As a woodwind and brass technician for The Saxophone Shop / Evanston Band and Orchestra Co., and as an oboist, while interacting with other technicians and musicians, I am exposed to many ideas and theories during the course of a day. We as oboists are obsessed with reeds as the most important tone generating point outside of ourselves; the instrument being third in importance, as a sound carrier not generator. Players of other wind instruments are equally concerned with their own mouthpieces, necks, and head joints. During the course of a day I am constantly bombarded with questions and theories about acoustics.

It is in this environment that I turned my attention to the oboe and how it might be improved. There have been a number of changes in trumpet and saxophone mouthpieces, ligatures, and flute head joints, and it occurred to me that the staple is an area that has been largely ignored for acoustic potential. The staple is so important to the sound and response of the instrument because it is so close to the sound generating area. Oboes are mostly made of wood, and the staple, being a continuation of the bore to some degree, would ideally be made of wood as well. This is highly impractical as wood is not strong enough at the thickness necessary to tie cane.

The current staple design is logically made from brass or nickel silver due to its strength and machinability and has served well for a long time. The cork as a connecting material though, acts as a dampener and absorber of vibrations and resonance. The problem that arises is how to replace the cork covering (which by its very nature to compress is causing the loss of some sound) with a material that approximates the density of the instrument itself while retaining a good seal.

The first idea that I tried was with raw brass rod, hollowed out to allow a corkless staple to be slipped inside and then soft soldered together. Then on the lathe I turned a round groove close to the bottom of the staple. At this point I used flat rings of a rubber- like material cut to fit in the groove and stretch to slip in place. I made a number of solid metal staples like this and experienced interesting results.

There was an immediate increase in volume and response, and although the sound was a bit trumpet like, it was fun to play. I gave some staples to friends and colleagues, including Alex Klein of the Chicago Symphony. He was gracious enough to give the new staples a try. His observations were similar to mine, and he also found that the staple allowed a more even tone throughout the entire range as well as better projection. Although Mr. Klein did use the metal staples in public performance, his feeling was that the brass staple was too bright.

It was at this point that I decided to try materials that were of similar density to wood. A material that worked well was Delrin, a substance that has been used for musical instruments. The Delrin staples had to be made differently: the inside was tapered to match the taper of the metal tube and then was glued together instead of soldered. The rubber rings and grooves were made in the same manner, although a second ring was added for stability. The sound of play- testing the Delrin staples, or Superstaples as they are now called, retained the projection and response of the brass staples without the brittle sound. It is hard to describe the differences of playing on Superstaples as opposed to cork covered staples as the benefits are subtle. It was in returning to cork staples that I felt like I could feel and hear something missing from the sound. A test that indicated this was the reed transplant, where a reed is changed from one staple to another by wrapping the blades together, cutting off the thread, and retying the blades onto another staple. Although it does take a few minutes to do a reed transplant, it is possible to retain the sound in one's ear long enough to make a comparison.

The Superstaple made its public debut at this year's IDRS convention at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois, and met with a favorable response. Mr. Klein performed the Mozart Oboe Concerto using the Superstaple at the Ravinia Festival. His performance was one of the highlights of the convention, and received rave reviews. All of the Superstaples that were brought to the convention were sold, and orders were taken for more.

The brass or nickel silver parts that were used initially in the making and testing of the Superstaple were Nielsen 47 mm. mediums, but I encourage anyone who has a particular brand of staple or an old favorite staple that they wish to convert to a Superstaple, to send them to me at the following address: Evanston Band and Orchestra, 2834 Central Street, Evanston, IL. Inquiries may also be made by calling me at 847- 328- 5711.

An additional benefit of the Superstaple is that they should far outlast cork, and if a ring breaks it can be replaced.

Oboe technology has changed very little relative to other technologies in the last fifty years, but improvements are possible and need to be pursued. The cork staple has served well for many years, but I believe given time, the use of the Superstaple will become common practice. v

About the Author ...

Alex Lubell graduated from DePaul University School of Music and has studied with Robert Morgan. He has also studied with Grover Schiltz, Ray Still, Lois Wann, Lawrence Thorstenberg, and Whitney Tustin. Alex was principal oboe of the Kankakee Symphony for seven years and has been a member of the Festival Chamber Group for ten years. He has a patent pending on a new device which he developed for open- hole flutes.