Comparing Saxophone Ligatures: is Metal or Fabric better?
In This Section:
Product Info:
All profits to charity
LIGATURE: THE BEST WAY TO HOLD A REED ON
What does a ligature do?
Any comments on this page? see the blog: Ligature Schmigature
Types of Ligature
|
"Standard" 2-screw |
 |
|
Leather or fabric Rovner type |
 |
|
Otto Link top screw |
 |
|
Francois Louis, an embellished top screw type ligature |
 |
|
Vandoren Optimum with choice of "plates" |
 |
A ligature clamps the reed to the mouthpiece. Think of this a bit like when you hold a ruler on the edge of a table and flick the bit sticking over so it goes "boing". You need to hold the part of the ruler firmly, or the end sticking over does not vibrate well. The same principle applies to the way a reed vibrates on a mouthpiece. Think of the ligature as the pressure that holds the butt of the reed against the table of the mouthpiece, so the blade (= the boingy bit of the ruler) can vibrate nicely.
Ligatures have developed a long way since the days when clarinetists would just wind a piece of cord or leather thong around the reed to secure it to the mouthpiece (but some people still swear by this method). These days some very sophisticated ligatures are being made by manufacturers with all kinds of claims that various enhancements can improve your sound. How much of that is true and how much is marketing hype to get you to part with your hard earned cash is open to debate, more on that later.
Most ligatures are tightened by one or two screws, either laterally (from the side) to tighten a band around the mouthpiece and reed, or from the top directly down onto the reed (as with the Otto Link type). Do not overtighten the screws, they should be tight enough to just stop the reed from slipping or to take up any slight warpage in the reed or table of the mouthpiece. Of course, there should never be any warpage of the mouthpiece table, and you should always prepare your reeds by sanding or scraping to make them flat, but sometimes a previously even reed can warp very slightly while playing, and if a ligature is tight enough it will apply pressure to flatten a slightly warped reed against the table. If the surface of the reed is not held against the table then the sound can be slightly muffled or harder to produce. You will probably notice this most often when trying to play quiet low notes.
Does a ligature affect the sound of the saxophone?
Some people consider that the type of ligature affects the sound, however this topic has been hotly debated. I’ve never noticed this as long as the ligature is a good fit for the mouthpiece and is holding the reed firmly, and neither the reed or mouthpiece table are uneven (see above). It is very important that the ligature is not too distorted or badly fitting or the tone will definitely suffer. For this reason the more flexible textile based ligatures may sound better, but only if compared to a damaged or poorly fitting metal one, as they do not get damaged by dropping them, sitting on them or most other kinds of abuse you can find for them. But the bog standard 2-screw type will sound as good as anything provided it is the right size and is in good working order.
Compare Ligatures (2-Screw vs Fabric)
|
|
Click here for answer
Ligature A is a Rovner
Ligature B is a 2 Screw
More soundclips here
How Different Ligatures affect less than perfect reeds:
A reed with an even surface and a ligature which fits the back of the reed. This could be either a metal lig that is correct for the mouthpiece or any fabric ligature which molds to the reed. Pressure from just the top centre of rom the sides will hold the reed. |
When a reed is swollen in the middle, a ligature which applies pressure from the middle may flatten it slightly, but still leave gaps at the edges |
A ligature which applies pressure from the edges to a reed can actually help with closing the gaps, but could be causing further distortion of the reed. |
In the examples above, you can see that if the reed has a flat surface, then even a badly fitting ligature should hold it well. But if the reed is swollen, some ligatures may work better than others. This scenario is compounded if the mouthpiece table is not flat.
So what does all this show? Should I use a Rovner, 2 Screw or some other metal ligature?
As you can see in the examples above, it is very much up to the shape and type of ligature whether the reed is held properly against the table, allowing the tip to vibrate properly. If the reed (or mouthpiece) is distorted some ligatures will be bad, some may be OK, giving the impression that ligatures have an effect on the sound generally, whereas this is only likely to be true in some cases where the mouthpiece (or reed) is out of whack.
In the first example, as the reed and mouthpiece work fine with very little pressure on the reed, and not much difference at which point the pressure is applied, then a different ligature will make no difference to the way the reed vibrates.
I have found that if the table is flat and reed is true, then just about any ligature in good condition will get the optimum sound. Unfortunately if there is a problem with the shape of the mouthpiece table or distorted reed, and you are getting different sounds from different ligatures, then only by trying them out will you really know which is best.