 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Musikat
Date: 2017-05-21 04:51
Help! I have had a Gregory Smith C 1+ on trial for a few weeks and it is a definite improvement over my former mouthpiece that I had been playing on for over 20 years. By prior arrangement I visited Walter Grabner's shop in Illinois on Friday and, according to his policy purchased his K11* along with one of his barrels, but can have two weeks or so to return them should I decide they aren't working for me. I purchased both because my Wesley Rice barrel is a 67 mm (my old mouthpiece played quite sharp) and I am pretty much right in tune pushed all the way in with the Smith. I didn't feel that gave me enough wiggle room in colder temperatures or if my band is playing sharper.
My problem is I love both mouthpieces for different reasons.
The Grabner is very smooth. intervals are much easier and it has a nice warm tone throughout. Just through several play sessions today I am discovering that it seems to prefer a 3.5 V12 or a softer 3.5+. I am just starting to break in 3.5's so it will take a week or so to know how they sound longer-term.
When I tried the Smith with the Grabner barrel I noticed it opened up the sound quite a bit and with it, it is much more vibrant and sparkly, but the intervals aren't quite as good as the Grabner. A few notes come out more harshly than I want, but this could be a matter of "learning" the mouthpiece. It was more mellow overall with the old barrel. Through my longer trial with this mouthpiece I have found V12 3.5+ to be the sweet spot and have just gotten to the point where several are nicely broken in on it, so I clearly have more reeds to test on it that are optimized to this mouthpiece.
Overall, my own analogies of the two are the Smith sounds like a sparkly diamond and the Grabner a beautiful mellow polished stone.
I told Gregory Smith I would let him know by tomorrow and he has already been more than generous giving me extra time with it. Should I:
a. Buy the Smith, stick with my old barrel and sent the new setup back?
b. Send back the Smith and see how I feel after trying the Grabner setup for a few weeks (knowing I could have him send me another 1+ at a later date)?
c. Buy the Smith and Grabner's barrel but send back the Grabner mouthpiece? or
d. Buy the Smith and try the Grabner out for the trial period then either send it back, or end up with two mouthpieces?
Buying both will set me back by about $700 (but my birthday is next week and my wife said she would buy the second one as my present if I want). Does that seem excessive? Will I really play both (maybe the Grabner for smaller ensembles/clarinet choir and the Smith when I have to be more vibrant or have solos)? I am not a professional. I currently play in two concert bands, one much higher level than the other, and a clarinet choir. But I don't rule out someday getting my A tuned up and performing with an orchestra.
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Author: sfalexi
Date: 2017-05-21 05:20
While lots of people have multiple mouthpieces, honestly, personally, I don't see the value of having mouthpieces for "different styles" unless you TRULY play in such different venues you need them. In your situation, some concert bands and a clarinet choir, even an orchestra, I think one mouthpiece will fit all those situations.
It's a tough call. First, I'd check them with a tuner. I have found that most of my mouthpieces, when checked with a tuner, resulted in flat throat tones as compared to the rest of my clarinet, but a few of my mouthpieces just played in tune throughout. So while they all sound good, the tuning was obviously better on a few, so that's why I now play what I play.
I love greg smith and grabner's mouthpieces. His K11* is one of my favorite mouthpieces of all time and I dont see myself EVER getting rid of it. They truly are both excellent mouthpiece craftsman.
Check tuning. If tuning is the same, and the both of the sounds are pleasing (even if they are pleasing in slightly different ways), go for the one that's easier to control throughout the dynamics and range.
Alexi
US Army Japan Band
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Author: ClarinetRobt
Date: 2017-05-21 06:46
I'm with Alexi, it's a tuning game at this point. Return the one not hitting 100% for you.
Have you had anyone listen to you from a distance? I know I sound a helluva lot different at 20 feet away than what I hear from myself.
~Robt L Schwebel
Mthpc: Behn Vintage
Lig: Ishimori, Behn Delrin
Reed: Legere French Cut 3.75/4, Behn Brio 4
Horns: Uebel Superior (Bb,A), Ridenour Lyrique, Buffet R13 (Eb)
Post Edited (2017-05-21 07:39)
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Author: sfalexi
Date: 2017-05-21 06:50
ClarinetRobt wrote:
> I'm with Alexi, it's a tuning game at this point. Return the
> one not hitting 100% for you.
> Have you had anyone listen to you from a distance? I know I
> sound a helluva different at 20 feet away.
