Application experimentale du bilan de puissance reactive a la mesure de l'anche de saxophone

The reactive power balance approach is capable of linking the dynamics of a reed represented by a spring and that of the resonator which is played. A simple-reed instrument do not play exactly at the frequencies of the impedance peaks. Therefore, each mode of the pipe absorbs (or provides) reactive power. Their sum is equal to that provided by the spring which stands for the reed in our model. We have experimentally determined the input impedance of a saxophone and its internal spectrum for various notes and playing conditions. The model yields a value for the stiffness of the reed when played by a machine or a musician. The measured values are consistent with those given by the literature on isolated reeds.