clarinet mouthpiece

Woot! I bought a clarinet mouthpiece yesterday!!! There goes S$118.00.

Unfortunately... it doesn't seem any different from my current one, which is loaned from the band room. It's not even Buffet (which is said to be the best brand for clarinet equipment), its Vandoren. (which I only recognize because all the clar/sax reeds in the band cupboard are all Vandoren)

I also bought a ligature for S$51.50. This replaces the traditional (full metal) borrowed ligature with a leather/rubber one. The ligature comprises of a adjustable length of leather/rubber encircling the mouthpiece, and where the reed touches it, there is a (real) gold support with green cloth padding. The knob for tightening and loosening the ligature is now on the opposite side of the mouthpiece (the side with no reed), causing me to constantly accidentally put it the wrong way round. I think I sound a bit clearer and rounder with this ligature compared to the band standard ligature. I think.

So, now my clarinet is an assorted jumble of parts:

Vandoren mouthpiece (mine)
BG ligature (mine)
Vandoren reeds (mine)
Unmarked barrel (band's)
Buffet upper joint (band's)
Unmarked but highly suspected Yamaha lower joint (band's)
Buffet bell (band's)

Which I suppose is OK.

Today, I had a RE meeting with external mentor, and arrived for band... half an hour before practice ended. LOL. Wasted my money. Didn't even get to show off my new mouthpiece and ligature. (OK, just kidding, I'm not a show off) But from what I gathered from my friends, this practice was apparently a very good one; everyone played well, conductor happy etc. Too bad I wasn't there. Spirits were high and everyone laughed when attendance was taken; Sec 3s (my batch) full attendance EXCEPT FOR THE LAST PERSON ON THE LIST. Lolololololol. But today my batch still had the highest attendance this year. So far.

SYF!!! 16th April!!! Gold with Honours a must!!!