Author: Brad Behn
Date: 2018-09-06 17:56
Ken,
Congratulations on finding a Bonade which has inspired.
Bonade mouthpieces came in several forms:
1. Narrow throat, gentle A-Frame, moderate baffle swoop. These are the most common, and often had 7 1/2 on the side. And the good news is that these have the best potential.
2. Wide A-Frame throat, high baffle - hybrid design employing a French mouthpiece external shape with German mouthpiece internals. Not many of these were made, and their sounds were less focused and lacked core by comparison to #1
3. Very narrow throat with parallel sidewalls, very deep baffle (this chamber shape was also used in some Chedeville branded mouthpieces and was the inspiration for the Gigliotti mouthpiece. These mouthpieces didn't have as much resonance as #1 and were more resistant as well.
4. Melior logo, unnecessary horizontal troughs across the table, medium-wide throat, relatively high baffle. These mouthpieces came in either two or three ligature lines at the bottom, and are generally considered not as good as #1, as their design concept is more for marketing than for any purpose of artistry.
5. And VERY rare, and by far the best, the much older Bonade mouthpiece with round logo beneath the bottom ligature line, made from much older blanks. I've only seen a few in all of my hours on the bench. These mouthpieces were made from a nice inventory of older ched. blanks. Their baffles were lovely in shape as they had a gentle slope yet were not too deep as was all too common, and their throats were nice and narrow for better tonal core.
It is worth noting that all Bonade designs played higher than A=440 which was customary of the era. None of them had facings which functioned well. It was a rule that Bonade's students came to lessons on a Bonade mouthpiece, yet none of them liked their mouthpieces. Bonade was ill in his post Orchestra, teaching days, had many medical expenses, and so he promoted his celebrity for sponsorship deals with instrument makers and mouthpiece makers as well.
All Bonade mouthpiece forms can be refaced into something very nice, but I would definitely urge players on a search to bias their efforts toward option #1. These mouthpieces were not all made from the same rubber formulation, but the better ones had a lovely chocolatey sound (rich, deep, yet full of character, tonal density, and good core). They weren't as ringy as some earlier era French mouthpieces, and some criticize Bonade mouthpieces as having a shallow brightness of tone, however a good one is all good. Some may perceive the brightness as a compact and tight resonance, which in fact with a good lighter reed opens up into a world of comfort, power, and flexibility which simply can't happen on a large chamber mouthpiece.
They were made by a famous French mouthpiece factory who's name has now been taken by Omar Henderson of Georgia, and sold to Georgia saxophone mouthpiece maker Jody Jazz. Jody and I had a nice conversation in Belgium this summer at the ICA conference. He'll reintroduce his version of mouthpieces under that famous French maker's namesake at LA's NAMM show next winter. Sounds convoluted because it is.
Again, it is important to note that Bonade mouthpieces had horrible factory applied facings which were virtually unplayable. As I see it, it is amazing that Bonade's students could get any service out of them whatsoever, BUT when properly refaced a Bonade mouthpiece can be a lovely option. I dare say that all clarinetists would benefit to become acquainted with Bonades, as they can offer a much sweeter, more ringy, focused, and resonant sound than is typical on modern mouthpieces, made from "German" rubber, and made from common molding practices. Their smaller chambers offer nimble handling, a nice tight tonal resont core, and nuanced response with a good (light) reed.
Again, not all Bonade mouthepieces were made from the same quality of rubber and some just don't have good service to offer. So if you want to explore Bonades, make sure to have patience and budget and perseverance sufficient to follow through. It may require refacing several before you find a gem. But it'll be worth it - if you like old-school ring in your sound.
I should also note that Bonades were made with narrow windows as compared to many modern mouthpieces. And these narrow windows add resistance, and core, so a light reed helps bring out their full potential when properly faced, and I would urge anyone doing the facing job to try and keep the integrity of the design by not widening the window too much. This just makes the mouthpiece more shallow sounding, yes more free...but at what cost? And one can easily balance mouthpiece-resistance with reed-strength.
That's something I would urge all to consider. When trying mouthpieces, rather than requiring it to play exactly as you require for your "blow" and for your reed, try to get acquainted with what the mouthpiece prefers. Try to find a reed to match the mouthpiece's resistance level, tonal character, response characteristics, and so on. In fact, a better mouthpiece shouldn't be the same as what you are currently playing, it should rather take you to a new and improved place. And by definition, it will be different.
So to that end, play new equipment with an open mind. Witness what you are doing differently, and then evaluate whether that different approach is a good thing.
If so, you've got a winner.
And with respect to Bonades, I had one in my earlier days as a refacer. I fixed the factory facing, making it a nice 1.01 with a 17.5mm length and it served me very well. In fact it showed me how to nuance, how to shape and voice my sound, how to play lighter reeds AND achieve greater tonal density, core, and cleanliness. It was a mouthpiece which inspired, took me to a higher level of playing, and achieve improved resonance. My sound was more complete with overtones, and my comfort was improved along the way. And perhaps most importantly, my musicianship was manifested through a greater source of inspiration.
One cannot underestimate the impact a great mouthpiece can have!
Congratulations on finding a mouthpiece with nice potential.
Brad Behn
http://www.clarinetmouthpiece.com
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