Just a few thoughts on the plastic reeds. I was a huge fan of Plasticover Reeds for years. My Band Director was cool with those (he plays Sax) and this was some 28 years ago. Since that time, many seem against them. I like them but found that they have become increasingly harder to use for a long period of time. And they soften up quicker – probably since I'm getting older.
That said, I tried a bunch of different plastic reeds and here's what I found:
*BARI Associates: To me, these felt like playing on a piece of glass. Also, my chops were in pain afterwards.
*Fibracell: The sound was pretty good, but not easy to play for long periods of time. If I went back to another type of reed during a practice session, it was difficult to get a good tone.
*Plasticover: I've used them for years but they seem to get softer faster.
*Légère: These are my new favorites! There's something different about these reeds that I'll try to explain. They are plastic, but have the feel of cane. They play instantly and if you're playing an open mic or have to sit out for a while, you don't need to suck the reed again to get it to lay flat (as you would with cane or plasticover). They cost quite a bit, but they last for months AND sound great. I like the Signature or the Studio Cut versions and just bought one last week after playing on a Signature for several months. Worth a try!
Obviously everyone and every setup and skill level is different and unique, so you'll have to see what works for you. I play on a Cannonball Tenor, with a Jody Jazz Classic mouthpiece. I can hit lows and highs and altissimo with relative ease. I'm not an expert and I play as often as possible in Open Mics and Sit-In with my professional Jazz Cat Friends. So, my advice to you is to try them out one-at-a-time. I'm not a paid endorser, but I did send them a nice email about my experience with their reeds and the Légère VP of Sales responded personally.
