I was in London recently and had planned a visit to Sax.co.uk for 2 reasons: check out a bari mouthpiece and ligatures for the soprano. The bari mouthpiece was the primary thing on my mind. I bought a Yamaha YBS-32 second-hand last year. Is pretty good shape for an instrument that had been used professionally, but it came with stock Yamaha 5C mouthpiece. This was adequate to start on, but I felt the sax could deliver more.
There were some metal mouthpieces on offer but I have found the Otto Link 7* on tenor too hard on my lips (will try to sell on Ebay soon). So my preference for plastic meant I had a Meyer 7 and an Otto Link 6 to try. Went into the practice room and was trying them for 15-20 minutes with my own reeds. Didn't want a new reed to interfere with choice. Thought Meyer was nicer but something wasn't quite right. I tried Otto Link but sound was not bright or clear. Anyhow I realised it was 1pm and I was late meeting the missus, so I had to make my excuses and run. Anyhow came back an hour later and said I'd like to try them again. I did say I didn't like the Link ligature: screws were not working well, so they gave me a different one. What a change! Ended up buying the thing and having played the bari at a few rehearsals since, the mouthpiece gives me a better dynamic range and there aren't so many squeaks at higher register.
And then comes the soprano story. I bought a Meyer 7 plastic mouthpiece last year in the US. Got it at a good price, half what I'd pay in Ireland or Europe. Tried some Rovner ligatures, although I've given them up nearly 15 years ago on tenor and alto. I can't remember if I tried a metal ligature, but when I went for the Vandoren Optimum. Wow!
Sax just sings now. Volume has probably doubled and I can play _very_quietly as always in ensemble work. I did have to think twice about it as the ligature cost more than the mouthpiece but it has been worth it.
There were some metal mouthpieces on offer but I have found the Otto Link 7* on tenor too hard on my lips (will try to sell on Ebay soon). So my preference for plastic meant I had a Meyer 7 and an Otto Link 6 to try. Went into the practice room and was trying them for 15-20 minutes with my own reeds. Didn't want a new reed to interfere with choice. Thought Meyer was nicer but something wasn't quite right. I tried Otto Link but sound was not bright or clear. Anyhow I realised it was 1pm and I was late meeting the missus, so I had to make my excuses and run. Anyhow came back an hour later and said I'd like to try them again. I did say I didn't like the Link ligature: screws were not working well, so they gave me a different one. What a change! Ended up buying the thing and having played the bari at a few rehearsals since, the mouthpiece gives me a better dynamic range and there aren't so many squeaks at higher register.
And then comes the soprano story. I bought a Meyer 7 plastic mouthpiece last year in the US. Got it at a good price, half what I'd pay in Ireland or Europe. Tried some Rovner ligatures, although I've given them up nearly 15 years ago on tenor and alto. I can't remember if I tried a metal ligature, but when I went for the Vandoren Optimum. Wow!
Sax just sings now. Volume has probably doubled and I can play _very_quietly as always in ensemble work. I did have to think twice about it as the ligature cost more than the mouthpiece but it has been worth it.
