Mouthpieces mouthpieces

[Lewis.S]

Hi everyone

In my music lesson I am playing a piece called Gipsy songs, and my teacher says I have a very, round sound, but I need an 'edgier' sound without sounding harsh. I think I could do this without changing my mouthpiece, but it got me thinking about metal mouthpieces and if that would help. I've found this mouthpiece unused on Ebay: http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/DM-SHARKBITE-...nstruments&hash=item1e5f92f385#ht_1495wt_1139

Cheers in advance,
Lewis;}​

 

[Pete Thomas]

Well, Sharkbites can be OK mouthpieces, but a metal mouthpiece is not the way to get edgier, you either do it yourself or you get an edgier mouthpiece (or reed). A metal mouthpiece is not necessarily edgier. I tried a Sharkbite or two, and I didn't find them edgy.

 

[Lewis.S]

Cheers Pete

Have you got any suggestions for edgier mouthpieces?

 

[Pete Thomas]

Cheers Pete

Have you got any suggestions for edgier mouthpieces?

Edgier than what?

 

[Lewis.S]

It's just I need an edgier tone for the piece and I'm not really getting that with my selmer sax and mouth piece (selmer S-80) my teacher says it is a bit 'fat' and round (in a positive way)

 

[Rikki]

I personally use a huastar which is vitually indentical to the sharkbite, its a very capable mouthpiece, so no issue there. As to getting an edgier sound I am assuming you mean a brighter sound? Personally I found the reed will make a bigger difference, a softer reed say (2.5) especially something like a Rico plasticover could give you a brighter sound. I find for me Vandorens give me a darker softer tone. So experiment with reeds on your existing mouthpiece and see what different tones you get.

 

[Pete Thomas]

The only thing that will really be worth doing, apart from the good advice from Rikki, (or working on your tone) would be to try out different mouthpieces and see what works for you. I would also ask your teacher for recommendations

 

[TomMapfumo]

The issue about metal, HR and other substances seems to be that the material generally influences the size and not the sound of the mouthpiece - the size may well have an influence on comfort/playing etc. but not really on sound. The Selmer mpc that you have is a very small tip opening, a medium chamber and commonly used for classical playing. You probably want to try a smaller chamber mouthpiece to get an edgier sound. If you want to try something edgier for little money why not try a Rico Graftonite C3 mouthpiece, very slightly larger tip opening than the Selmer and with a smaller chamber. If you order one via www.rapidreeds.com you can get one for £14 or so, inc P&P. The Selmer Lig will fit OK and it will at the very least act as a reference point. You could easily spend £100 or more, but this would be a good way forward. A lot of people who use metal mouthpieces use "smaller chamber metal mouthpieces" to get an edgier sound - like the Berg Larsen, Runyon & Dukoff mouthpieces you'll often hear about.

In my experience only some teachers know much about mouthpieces, and many know less than their pupils.........