Binding of full scores (coil? wire-o? comb? &c)
Posted: 01 Jun 2016, 19:10
I've just had a B4 full score bound with a plastic coil (see the picture). I'd previously had such scores with wire binding of the sort in which the wires are in pairs through small almost square holes (I think it's named ‘wire-o binding’, but I'm not sure), and in the past I've had many scores and parts with plastic comb bindings.
Plastic combs disintegrate after a while, wear the paper and make a fair bit of noise during page turns.
Wire-o (or whatever it is called) is much better, but can easily be bent out of shape, making page-turning awkward. Also the squarish holes in the paper can begin to tear after a while.
The small round holes for plastic coil bindings seem potentially more durable. Also the coils seem less likely to lose their shape than other related bindings. The possible disadvantage might be with parts & vocal scores placed on a steeply tilted stand as, when the score is open, the right hand pages are 2–3 mm higher than the left hand ones, which could make the score a little less stable on the stand when turning. This doesn't seem likely to be a problem with a full score, which is less often on such a steep stand. Page turns seem to be very close to silent with this binding, and there is no tendency for a page to want to turn back of its own accord (as with many forms of stitched binding).
I first encountered this type of binding when I bought a score of Nielsen's 6th Symphony from Wilhelm Hansen a few years ago. I've since discovered than the librarians and music staff of several opera companies make considerable (and likely rather tough) use of this type of binding.
Do people on this forum have opinions and/or practical experience they might like to share of different binding techniques?
Plastic combs disintegrate after a while, wear the paper and make a fair bit of noise during page turns.
Wire-o (or whatever it is called) is much better, but can easily be bent out of shape, making page-turning awkward. Also the squarish holes in the paper can begin to tear after a while.
The small round holes for plastic coil bindings seem potentially more durable. Also the coils seem less likely to lose their shape than other related bindings. The possible disadvantage might be with parts & vocal scores placed on a steeply tilted stand as, when the score is open, the right hand pages are 2–3 mm higher than the left hand ones, which could make the score a little less stable on the stand when turning. This doesn't seem likely to be a problem with a full score, which is less often on such a steep stand. Page turns seem to be very close to silent with this binding, and there is no tendency for a page to want to turn back of its own accord (as with many forms of stitched binding).
I first encountered this type of binding when I bought a score of Nielsen's 6th Symphony from Wilhelm Hansen a few years ago. I've since discovered than the librarians and music staff of several opera companies make considerable (and likely rather tough) use of this type of binding.
Do people on this forum have opinions and/or practical experience they might like to share of different binding techniques?