Klarinet Archive - Posting 000736.txt from 2001/01

From: Bilwright@-----.net (William Wright)
Subj: RE: [kl] Mouthpieces
Date: Mon, 22 Jan 2001 21:42:23 -0500

Karl, I'm in no position to pontificate because I'm a student, and
a less-than-ideal student at that. And since I've already posted this
once, perhaps I should keep my mouth closed
(or my keyboard idle) at this point.

But IMO the mouthpiece does not determine the sound. And for most
beginners, playing on a mouthpiece that does not seem most comfortable
is a prescription for the student's failure.

This is a completely different issue from when a teacher
says,"George, I think you would have better results with a <whatever>."
I absolutely agree that a teacher's advice is essential, and I'm not
disagreeing with your statement that this is the case. I'm fairly
certain that my teacher saved me by insisting that I switch to a certain
mouthpiece.

What I _am_ disagreeing with is the statement that "If you like
<whoever>'s tone, you should play the same mouthpiece as <whoever> does.
Probably you'll never equal <whoever>, but you'll come closer than if
you play something else, and you'll feel better about your own playing
if you do." I just don't think that this statement is accurate. And
I _do_ think that for the bulk of students, this is a prescription for
failure.

[I am ignoring all the other problems about endorsements and
commercial interests that have been mentioned here. They are
significant, of course.]

Cheers,
Bill (who probably didn't need to post the same thing twice)

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