 The Clarinet BBoard
|
Author: gigaday
Date: 2010-08-07 08:27
In thread http://test.woodwind.org/clarinet/BBoard/read.html?f=1&i=332533&t=332533, ihagan15 says:-
"I currently play on the Selmer Signet, with a Yamaha 4c mouthpiece (I know, it's a piece of crap), and a Rovner Dark ligature."
***
I recently wanted to make sure that I had a stand-by for my Vandoren M15 mouthpiece which cost me about 100GBP.
I was going to buy another M15 but though I might try my Hite Premier (25GBP) that was in the bottom of a drawer, out of curiosity. The Hite plays the same reeds with almost exactly the same sound, it's a little more open and requires only the slightest extra effort to play.
Which got me thinking. So I looked up Student Mouthpieces and found this http://www.bestcovery.com/node/59730/compare.
So I went out to get a Yamaha 4C and came back with a 5C (28GBP) as that was the one they had in the shop, it's very slightly more open than the 4C.
Again it plays all the same reeds as the M15 and has just about the same sound and again it needs just a tiny bit more effort to play.
Describing the Yamaha 4C as "a piece of crap" doesn't seem entirely fair to me.
For the basic player such as myself, I wonder if there isn't a lot of Emperor's New Clothes about fancy expensive mouthpieces.
Tony
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: donald
Date: 2010-08-07 09:00
I've played 4C mouthpieces for Clarinet, Alto/Tenor/Sop sax, and have to say I wouldn't describe them as a "piece of crap" either. That being said- they don't have a particularly beautiful "core tone", and on each instrument I have found a noticeable improvement in tone quality has been the resulted from using a "better" mouthpiece. I have on more than one occasion refaced 4C clarinet mouthpieces for students (either to adjust the curve, possibly opening it up, or to do repairs after scratches/nicks etc) and have found that this can improve the sound slightly (adding a bit of depth). In general, I'd say that if a student can't sound good on a 4C spending more money isn't going to fix the problem.
When playing Sop Sax for the Auckland Philharmonia a month or so back, i found the 4C sop mouthpiece to be very easy to control, but a Rouseau mouthpiece to play with a much more agreeable tone (while feeling a bit "wild" compared to my alto/tenor set-up). Other mouthpieces tried in the weeks prior to the concert included various Vandoren and Selmer options, and in general the 4C was the easy "comfort" option (though i performed on the Rouseau).
dn
"With the conductor presiding over the work's mammoth 15 minute crescendo, the solos were all that could be wished for, from Catherine Bowie's melodious welcome to a few bars in which Donald Nicholls' soprano saxophone seemed to make time itself stand still." NZ Herald.
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: David Spiegelthal ★2017
Date: 2010-08-07 13:47
I can't play Yamaha mouthpieces out of the box, but I like them as blanks for refacing. Even though they're made of a molded plastic, it's a good-quality plastic that works a lot like hard rubber when refaced. I've made some of my best bass clarinet mouthpieces out of inexpensive Yamaha 4C, 5C and 6C 'blanks' (the original facing number doesn't matter since I completely change the facing anyway).
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: William
Date: 2010-08-07 14:57
Yamaha 4C mouthpieces always played well for my middle school students. I cannot say the same regarding a lot of Selmer HS* or Leblanc LC3 mouthpieces that, on the average, cost three to four times as much. Yamaha 4C mouthpieces are definately not "crap", but rather, quality mass-produced student grade mouthpieces.
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Jack Kissinger
Date: 2010-08-07 15:29
I've picked up a couple of Yamaha mouthpieces over the years that came with eBay purchases (clarinet, alto sax). I would describe them as pretty well-made basic student quality mouthpieces -- not my favorites but they work.
Best regards,
jnk
BTW, somebody once said my playing made time stand still. When asked what they meant, they responded "I thought he would never end." 
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: Bassman
Date: 2010-08-08 07:21
Funny you bring this up. I have just experienced a re-awakening of the good old Yamaha 4C. I play a Yamaha 221 II Bass Clarinet, and this is the mouthpiece that came with it. I had played Bb clarinet most of my young life in school, but played bass in my last year of high school. After almost 40 years of inactivity with clarinets, I bought the afore mentioned bass and joined my local community band (and having a blast!). After a lot of research, I ordered a rather expensive mouthpiece. Although it improved my tone, it seemed to suck the air right out of me! After lots of experimentation with all kinds of reeds, I decided to try out one of the Legere Synthetic Reeds that I was reading an awful lot about. Oh yeah, I also got a Rovner Dark Ligature when I got my new mouthpiece. Well, I was somewhat disappointed with the sound and playability of the synthetic reed.
Then I happened to remember a thread I read on one of the clarinet forums. The discussion was about synthetic reeds and how some mouthpieces just did not seem set up for this type of reed and they just did not work well together. So, I decided to see how the Legere would work on the Yamaha 4C...and to my great surprise, it was great! I have fallen in love with this combination of my Yamaha Bass Clarinet, Yamaha 4C mouthpiece, Rovner Dark Ligature, and Legere #3 Reeds. It is amazing how much time and experimentation it takes to get a winning combination and how a particular set up works so well for one musician, but not another. By the way...I saw where the Yamaha 4C was the number one rated mouthpiece for students. The other mouthpiece that I bought was rated number one of intermediate students and professionals alike. I think that I like my Clark Fobes Nova Bass mouthpiece for cane reeds and my Yamaha 4C for my synthetic reeds.
By the way...I have not tried any other synthetic reeds, but the Legere Reeds are great...at least for me. I understand that Forestone is coming out with a Bass Clarinet Reed that will be very good and I think that Legere is coming out with one of their Signature reeds for the Bass Clarinet. I will try both of these.
I've got to say, I love these clarinet forums. Since I am re-learning how to play my bass clarinet after so many years, the advice that I find on these forums is invaluable. If I can add anything to help anyone, I will. Bass Clarinet Rocks! : )
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: tictactux ★2017
Date: 2010-08-11 19:45
I have a 4C for every type of instrument (sax, clarinet, flute*), not as "combat piece" but rather as a consistent (and they are consistent!) point of reference so I can compare apples to apples. Despite playing on others meanwhile, I still consider the 4C or 5C as a good "can't go wrong" piece, especially for doublers.
*) made you look, eh? ![[tongue]](http://test.woodwind.org/clarinet/BBoard/smileys/smilie6.gif)
--
Ben
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
Author: David Spiegelthal ★2017
Date: 2010-08-11 22:50
While Ben can play any 4C;
some folks aren't as hardy as he.
The mouthpiece you choose
is the one you can use
from low E to the super-high C.
|
|
Reply To Message
|
|
The Clarinet Pages
|
 |
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
.jpg){kind=small}
