KJI-MILLER PROPRIETARY BASSOON SHAPERS
THREE NEW AND UNIQUE SHAPERS DEVELOPED FOR A REVOLUTIONARY NEW CONCEPT IN REED MAKING.
- STEP 1 – Develop new shape(s) that would have an easy response but also have a big dynamic range to complement the modern darker thick wall bassoons.
- STEP 2 – take two very popular shapes … ie Rieger 1a and Rieger 2 … and blend them to create a wider tube coupled with a narrower blade
- STEP 3 – Design and manufacture the shaper to confirm our theory.
- STEP 4 – Shape cane and make reeds to validate our intuition from over 100 years of combined reed making experience. Thus, the KJI Shape was “Born”.
As a result of our experiments with the combining the Rieger 1a and Rieger 2 shapes, we decided perhaps the opposite would work as well … ie Wider Blade with Narrower tube. Following the same process that lead to the Krassimir Ivanov KJI shape, we found that worked amazing well, too. Incidentally, it was remarkably similar to Justin Miller’s unmarked shaper that he purchased in 1965 and that he used in his studies at The Curtis Institute of Music and his playing career. Thus, the Justin Miller JM1 shape was “Reborn”.
The significant part of the work on the JM1 shape was the slight modified Knochenauer shape of the wider blade. It gave the reed great flexibility and a dark complex sound and an excellent dynamic range. Perfect for bassoons with outstanding resonance. This lead to our applying the Knochenauer blade shape with the wider tube and the JM2 Shape was “born”. This combination provides a easy playing reed coupled with a slightly lighter tonal balance which really complements the bassoons that have a naturally darker or less resonant sound.
Our many years of experience tell us that virtually every bassoonist will like one of these shapes / reed styles even thought all three yield exceptional results.
To assist in your decision making process Krassimir Ivanov is producing 3 new Bassoon reeds …. Royal Blue using the KJI Shape, Caribbean Green using the JM1 Shape and the Sunshine Yellow using the JM2 shape.
We are offering the KJI Sampler Pak that has 1 of each reed and a FREE REED CASE in order for you to confirm which shape / reed works best for you.
MILLER KJI PRO PROTRIETARY STRAIGHT SHAPER TIP MEASURMENTS