I really cannot find a reed I like as much on saxophone as Légère. It started with Bari sax reeds…there is no good cane Bari reed, in my opinion. I’m not one of those players who complains about reeds. I get 8 out 10 performance reeds out of a box through good seasoning and simple adjustments. There are lots of good manufacturers and Rico in particular has come a long way in the past few years. Tom Alexander’s Superial reeds have been a revelation. South America and Australia have started producing decent cane. Vandoren has always been the industry standard for me, though, and I’ve always circled back to them…but no more…not on saxophone.

I carry every premium reed in my studio, and all my students and all the players in Sax Noir have chosen Légère. It sure is nice to spend every lesson teaching saxophone instead of adjusting reeds (although I hasten to add I would never choose a reed out of convenience, only for sound.)

No one makes a good bari sax reed except Légère. They are either a poor design or poor cane or both. So, I changed to Légère on Bari and eventually all the other saxophones followed. Robust, dark, warm, clear and fantastic stability in the upper register. Great articulation. I did not miss the “grain” of a cane reed on saxophone, although I do on clarinet. Then Légère issued the Signature Clarinet reeds, and they are so much like cane that it is spooky!

Now come the Signature Tenor sax reeds, and as much as I have liked the standard product, these babies are amazing. I did not feel that the slightly grainy woody sound of cane was essential for the saxophone sound, but now that these synthetic reeds have a touch of that, they are even nicer. I just cannot wait for the Soprano, Alto, Bari, Bass Clarinet and Eb clarinet versions!

FYI, they play 1/4 strength softer than Vandoren Blue Box.