown in figure 4.
The third screw is established on the key which operates the traverse communicating rod between the F# key and the F key of the lower octave. This screw aids the regulation of the simultaneous lifting of the F# key and the closing of the F key, actuated by the thumb of the right hand of the bassoonist. (Ed. Hans Moennig of Philadelphia recommends a little play in this mechanism and also the f# key operated with the right small finger - before it touches the F key.) (see figure 5).
The fourth screw will be on the arm of the low D key. The tuning of the notes E, F and G of the bottom octave and of f# of the middle octave depends on the height of this key. (see figure 6).
The fifth screw is inserted on the key mechanism of the crook key as shown in figure 7. It regulates the distance of the pad of the crook key from the hole in the crook which it covers when the key is depressed. The regulating of this screw will often be found necessary if one changes the crook, besides which, the screw will need tightening after long playing on the same crook, because the pad becomes distorted and worn.
The regulating screws on the author's instrument have a diameter of 2 mm. The holes to take them are bored with a drill of 1.6 - 1.7 mm, using a screw tap to complete the cut. Steel clock springs under the screws are recommended in all cases.
The tuning of the note F# depends on the height of the E key above its hole. On the majority of instruments, F# in both the low and middle octaves has a tendency to be sharp. This defect can be remedied in the following way: onto the lower part of the rod of the E key solder a flat connecting piece of white metal -- 1 to 2 mm thick-- and bring it under the F# key in such a way that upon depressing the latter key, the E key is very slightly lowered. The extent of this lowering is to be found by aiming at the true intonation of the two F-sharps. It is possible, of course, to solder the connecting piece not to the rod of the E key but to the key plate itself and bring it under the F# key. But in this case, with continued use, it can lead to warping of the E key, leading to undesirable consequences. The pad of the E key will cease to cover the hole hermetically, and the instrument will go out of tune.
This is the method of tuning separate tones by means of insignificant widening or narrowing of the holes and also of moving these holes to one side or another with the object of flattening or sharpening the sound.
For instance, if the notes A of the bottom or middle octaves are tuned too low and no success has come from attempts to sharpen them by regulating the heights of the keys over F. G and D, it is possible to shift the F hole a few millimeters nearer the A hole. The F hole is the next one after the A hole, and when the other holes e, d, c, B and A are closed the air stream makes for the F hole. By shortening the distance between the A and F holes we shorten the air column also and thus we raise the pitch of the note A. In the same way, by increasing the distance between the same holes we lengthen the air column and lower the pitch of A. Sometimes A can be sharpened by widening the F hole on one side only, the side nearest to the A hole, and can be flattened by widening the same hole on the opposite side.
Albeit the ordering of the height of keys over their holes by means of regulating screws can be accomplished by any player, one should have recourse to widening holes on the instrument only in extreme cases and then with the greatest care. Such "surgical operations" are only permissible when all other means have been tried and found wanting.
To reduce the size of holes one can insert bushes of plastic or metal and also by painting the walls of the tone hole with a few coats of quick-drying water-resistant varnish (for example nail polish). On his own instrument the author lowered the e-flat of the middle octave to bring it into tune by inserting in the middle hole of the wing joint a plastic bushing 10 mm long. The diameter of the opening was found by testing as one went along; the bushing was fixed by adhesive glue (BF-2).
By changing the thickness of the washer (gasket) of the air-tight U-piece (or "crown" as it is called in Russian) at the bottom end of the boot joint, it is also possible to gain improvement in the overall tuning of the instrument. For instance, if all the notes of the lower register of the bassoon as far down as F of the bottom octave are flat, it means using a thinner washer. On the other hand, if these tones are inclined to be sharp, the washer must be thicker, and the tuning will be lowered.
The washer must conform exactly to the apertures of the U-piece, not smaller nor larger than them. Besides, the thickness of the washer should be changed according to the time of the year. Dry or moist air influences the pitch of the instrument: with dampness, the pitch is lower; in dry air, higher. In the Fall, Winter and Spring the washer of the U-piece must be thinner (1 to 2 mm). In Summer and in dry weather-- thicker (3 to 5 mm). If a thicker washer has been put on in order to correct tuning, the seasonal adjustments should be taken in relation to that fact.
Often it comes about that the player must unlatch the "piano" lock mechanism while playing. Up to that moment he has needed it to be "on." He finds this impossible to do because his left thumb is already engaged (instrument fitted with a thumb lock. Ed.).
In order to disengage the 'piano' mechanism automatically, a connecting piece of keywork was made by the author, one end of which was soldered on to the long rod of the crook key mechanism at a distance of 225 mm from its top pillar and the other end brought under the octave keys on the wing joint in such a manner that upon depressing any octave key, the communicating gear-work would be lowered and at the same time turn the long rod, to which it had been attached, thus automatically freeing the lock of the 'piano mechanism.'
