Mouthpieces The Holy Grail of all Mouthpieces!

[Mike]

For all you out there who are forever searching to get that special sound just like the pro's you've been listening to! Well, here is the video for you!

Man, I've been playing on this cheap $2 stock mouthpiece and ligature with one screw missing. What's wrong with me?

It's a great and vitally important video to watch...Bob Reynolds is an excellent saxophonist who has the answer to all your concerns regarding 'the ultimate setup'.

http://lessons.bobreynoldsmusic.com/78314-2/

 

[Jules]

while waiting for the video to load one point concerning the post above- and, hopefully, a bit of myth breaking. I, for one, don't swap mouthpieces to get a different sound- within a fairly narrow perimeter i always sound pretty similar (and anyway, I quite like the way I sound most of the time). I do however swap mouthpieces to make certain parts of my horn blow easier, achieve a wider dynamic range,, allow altissimo screams to kick in with less effort, boost my top harmonics enough to cut through ropey amplification etc..... its not always about changing your sound.
Weird, that Matt Reynolds video's flatly refusing to load.

 

[kevgermany]

loads for me.. Have seen this before. Really good message!

 

[johnboy]

To prove the point, try this :-
When we try a new m'piece it probably will sound different, but after a while we adapt it to our sound, like it or not!
One problem, is that the sound we hear through our bodies when playing, is different from the sound produced. To hear your sound you need to record a practice session with a m'piece that you have been using for a while, then change the m'pice and record again.
Now use that m'piece for a few weeks, and then make a recording to see if there is a change.

John 🙂;}

 

[Pete C]

Couldn't agree more ...

Pete

 

[TomMapfumo]

So should I just get a cheap Graftonite, rather than one of these expensive Metalites.......................?

 

[Nick Wyver]

To prove the point, try this :-
When we try a new m'piece it probably will sound different, but after a while we adapt it to our sound, like it or not!

Undoubtably true - up to a point. There is no way that my Selmer Soloist is ever going to sound like the Guardala MBII.

 

[Saxlicker]

So should I just get a cheap Graftonite, rather than one of these expensive Metalites.......................?

🙂))

 

[johnboy]

So should I just get a cheap Graftonite, rather than one of these expensive Metalites.......................?

,? Sod the expense, by 'em both. like what I did ;} They're fantastic, as long as you alternate on a regular time scale, but don't forget to sand the reeds to suit

John🙂;}

 

[aldevis]

while waiting for the video to load one point concerning the post above- and, hopefully, a bit of myth breaking. I, for one, don't swap mouthpieces to get a different sound- within a fairly narrow perimeter i always sound pretty similar (and anyway, I quite like the way I sound most of the time). I do however swap mouthpieces to make certain parts of my horn blow easier, achieve a wider dynamic range,, allow altissimo screams to kick in with less effort, boost my top harmonics enough to cut through ropey amplification etc..... its not always about changing your sound.
Weird, that Matt Reynolds video's flatly refusing to load.

Totally agree.
I must add that there are things that change in your taste: if Michael Brecker has been your idol for years and you have developed an edgy sound, it may happen that you fall in love wit Stan Getz in a later age.

A MBII Guardala will never sound like a Soloist (thanks Nick), there are musical situations in which you must be loud and screaming and others soft and mellow.

Tho holy grail is the one that allows you to do all of them.
I have one, but it is quite tiring after 2 hours of big band reading, so there is still space for improvement.

I know that at the end I will more or less sound the same, but a good mouthpiece is the one that allows me, in determinate contexts, to fully use my palette

 

[BigMartin]

Man, I've been playing on this cheap $2 stock mouthpiece and ligature with one screw missing. What's wrong with me?

I don't think I'd do very well in that situation: I tend to use one-screw ligatures . Apart from that I agree with what's been said here.

Oddly enough I prefer the my tenor sound (I play more tenor than anything else) when I hear it recorded to when I'm actually playing. Maybe that's just because it's less familiar, though.

