Erika Lorentzsen

V

The reedmaker gauges thickness in the middle, length of scrape, thickness per blade, cane width. He measures internal diameter, both short and long axis of its ellipse. An oboist heart lies 14-15 mm above the reed’s string with 18-19mm tip. ‘V’ cut indicates slant, or angle. When a reed is held up to light, its darker heart becomes visible.

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Author Bio

Erika Lorentzsen’s work has been published in Ambit, Tears in the Fence, nthposition, Blueline and Orbis, among others. She is an independent producer for Prairie Public, an NPR station.