This has been set forth well in detail in "School of Bassoon Playing" by R. P. Terekhin (State Music Publication, pp. 6-7). One must once again repeat, that the instrument must always be in good order. All steel springs should be kept in good condition. Best of all, free each spring from rust until it shines, and then put on two coats of water-resisting adhesive (BF-2).
Loose rods are best soldered with tin, to that one gets a ready-made bearing of soft metal. Clean the end of the rod leaving no trace of grease and solder on a little tin with the soldering iron. Solder without acid, preferably with rosin. Afterwards, file down the tin to the required length with a fine file. There will be no more rocking of the rod after this. There is another way to get rid of this rocking or looseness of the key-work. Squeeze the rod with a smooth-rounded pair of pliers or an ordinary pair in which a round groove has been filed, and restore the rod by this pressure to its tight-fitting condition. This compression lengthens the rod slightly and the rocking or wobbling is done away with.
The long joint and the wing of the bassoon often begin to move apart from each other while the instrument is being played. This shows that the cork or thread on the tenons which go into the sockets of the boot is worn. One can of course glue on new cork, or wind on new string. But there is an additional method: a connecting pin is put on the wing joint, which, when putting the bassoon together, must go into an open-ended socket screwed onto the long joint. (see figure 8).
The pin is made hermetically fast to a stay which is soldered on to the upper part of the wing joint, and the socket is screwed on to the long joint with wood screws. Bassoons made by the firm Adler have a connecting pin and two sockets fixed to the wing and long joints. But this arrangement is not quite ideal, for the pin can fall out and become lost. It is better done as explained above.
As he plays, the bassoonist holds the instrument on his hip. The vexatious mischance often occurs that a part of the clothing (the flap of a pocket or a button of the evening tailcoat) gets under a key, while he is playing. Moreover, the sounds from the bassoon do not only emerge from the bell, but come forth from the tone holes of the instrument, and the soft texture of the clothing deadens the tone of those sounds issuing from the holes lying along side it. In order to overcome this double deficiency, the author wears a small leather apron of 20 x 35 cm in size while playing. With hooks attached to its top side he fastens the apron to his waist belt at the side where the boot joint rests against his body. The presence of the apron prevents any part of his clothing getting mixed up with the keywork and also improves the sound of the instrument. To attach the apron to a dinner jacket or the jacket of a lounge suit, one may make two loops, unnoticeable to the eye, of black thread to take the hooks of the apron.
There are five finger holes on the bassoon not fitted with a key over them. In these holes water often runs or collects, especially in the cold seasons of the year, or when playing in the open air. Warm air, entering while playing the instrument, quickly cools off and settles in droplets on the inside walls of the wing and boot joints of the bassoon. The drops canalise in a downward flow along the walls and overflow into the e, d, c, B. and A holes and sometimes fall even into the hole of the little key which resonates the high g'. The running of water into these holes during performance disturbs the player, makes him nervous, and can sometimes spoil a performance, supplementing it with unwanted sounds. In order to do away with all this water trouble, the author has installed metal bushes into all the holes listed above, including the high g' vent. In addition, the ends of the bushes project within the bore by 2 to 3 mm.
The bushes get rid completely of the possibility of water running into the holes and introduce no change at all to the tone and pitch of the bassoon. The inner diameter of the bushes must correspond to the diameter of each tone hole, and to take the bushes, the original holes themselves must be widened a little with a file and emery cloth. The bushes are inserted into the widened holes with shellac or glue BF-2.
Many players utilise supplementary keys when playing the bassoon. This is done to improve the quality of the tone. The addition of the keys for bottom C# and D# to the notes in the tenor octave and to the highest notes of all is very effective in this respect. Usually only one of these two keys is used. It depends upon the instrument and what the player is used to.
The author has now used these two keys for 15 years, opening them simultaneously with the little finger of the left hand. The whole succession of notes from C#' to e-flat'' inclusive sounds clearer, brighter and in timbre more uniform with the employment of both these keys together. (But the top note e'' is not fingered with these two supplementary keys.) It is possible partly to embrace notes of the middle octave too in this application of the two keys together. For example, the author plays the whole of the solo in the Valse movement of Tchaikovsky's 5th Symphony with the bottom C# and D# keys open. It goes without saying that in rapid passages these additional keys are not used.
The slight flattening of the note e', arising from opening the two above-mentioned keys, can easily be corrected by a small alteration of the fingering of this note: sufficiently uncover the B hole on the boot and the sound rises to its proper pitch. It is easy to get used to this change of fingering. Besides, the notes e-flat' and e' speak much more readily this way. 'Legato' slurs from lower notes up to these two notes are possible only by a similar change in the fingering, that is, by uncovering of the B hole on the boot.
The author advises bassoonists to try out this method of improving the tone of the bassoon in the top octaves.