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From: SNaru~-online.de (Siegfried Naruhn)
Date: Wed, 2 Oct 96 23:27 +0100
Subject: RE: Re: Reed fatigue revisited

In a message dated 96-10-02 WVern (Walt or Walter?) wrote:

<><>In message.....you write: who is 'you'?

Nevertheless, I thank you Vern (what's your christian name?) that you mention
once again this well-discussed subject of "break-in". Your unknown addressee
refers to Rick Epping:

>>....This advice courtesy of Rick Epping of Hohner - he says that it allows the
>>reeds time to adjust to being played. Sounds reasonable to me, especially
>>coming from "the horses mouth" as it were.<<

I don't know why Rick is connected with or should have a "horse mouth", but I
discussed in Trossingen with Rick quite another consequence of a gentle start
when using a new harp. I talked with Rick about the proper time for tuning a new
harp and in this connection he mentioned a gentle start because the reeds
may then adjust better an eventual tension they have received by their riveting
on the plates. After reduction of a potential tension, a tuning would then be
more steady.

This sounds in fact very reasonable for me, because the pitch of vibrating media
depends among other properties also on the 'attaching pressure'. But the
consequence of this influence to reed tuning is certainly frustrating when
considering the daily practice of reed tuning. In cases of outtuned reeds the
alternative is normally only to take off material at the reed end or base,
right? That one takes care to the reed fixing is surely an exception, again
right?

After this little sidestep to the matter of facts.

>>I recently had the opportunity to ask about breaking in metal parts of a
>>professor of materials engineering at Univ Cal Irvine. She said that she
>>knew of no break-in effect where gentle cycling of a new metal part would
>>improve its fatigue life. I have not been able to find any such effect in my
>>own search of the literature. Must we not conclude that the break-in ritual
>>affects the player and not the harp?<<

Apparently, Vern. I heard of this break-in of harps only in form of warm
recommendations. Indeed, break-in sounds good and seems to be an undoubtable
life experience. Think about an orchestra or baseball team. If the components
are 'broken-in', everything runs better, voila.

But this comparison is only logical or rational, if there are several parts.
Only then, a break-in makes a certain sense. But how should a single reed
prolong it's lifetime by such a very indefinite described procedure as the
break-in. In my view, an eventual influence of a break-in (whatever this might
be) to the reed lifetime could only be proved under the following test
conditions:

At least two harps or plates with absolute identically fixed reeds which must
have additionally absolut identical physical properties and chemical composition
are played (blown and drawn) by a mechanical appliance with different wind
pressure (= 'break-in mode and 'normal/strong playing) as long as the first reed
fatigue occurs (the reeds must be of course untuned to exclude tuning fatigue).
The test is to be continued until a considerable number of reeds are broken, to
exclude a reed fatigue by chance.

Independent of the time such a test would last until a sufficient number of
reeds have died on musical stress, such an evidence for an allegede 'break-in'
influence will surely fail because of the unachievable test conditions.

By the way, whenever I got the answer that break-in harps would 'hold' longer, I
had my fun when asking back: how much longer?

Siegfried Naruhn Have new harp - must.....