14 Bocals and Seat Straps

THE BOCAL
The bocal is a thin metal tube that connects the reed and the bassoon.  There are many brands and models, each with unique properties. The standard bocal that comes with the bassoon will be fine for the beginner to intermediate bassoonist.  However, an advanced player will want to try different bocals with their bassoon to find the one that is the best match to facilitate the best response, intonation, and tone quality.

location of bocal nub

Take Care:

Other than the reed, the bocal is the most fragile part of the bassoon. It is a single thin piece of metal that has been forged into what looks like a seamless tube.  However, stress or pressure at the wrong place will cause the seam to open, rendering the bocal useless. This long tube of thin metal is also easily bent or dented, and any dings or dents will negatively affect response, pitch, and tone. Bocals are expensive so handle them with great care.
CAUTION: Never try to alter the bend of a bocal! The seam will split open, and you will end up with an expensive piece of trash.

Things to know:

  • Always hold the bocal as close to the cork as possible, NOT at the tip where the reed fits.
  • The cork needs to be secure and in good shape. A loose cork will tear, and any missing pieces of cork will create a leak. Any leak will make response, intonation, and tone challenging if not impossible.
  • The bocal needs to be free of dents and creases. As with leaks, any dent or crease can make playing with good response, intonation, and tone difficult.
  • The shape of the bocal plays a role in determining the angle at which the reed enters the mouth. If the bocal has a very steep downward slant from the curved part to the tip, the player will need to rest the boot closer to the hip than the knee to minimize the downward angle of the reed as it enters the mouth.
  • Avoid putting the tip end of the bocal into the wing joint. It can scratch the bore of the wing joint and/or bend the bocal.

 

The first two straps pictured above have a hook that will connect through a metal ring or feed through a hole at the bottom of the boot joint.

arrow pointing to loop at bottom of boot cap

With a cup-style strap, the boot cap at the bottom of the boot joint will sit inside of the adjustable leather cup.

arrow pointing to boot cap on boot joint

 

 

 

 

 

 

*TIP: If using a clip-style strap, feed a sturdy keyring through the hole or loop on the bottom of the boot cap. This will make the point of connection between the strap and the boot joint more flexible. 

arrow pointing to loop on bottom of boot cap, hook keyring to this loop

Things to know about the seat strap:

  1. The seat strap should be the first thing taken out of the case and put on the chair. This will keep the player from having to juggle the assembled bassoon while putting the seat strap in place.
  2. Place the seat strap on the chair with the hook or cup hanging off the right side of the chair (close to where the player’s right knee will be when seated).
  3. The height of the bassoon – where the reed comes to when the bassoon is in playing position and the reed is on the bocal – is adjusted by increasing or decreasing the amount of seat strap that extends beyond the right side of the player.
    • If the bassoon is too low (if the reed comes to a place below your lips), move the seat strap to the left by pulling on the left-side end of the strap.
    • If the bassoon is too high (if the reed comes to a place above your lips), move more of the strap to the right by carefully shifting your weight off of the strap and letting it slide to your right.
    • The strap needs to be long enough to hang off the left side of the chair, within easy reach of the player’s left hand.
  4. Proper positioning of the seat strap will allow the player to hold the instrument in a balanced, comfortable position.
  5. Improper positioning of the seat strap will make the bassoon difficult to hold and may prevent lower keys on the boot joint from operating correctly.

 

 

 

 

License

Icon for the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License

A Modern Guide to Teaching and Playing the Bassoon Copyright © 2024 by Carol Lowe is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License, except where otherwise noted.

Feedback/Errata

Comments are closed.