Review

Reviewed Work(s): Bassoon Reed-Making. A Basic Technique by Christopher Weait

Review by: Will Jansen
Source: The Galpin Society Journal, Vol. 25 (Jul., 1972), p. 145
Published by: Galpin Society
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/841357
Accessed: 30-09-2017 09:48 UTC

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and conflict; otherwise, like the sound of a great amen, it would remain wholly
static. Neither the Javanese nor, we must be thankful, Sir Arthur Sullivan ever
found that Chord; had they done so we should all have joined that famous
player of one continuous note who said 'They're all looking for the note;
I've found it'.
The volume includes also some short contributions, including a welcome
polemic on translations of Lieder ,and the customary useful list of current thesis
subjects in Australian universities. j. P. S. MONTAGU

CHRISTOPHER WEArr, Bassoon Reed-Making. A Basic Technique. McGinnis &

Marx, New York, 20o West 86th Street. 31 pp. large 4to. Illns.
In view of the fact that bassoon literature is rare, it is not surprising that
bassoon reed-making literature is just as rare. Over the years, a few publications
have appeared dealing with the matter, starting with the old French treatise by
Edouard Flament, Etude sur le grattage des anches pour le basson, via Joe Artley,
How to make double reeds, up to the work here in review. There is, in fact, little
more than the works mentioned here; of course reed-making techniques are
dealt with in several bassoon tutors and other books, but just as a small part
of the whole contents. Mr Weait's book is a most valuable addition. As pointed
out in the title, the method described is basic: the author rightly remarks that
there are, in practice, as many methods of reed making as there are bassoon
players. For a hundred Heckel bassoons all exactly alike in bore, hole location
and response a hundred different bassoonists make as many different reeds.
Mr Weait's book in very clear words describes the cane, the tools required,
the' technique of reed making, the testing and correcting of the bassoon reed.
The illustrations are excellent, both the half-tone illustrations and line drawings.
The reviewer shares the opinion of most bassoon players that reed making is
an art not to be learnt solely from books. A good instructor is necessary. Yet
Weait's treatise is technically understandable, so that bassoon students may
succeed in making good reeds without a teacher by studying it.
The book may also be of interest to bassoonists performing on ancient
instruments, notably in recordings of music of the baroque and early romantic
period performed on contemporary models, because there is a section on
scraping for specific responses, which may be useful to those who laboriously
try to copy old-time reeds. WILL JANSEN

145

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