 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: yearsofwisdom
Date: 2011-07-04 21:11
My teacher is trying to sell me a pyne mouthpiece. She doesn't know the model but it has pyne emblem in the center and pyne carved on the side near the rails and Pk on the other side of the rail. She wants 350 for it. is this reasonable? it seems to be brand new.
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Author: Chetclarinet
Date: 2011-07-04 21:30
I think the price is a bit high. Check out his website. The PK stands for Pyne-Kaspar and has been one of his best selling facings over the years.
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Author: Mark Charette
Date: 2011-07-04 21:41
Buying from a teacher is always fraught with conflict. Does the mouthpiece really work for you - or does the teacher need money? Is the price reasonable? What will the teacher say if I say no? What if I don't like it in a month? ...
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Author: JW177
Date: 2011-07-04 21:46
This appears to be Pyne's Signature mouthpiece (model Pk). They are listed on Pyne's website at $325.00. If you click on the order link you can download their order form in PDF format and, according to that form, there is a 3 month delivery time on all Signature mouthpieces.
Pyne/Clarion
James
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Author: Jack Kissinger
Date: 2011-07-05 02:05
Did you buy either of the other (overpriced) mouthpieces she was trying to sell you in April? Everything we said back then:
http://test.woodwind.org/clarinet/BBoard/read.html?f=1&i=348107&t=348067
still applies -- only more so. This time she is asking more than you would have to pay to have Pyne custom make a new one for you. If she doesn't even know what mouthpiece she has, how can she know if it's right for you? She does appear to know she doesn't want it. You should also be aware that Pyne mouthpieces are typically asymmetrical -- probably not appropriate for someone at your level. Chet's statement is not quite correct, BTW. According to Pyne's website PK is the bore, not the facing. The facing, which you may have no way of knowing, could be medium close, medium or medium open.
For me (though apparently not for you), the answer is easy. As long as you lack the experience/expertise to evaluate the value and playability of a mouthpiece, you shouldn't be buying one from your teacher. If she's simply offering to sell it but not recommending it, say "no." It's likely not a good mouthpiece for you and it's overpriced. If she is both recommending and selling it, say "no." She has a conflict of interest. You cannot know whether she is selling it to you because she thinks it will be a great mouthpiece for you or because she wants the money. In either case, her asking price is way too high.
And your parents should tell her that if she continues to try to sell you her (or her friend's/colleague's) castoffs (at outrageous prices, into the bargain), that they will be finding you a new teacher. I don't care what orchestra (major or otherwise) she plays with. You should be able to trust her to be acting in YOUR best interests at all times. That's what you pay her for.
Best regards,
jnk
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Author: Ed Palanker
Date: 2011-07-06 02:49
I always stocked many different MP for my students to try. I would allow them to try as many as they wanted to, alla Leon Russianoff style, and let them play on it for several weeks before making a decision. If we both agreed the one they choose is better than what they had I would either have them order several MP of the same type and pick the best one or I'd sell them mine and replace it, charging them the price of the replacement plus shipping because I'd always try several until I found what I considered to be the best one. If I decided not to re stock it I would only charge them what I remembered paying for it when I stocked it in the first place. Never more than the current price if I couldn't remember. You have to be convinced this is the MP for you at this moment in your life for $300. As a student, I went through about five before graduating. As a professional, 49 years now, I've changed about five times on Bb-A, 20 years on my current, only once on bass, no change on Eb. ESP eddiesclarinet.com
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Author: SteveG_CT
Date: 2011-07-06 13:52
I'd pass on it. Instead I would recommend taking some of that money and investing is a good recording device (maybe a Zoom or a Tascam). You were saying a couple of months ago that you liked some of the mouthpieces you tried but didn't really know how you sounded on them. That to me suggests that you shouldn't be considering dropping a huge amount of money on a custom mouthpiece at this point in time.
Having a good quality recording device will allow you to better evaluate any new setups you try in the future.
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Author: William
Date: 2011-07-06 14:48
I prefer my two Gregory Smith's mouthpieces--Chedeville and Kaspar models--over my Pyne. And the last time I checked Greg's website, his mouthpieces were in the $250 ballpark. If I ever break my two original Kaspar mouthpieces--the Chicago #14 I've played since college--I will use Greg Smith's "Cicero Kaspar" model to replace them.
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Author: Buster
Date: 2011-07-06 19:32
To follow up on what Jack wrote,
After reading the thread from a few months ago, where you were placed in a similar quandary, I do have to question your teacher's intentions in these situations.
The first goal of any private instructor is to guide a student, and aid them in finding their own path to excellence. (Actually, I have always told students from the first lesson that my goal is to make them a finer clarinetist than I am.) This should obviously be accomplished through addressing pedagogical matters arising in music/ etudes etc... under the watchful (and hopefully knowledgeable) eye of the teacher. That is the vital student/teacher relationship (a mutual trust, if you will) that is needed for a productive environment. Quite obviously the teacher is compensated for their time; or better said, their knowledge.
At a point, the issue of upgrading equipment can arise, if, what the student has is insufficient for their continued advancement. This purchasing of "new" equipment must be done while still maintaining the essential teacher/student relationship. If at any point the teacher suggests, or forces, a student to purchase anything at a financial gain for themselves, they have destroyed the mutual trust that is needed.
I have never, nor did any of my former mentors, operate in this manner. In fact, I had several greatly aid me in finding equipment, and even so much as give me mouthpieces and the like for no cost at all. (One in fact gave me a fine original Cicero Kaspar without so much as a bat of his eye.) I only ever sold 1 mouthpiece to a student, at a $75 dollar loss to me. In other cases, particularly when living in Mexico where a "middle-class" student has far less expendable income than we do, I have given away mouthpieces ranging from $75-300 simply because the student needed something better. (I only maintained a small studio, not 20 or 30 students.) This is how I was treated and I want to carry on that kindness.
None of this is to say that your teacher is not a qualified instructor and that you should discontinue your studies with her. However, you, or your parents, have every right to ask your instructor to discontinue exploiting the mutual trust that exists for their own gains. It sounds a bit like you don't know what your are looking for equipment-wise and your teacher is attempting to take advantage of that. Again, as Jack stated, you need the operating trust that your teacher is acting in your best interest.
-Jason
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Author: doclaw
Date: 2011-07-23 22:36
Based upon previous post of a similar nature I do thinketh that "yearsofwisdom" be punking us. If one can play clarinet and post on this board then one can surely google for price comparisons. But his posts do stir up the natives.
www.abrahamwatkins.com
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Author: Kontra
Date: 2011-07-23 23:09
Did you end up buying any of the others? Did you stick with your M30, buy a Selmer HS** or what? What happened with that? Why does your teacher think you absolutely need it over what you have now? The mouthpiece is way overpriced, like the others. I don't know your teacher and am not questioning her ability as a musician, but with her trying to sell you overpriced used merchandise all the time one has to wonder what her intentions are.
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