A ligature is a device which holds a

reed Reed or Reeds may refer to: Science, technology, biology, and medicine * Reed bird (disambiguation) * Reed pen, writing implement in use since ancient times * Reed (plant), one of several tall, grass-like wetland plants of the order Poales * Re ...

onto the

mouthpiece Mouthpiece may refer to: * The part of an object which comes near or in contact with one's mouth or nose during use ** Mouthpiece (smoking pipe) or cigarette holder ** Mouthpiece (telephone handset) ** Mouthpiece (woodwind), a component of a woodw ...

of a

single-reed instrument A single-reed instrument is a woodwind instrument that uses only one reed to produce sound. The very earliest single-reed instruments were documented in ancient Egypt, as well as the Middle East, Greece, and the Roman Empire. The earliest types o ...

such as a

saxophone The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of brass. As with all single-reed instruments, sound is produced when a reed on a mouthpiece vibrates to pr ...

clarinet The clarinet is a musical instrument in the woodwind family. The instrument has a nearly cylindrical bore and a flared bell, and uses a single reed to produce sound. Clarinets comprise a family of instruments of differing sizes and pitches ...

. The ligature must secure the reed firmly against the table of the mouthpiece while allowing it to vibrate freely. The earliest ligatures were lengths of string wrapped over the reed and tied.

Iwan Müller Ivan Müller, sometimes spelled Iwan Mueller (1786 in Reval, Estonia – 1854 in Bückeburg), was a clarinetist, composer and inventor who at the beginning of the 19th century was responsible for a major step forward in the development of th ...

invented a metal ligature to replace twine. String is still used by clarinetists, especially in Germany. Modern German mouthpieces have a groove cut into the outside of the mouthpiece to facilitate wrapping with a string ligature. Some modern clarinetists even opt to use shoestring as a ligature substitute as it is more easily adjustable than string. Other modern clarinetists use electrical tape as a ligature. A ligature must be placed properly in order to allow best performance on a reed instrument. The ligature must be placed at least halfway down the stock of the reed and the screws must not be overtightened, in order to allow free vibration and not distort the reed.Harvey, Paul. ''Saxophone''. London, England: Kahn & Averill, 1995. Ligatures are most commonly made out of metal and plated in nickel, silver, or gold. Ligatures are also made out of wire, wire mesh,

plastic Plastics are a wide range of synthetic or semi-synthetic materials that use polymers as a main ingredient. Their plasticity makes it possible for plastics to be moulded, extruded or pressed into solid objects of various shapes. This adaptab ...

naugahyde Naugahyde is an American brand of artificial leather. Naugahyde is a composite knit fabric backing and expanded polyvinyl chloride (PVC) coating. It was developed by Byron A. Hunter, senior chemist at the United States Rubber Company, and is now ...

, heavy nylon fabric, wood, string, or

leather Leather is a strong, flexible and durable material obtained from the tanning, or chemical treatment, of animal skins and hides to prevent decay. The most common leathers come from cattle, sheep, goats, equine animals, buffalo, pigs and hogs, ...

. Ligatures fall into two general categories, depending on whether the band contacts the reed or a pressure plate, either riding the band or adjusted inward from a block mounted on the band, using a thumbscrew, is used. Various features are incorporated into the design of ligatures to hold the reed securely while minimizing pressure distortion of the reed and allowing maximum vibration. Contact rails may be either parallel or transverse to the reed, on either a metal band or pressure plate type ligature. The contact rails may be either metal, wood, or plastic. Pressure plates may also have raised contact points, prongs, or a concave form to control contact with the reed. Some bands are designed for minimal contact with the mouthpiece, allowing even less absorption of the reed's vibrations. Nevertheless, in theory, the reed string remains the best means of fixing the reed with regard to its vibration behaviour, which is why some manufacturers have recently started to offer reed screws in which the reed is held in place with strings, usually made of rubber. With the screw, the tension of the strings can be varied, making the sound brighter or darker.

References

Woodwind instrument parts and accessories {{SingleReed-instrument-stub