Another Xaphoon Thread

[crookedtune]

OK, I know this comes up from time to time, but it's been awhile.....

Anyway, I had a weak moment a few weeks ago, and made an impulse buy. Having never played a reed instrument, I had been intrigued with the low cost and (in recorded clips) rich, resonant sound of this mini sax/clarinet hybrid. ( http://www.xaphoon.com but I bought it cheaper on eBay).

So....I went with the black ABS model, about $50 with shipping. Wow! It took a couple of days to get some confidence with the whole reed thing, and to adapt to the fingering. After that, pure fun! It's fully chromatic, perfectly tuned at A440, gets a good two octaves, and makes very convincing sax/clarinet tones. It's also pocket-sized, and pretty indestructible. Just thoroughly cool, and a huge bargain at the price.

Just had to share that!

[Innocent Bystander]

Okay, I give in, Crookedtune. Is a Xaphoon easier to play than a practice chanter? I'm assuaging my Xaphoon-yearning with a practice chanter. Am I barking up the wrong tree? I have heard it said that Xaphoons take a lot of puff. It's taking me a while to get to grips with the chanter fingering and the single octave. The puff is getting easier...

[crookedtune]

I can't really say, as I haven't played a practice chanter. (If I get the pipes urge I'll lose my family). The xaphoon doesn't require a lot of air, but it requires a strong embouchure and lots of push. I'm told that it's easier than a saxophone, and maybe similar to a clarinet that way. I got used to the pressure thing pretty quickly, and can get the first octave and a half pretty easily already. The top few notes take real push, but they're achievable. I should mention that I have a 2 1/2 reed on it. It's supposed to be easier with a lighter reed, but you sacrifice some of the rich sound.

It's got fantastic sound for its size, and it's a lot of fun. I think it's a great instrument for the price.

[Wanderer]

I used to have a xaphoon, and I liked it. My biggest hurdle was that I play whistle left hand, and the xaphoon is definitely a right-hand instrument (with its offset holes and all). So, I never really got great at it.

[ubizmo]

I have a definite jones for one of these things. I've played sax most of my life, so I'm used to the embouchure. I tend to prefer softer reeds, and usually play with a 2. On a tenor, that gets me a softer, mellower sound; I'm not sure how it would be on a xaphoon. It looks like a lot of fun.

[crookedtune]

Well, again, I'm only a few weeks into reed-playing. I'm still amazed by the richness of the xaphoon's tone. Granted, it's a fairly limited instrument in some ways. While it's capable of two full octaves, the top few notes are pretty challenging. I'm feeling pretty solid from low C to the second F. (That's C-D-E-F-G-A-B-C-D-E-F plus sharps & flats). From the F# to the high C elude me, but my attempts could be extremely useful for calling Canadian geese. I'm guessing an accomplished reed player could hit those notes without much trouble.

But an octave and a half, fully chromatic, gives you enough to do lots of fun and great-sounding things. So, you could buy yet another high D whistle, or explore new territory with a xaphoon. I don't regret this particular dalliance!

[ubizmo]

Well, again, I'm only a few weeks into reed-playing. I'm still amazed by the richness of the xaphoon's tone. Granted, it's a fairly limited instrument in some ways. While it's capable of two full octaves, the top few notes are pretty challenging. I'm feeling pretty solid from low C to the second F. (That's C-D-E-F-G-A-B-C-D-E-F plus sharps & flats). From the F# to the high C elude me, but my attempts could be extremely useful for calling Canadian geese. I'm guessing an accomplished reed player could hit those notes without much trouble.

But an octave and a half, fully chromatic, gives you enough to do lots of fun and great-sounding things. So, you could buy yet another high D whistle, or explore new territory with a xaphoon. I don't regret this particular dalliance!

Without having played one, I imagine that even an experienced reed player would find those notes above F challenging, just as playing in the altissimo range is challenging on a normal sax, for all the same reasons. I'm sure there are plenty of people here who understand the physics better than I do, but I believe the xaphoon's bore is relatively narrow, comparable to a clarinet's. This gives the clarinet more range than the saxophone in the first register, the so called "chalumeau" range, and that also is the primary register of the xaphoon. To go into the next register means breaking into the next overtone, something that fipple instruments do fairly readily, but reeds don't. On clarinet and sax, there's a key to facilitate this, and that key is used in the third (altissimo) register as well, in conjunction with special fingerings. But altissimo just isn't easy, and even when you get it, the sound can be pretty piercing. Without a key to assist the push into overtones, I would guess that the notes above F on the xaphoon might be pretty hard to control.

[billval3]

I have one and have only played it a little bit. I found it aggravating because the notes seem so variable depending upon lip pressure. In other words, it seems like they bend too much. I play clarinet and can bend the notes, but it seems like the notes bend too easily on the xaphoon. Is it just me?