 

[Mike]

while waiting for the video to load one point concerning the post above- and, hopefully, a bit of myth breaking. I, for one, don't swap mouthpieces to get a different sound- within a fairly narrow perimeter i always sound pretty similar (and anyway, I quite like the way I sound most of the time). I do however swap mouthpieces to make certain parts of my horn blow easier, achieve a wider dynamic range,, allow altissimo screams to kick in with less effort, boost my top harmonics enough to cut through ropey amplification etc..... its not always about changing your sound.
Weird, that Matt Reynolds video's flatly refusing to load.

Yes I do agree with you. However, this video and the message related, corresponds to the issue that so many sax players are under the misconception of. Which is the hard work involved that is essential to get a tone pleasurable to the musician. There are no shortcuts and I've been around enough saxophone players in my time to understand that there are many who actually think that a more expensive mouthpiece/ligature setup will make a world of difference, in regards to tone.

Sure, different mouthpieces are suited for comfort in relation to execution and agility. Without a doubt!
They are not magical in the sense that they will 'transform' tone into something that was not there before they spent all that money. I realized this over 30 years ago when I was beginning and I had some student model and I walked in Manny's on 48th NYC and tried out a Selmer thinking this is what I need. I sounded exactly the same. Yes, this goes for saxophones as well as mouthpieces. The 'setup' is a big misconception and I feel it plagues a great many up and coming saxophone players into thinking that they can deviate from the hard work it takes to acquire a decent tone which will become exemplified whether you're playing on the most expensive horn money could buy or something like I own which is a Simba.

I happen to love my Simba. My tone isn't great by any means but it's a tone I'm satisfied with and I'll always sound the same on anything I play. My horn/mouthpiece/ligature are not designed by my standards and so I adjusted to the order. This is what proper diaphragm/embouchure technique helps us with. If we can't get what we want we should be able to adjust to what we do have.

 

[Saxlicker]

I agree for the most part of the message he delivers.

Especially the fact that it's the commitment and practise behind the tool that is going to make or break your sound.
AND at some stage, play one and stick with it is another spot on point.

However I do think he's omitted the merits of some exploration and mouthpiece designs.
You need to know if you are giving yourself the best chance regarding the things he mentions such as comfort and chamber design suiting your throat. Well you don't just stumble on that and while you may have got it right first time you need to find that out by trying something else. At least early on and it may mean you try 2 or 3 it also may mean you try and buy 15!

And because mouthpiece designs aren't replicated in all cases today, the £700 vintage rare piece may have something for you that another cheaper piece doesn't hence better than what you have.

They are my gripes with the otherwise very helpful video though rest assured I do think that beginners are sucked into the whole "I need to change pieces" saga un necessarily purely because of access via the internet, where everybody is doing it and talking about it.
It does get in the way of your commitment on what you already have.

I'm obsessed with pieces and their inherent characters so I do buy into certain phrases such as,
A LINKISH CORE
THROATY BERG
E.T.C
but I do realise that on any piece, you'll know its me, I'll know its you.

As long as you truly understand what is really important to you when you go look for a mouthpiece..then do it!
and have fun..... don't do it because everyone else seems to.

 

[elMartillo]

For all you out there who are forever searching to get that special sound just like the pro's you've been listening to! Well, here is the video for you!

Man, I've been playing on this cheap $2 stock mouthpiece and ligature with one screw missing. What's wrong with me?

It's a great and vitally important video to watch...Bob Reynolds is an excellent saxophonist who has the answer to all your concerns regarding 'the ultimate setup'.

http://lessons.bobreynoldsmusic.com/78314-2/

I think he may have changed the link. Doing some browsing today and found this:

The Best Saxophone Mouthpiece

 

[Adrian63]

I didn't watch the clip but I imagine he said " the best mpc is the one you have " Ade

 

[kevgermany]

I didn't watch the clip but I imagine he said " the best mpc is the one you have " Ade

He did, so predictable.

 

[Adrian63]

He took it from Ray Pizzi a.k.a. " the pizza man " ; who said it in the late sixties and meant it. He followed up by saying " use the money to take a trip to your dentist ". These guys don't seem to realise that old farts like me have heard it time and again. Unoriginal and yeah, predictable. Ade