Excellent point by Rob. What you're hearing includes vibrations through the skull. A second opinion from someone sitting an audience distance away (not right next to you) could help.
Alexi
US Army Japan Band
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Author: Musikat
Date: 2017-05-21 06:56
Yes, I have had my wife listen (she has very sensitive ears, particularly when it comes to the high notes! LOL). She also heard my dilemma, in that with the right reed, they both sound great. Tuning is about the same, although I haven't had the chance to examine the Grabner in as much detail as the Smith, which took some getting used to tuning-wise, mostly because I couldn't get it through my head that I really was playing in tune without pulling out quite a bit from two locations!
The Smith feels more focused, particularly in the lower registers, but it didn't until I hit on the right reed strength.
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Author: TomS
Date: 2017-05-21 18:48
No comments on the MPs ... but sounds like you have a GREAT WIFE!
Tom
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Author: sfalexi
Date: 2017-05-21 20:43
Quote:
Yes, I have had my wife listen (she has very sensitive ears, particularly when it comes to the high notes! LOL). She also heard my dilemma, in that with the right reed, they both sound great. Tuning is about the same, although I haven't had the chance to examine the Grabner in as much detail as the Smith, which took some getting used to tuning-wise, mostly because I couldn't get it through my head that I really was playing in tune without pulling out quite a bit from two locations!
The Smith feels more focused, particularly in the lower registers, but it didn't until I hit on the right reed strength.
The only thing I can think of at this point is to now see which one is more reed-friendly. If both tune well, and have the potential to sound good, throw a bunch of reeds at them. Whichever one works best with the most reeds, is more "reed-friendly", which means you'll have less frustration in the end trying to find a "good" reed to perform or practice on, or worrying about weather changes.
So mouthpiece A works with 50% of the reeds thrown at it with NO adjustments to the reeds, and mouthpiece B works with 35% of the reeds thrown it with NO adjustments to the reeds, pick mouthpiece A.
Alexi
US Army Japan Band
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Author: bsnake1956
Date: 2017-05-21 21:21
Buy both and renew your vows.
I recently just switched to Greg Smiths mouthpieces (* and +). I am playing on the 1+ and absolutely love it. I just finished 14 shows of Oliver on it and I loved the depth and ability to really regulate the sound. I played on Borbecks for over 35 years, including 8 in a professional orchestra. If you can (and it sounds like your wife is a willing conspirator). Buy both.
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Author: Liquorice
Date: 2017-05-21 23:27
Get the best of both worlds and buy a mouthpiece from Ramon Wodkowski!
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Author: thereallukasj
Date: 2017-05-22 03:50
I personally play two different mouthpieces for different circumstances. I also use different reeds for different areas of performance. I use Legeres most of the time but sometimes swap to Vandoren V12's when I really really need to make some noise. The Clark Fobes I use is for solo/clarinet choir music and my Selmer C* I use for concert band and jazz. As for bass clarinet, these are my different setups.
Musically yours,
Lukas Johnson
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Author: seabreeze
Date: 2017-05-22 07:11
Liquorice,
Which Wodkowski model and facing works best on your clarinet set-up?
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Author: Liquorice
Date: 2017-05-22 08:57
I like his Number 1 and 2 models, using slightly harder reeds for the Number 1. Great mouthpieces!
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Author: Ed
Date: 2017-05-23 01:40
Checking the issues with tuning and reed friendliness both are very important. I have tried some mouthpieces that played really well with the right reed, but it was very difficult to find that reed.
See if you can try them in an ensemble. If it were up to me, I would tend to go with the mouthpiece that had more sparkle. I tend to find that character works better for me and is more flexible in a variety of situations.
There are times that you will find that each mouthpiece may work great if you find the right reed. Pick one and move on.
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Author: shmuelyosef
Date: 2017-05-24 05:50
If the mouthpieces are both great and give you a different vibe when playing then you should keep both unless cash is a serious issue. I have 2 mouthpieces in constant use but I have two clarinets. These are a Fobes 4L and a Grabner K14. My clarinet playing is largely in folk music (klezmer, choro, bluegrass and dixie) and big band so for me it is often a tradeoff between volume and pitch control. For loud settings I use the Fobes with my Centered Tone and for intimate exposed settings i use the Grabner with my Series 9 (a more refined instrument). They have the same tip opening but the Grabner has a shorter facing and smaller bore.
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