English Horn

English Horn

I was quite surprised by the sound of the new Légère English Horn reed. Right out of the package the sound was full and the pitch was balanced. I used it to cover the solo in American Salute without telling anyone. My music colleagues were complementing me on my projection. Well done Légère.

I'm using the medium English Horn reeds and they are absolutely wonderful! They speak easily and securely, with a huge dynamic range and round, warm tone. Very happy that Légère took the time to develop these wonderful reeds!

Review recap: Legere English horn and Oboe reeds - overall tone quality, articulation, hardness was consistent/predictable. Responded instantly and were ready to play straight from the box, Legere’s American scrape design and reed strengths definitely allow for a centered stable sound with ease of projection, depth & warmth - it is a consistent and durable reed

Review detail/comparisons made:

Background English horn - One medium strength and one medium-hard strength Legere English horn reeds tested on a 2006 Fossati Soliste English horn using #2 & #3 Loree Bocal. (Note, my past Eh cane reeds are typically medium-hard, American scrape, 12mm diameter, finished length 56-57mm, crow pitch C#, Giacobassi shape, 27mm Chiarugi No. 2, brass staple, cane from Grimaud France area, cane tube wall thickness selected 1.65mm +/- 0.05mm, RNS digital hardness tester range 0.10 - 0.12).

Background Oboe - One medium strength and one medium-hard strength Legere Oboe reeds tested on a 2005 Loree Royal Oboe. (Note, my past Oboe cane reeds are typically medium-hard, American scrape, 10.75mm diameter, finished length 70mm, crow pitch C, RDG 1 shape, 47mm Chiarugi No. 2, brass staple, cane from Grimaud France area, cane tube wall thickness selected 1.65mm +/- .05mm, RNS digital hardness tester range 0.10 - 0.12).

Note: The American scrape cane reeds generally provide greater depth, resonance, warmer, richer, slightly darker and colorful sound. The Legere reed is the best alternative and defiantly is the “go to reed” … as noted in my closing comments.

Legere English horn Reeds: Bocal fit - Loree #2 & #3 good fit & sealed,

Medium English horn reed
Loree bocal 2: Pitch 445-448, lighter playing & volume-a quieter reed than the medium-hard,higher pitched on the #2 bocal, dynamics were acceptable, gentle & warm tone-mellow & not bright, good tonguing/articulation, good stability, comfortable.

Loree bocal 3: Pitch 440-445, lighter playing & volume - a quieter reed than the medium-hard but acceptable dynamics, gentle & warm tone-mellow & not bright, good tonguing/articulation, good stability, comfortable.

Medium-Hard English horn reed
Loree bocal 2: Pitch 445 more dynamic than the medium reed but higher pitched on the #2 bocal. Slight resistance but felt & sounded great. Moderate sound & not bright, good tonguing/articulation, good stability.

Loree bocal 3: Pitch 440-445, more dynamic than medium reed, slight resistance but felt & sounded great, moderate to dark resonate sound & not bright, good tonguing/articulation, good stability. Is consistent and predictable. The medium-hard strength Legere English horn reed with the Loree #3 bocal is my preference here.

Legere Oboe Reeds: Reed well fit - excellent.

Medium Oboe reed
Pitch varied 435-440, lighter playing & volume, a quieter reed with acceptable dynamics, gentle & warm tone-not bright, good tonguing/articulation, good stability, comfortable. Good reed for lighter, quieter playing - softer passages, low notes responsive.

Medium hard Oboe reed
Pitch 440 +/- (438-443), more dynamic than medium reed - good dynamics, slight but comfortable resistance felt & sounded great, warm tone, moderate but not to dark resonate sound, responsive, good tonguing/articulation, good stability. Is consistent and predictable., The medium-hard strength Oboe is my preference here.

Concluding comment: Whether you are in a time crunch, reed making slump or just need a reliable “go to” or backup American scrape English horn or oboe reed that will give you peace of mind, the Legere double reed is the one to have - for practice, rehearsals, performance. These reeds have a warm, centered sound with ease of projection, acceptable stability from low to upper registers, delivers consistency, durability and an instant response … plays instantly, never needs to be moistened, virtually unaffected by weather, humidity, altitude and temperature changes. These reeds are recommended for English horn and Oboe players of all experience levels.

Note: I was one of the early Legere American scrape reed Beta testers 2017-2019

Don Werdick
Oboe, oboe d’amore, English horn
Supérieure Cane Processing, Inc. oboemn.com
Member: AFM, ASCAP, IDRS

I definitely would play it for a gig! It plays great constantly and reliably, and you don’t even have to soak it, so who could ask for more! I chose the medium hard English Horn and it doesn’t sag around ‘c’ as others have said the oboe version does. I have no problems with soft or loud dynamics or with low or high registers. It’s a great Reed! It fits my Hiniker bocal well and doesn’t slide around, it plays well in tune. I honestly didn’t think that I would like it, but I really do. I’m shocked myself. About 5 years ago I received A Legere European cut oboe Reed as store credit from a store. It was not good. It played, but it leaked. I put teflon tape on it and I still have it, but, I never attempted to adjust it since it leaked anyway. Someday perhaps I’ll try the American cut oboe Reed, but I right now, I really like the English Horn reeds. You have a product there!

As impressive as the new American scrape oboe reeds are, I think I'm even more impressed with the English horn reed. It is warm and easy to play and projects nicely. I think this would be the perfect English horn reed for doublers who often have to let their English horn sit for 25 minutes and then have to pick it up and play a solo.! Bravo. Great job Legere!