Steuer Bass Clarinet Reeds - Singles

Note: These are priced per reed. One of 'em. (Not a box. Though you're welcome to buy 5 of them, and I may just throw in the box for free)

Steuer has a slightly strange history for a French reed company: it started in Germany in the late 1940s, using cane grown by the Donati family in southern France. Eventually they eliminated the commute and moved the reedmaking operation to Carqueiranne, in the Var, where the cane itself is grown and processed...and made into reeds. All in the same place. Hell, if I lived in Carqueiranne, I wouldn't want to be anywhere else either.

Their bass clarinet reed is a fairly substantial cut—Steuer specs the blank at 3.30 mm with a 0.11 mm tip—and they make it from their own Var-grown cane. Steuer talks about projection and response throughout the instrument; what I notice is that the reeds respond a lot better after a little smoothing (check out our reed finishing kit, and if you have one, you'll want to smooth the vamp with the white cloth. It made a huge difference to me). They have a harder tip and slightly less dense heart than a V12, which is an interesting combination that holds some promise...or not. We'll see!

As a practical starting point, figure a Steuer bass clarinet reed is about ½ strength harder than a Vandoren Traditional bass reed. So if you're normally comfortable on a Vandoren Traditional 3, I'd start with a Steuer 2½.