Below is some more in-depth information about my reedmaking process.

As a health precaution, I will be taking extra care to sanitize reeds before sending them to customers. Once work is finished on reeds, they are soaked in 91% isopropyl alcohol for at least 2 minutes. In addition, each reed will sit, untouched, to dry in open air to ensure they are as sanitized as possible before shipment. Because of this extended sanitization process, shipment of finished reeds may be delayed a few days.

I make all my reeds according to the Herzberg style/method of reedmaking. The method was developed by the late Norman Herzberg, who is one of the most notable people in the history of bassoon pedagogy. The method has been passed down through generations of teachers/students that stemmed from the teachings of Norman Herzberg. Today, the Herzberg reedmaking method is a very widely used/accepted form of bassoon reedmaking. For more information on this style of reedmaking, I recommend you visit the Kristin Wolfe Jensen YouTube page, or read Rian Craypo’s The Banana of Life for more specific details.

With regard to the forming process, I use cane from a wide range of brands including Medir, Danzi, and Rigotti. Each gouged and profiled piece of cane is shaped on a Herzberg shaper and left on a forming pin for a minimum of two weeks. Each reed is finished in gradual steps, each separated by a day of rest to give the cane time to adjust to the work. This adjustment time is crucial because it prevents the reed from becoming overworked and, therefore, unusable.

As far as specifications go for reed measurements, I make my reeds following the measurements used in the Herzberg reedmaking method. To ensure structural consistency and continuity, I make each reed with an acute attention to detail. Each reed needs different fine adjustments in the finishing process, but they are all built on the same consistent framework of measurements provided by the Herzberg method of reedmaking. I have attached a few of these measurements below:

• Top of 1st wire to (clipped) tip = 28mm

• Middle of 1st wire to middle of 2nd wire = 5/16”

• 3rd wire placement changes slightly depending on what type of wrapping is used (placement of the 3rd wire is not concrete)