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 New mouthpiece really hard to play
Author: Solveig 
Date:   2012-03-11 20:18

Hi, my crystal mouthpiece broke last night and I just bought a new mouthpiece, a used plastic Buffet Crampon one. It is however really hard to get it to play. Why? Should I bring it back?

I used to use number 1 reeds, which don't work on this one. I tried a number 2 and number 3 one and they work but still it's a lot harder to get the air out. could it be that this mouthpiece only supports these reeds, which are harder to play?

What should I do? I was perfectly happy playing with number one reeds.

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 Re: New mouthpiece really hard to play
Author: Merlin_Williams 
Date:   2012-03-11 20:29

Isn't the solution as obvious as buying another mouthpiece of the same type and specs are you had before?

Jupiter Canada Artist/Clinician
Stratford Shakespeare Festival musician
Woodwind Doubling Channel Creator on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/c/WoodwindDoubling

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 Re: New mouthpiece really hard to play
Author: Solveig 
Date:   2012-03-11 20:49

i guess so... i am just so broke right now that i thought a 20euro piece would do, for the crystal one i had before (which by the way has no name on it) prices start from much higher.

I just didnt know that mouthpieces could be so different from one another, but I guess they can. I suppose I should just bring this one back.

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 Re: New mouthpiece really hard to play
Author: Katrina 
Date:   2012-03-11 21:36

20 Euro for a used Buffet mouthpiece? That sounds way too expensive.

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 Re: New mouthpiece really hard to play
Author: JHowell 
Date:   2012-03-11 21:44

Wow, 20 euro for a used plastic mouthpiece? It seems like you ought to be able to do better. Most people who buy a Buffet just chuck the factory mouthpiece in a drawer and would be thrilled to get 20 euro. Is ebay an option? You likely wouldn't be able to return what you get but it's likely to be much cheaper.

Since there is no name on your crystal mouthpiece it's hard to search for a direct replacement, but we can make some assumptions. All the factory Buffet mouthpieces I've looked at have been medium to medium close. They're most likely to play with a medium strength, 3, 3 1/2 reed. If you put a number 1 reed on it you'll just blow it shut. Is that how it felt?

The fact that you were able to play a number 1 reed on your old mouthpiece suggests that it was fairly open. So, if you want to keep the very soft reeds you'll need to find another open mouthpiece. I don't have suggestions since that's not the sort of mouthpiece I play, but it's a place to start.

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 Re: New mouthpiece really hard to play
Author: Merlin_Williams 
Date:   2012-03-11 21:53

If the OP wants to use a really soft reed, Vandoren's 5JB mouthpiece is quite open.

Jupiter Canada Artist/Clinician
Stratford Shakespeare Festival musician
Woodwind Doubling Channel Creator on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/c/WoodwindDoubling

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 Re: New mouthpiece really hard to play
Author: Solveig 
Date:   2012-03-11 21:59

Thank you so much for the enlightening and useful reply.

I am now going to try and return this one and buy a more open one.

Thanks again!

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 Re: New mouthpiece really hard to play
Author: Solveig 
Date:   2012-03-11 22:00

ha! maybe i got ripped off! :)

but maybe i'll be able to return it.

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 Re: New mouthpiece really hard to play
Author: Campana 
Date:   2012-03-11 23:15

Hi. To help you better understand the difference between mouthpieces and the type you need to look for, have a look at this Vandoren guide...
http://www.saxplus.com/vandoren-clarinet-mpc-info.html

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 Re: New mouthpiece really hard to play
Author: Lee 
Date:   2012-03-12 02:01

When I was using the mouthpiece that came with my R13 I had to use a 5 Mitchell
Lurie. It may be too closed for the soft reeds that you have tried.

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