 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: angella
Date: 1999-07-02 07:54
i'm in the midst of trying some mouthpieces- some richard hawkins' and some greg smiths. i haven't gotton the smith's yet, but i've tried the hawkins and liked it. does anyone have an opinion on either of these mouthpieces? i can't afford both, but i'm wondering if i should just buy the hawkins (i have to decide soon!) and forget about messing around with trying the smith???? if anyone has had any good or bad experiences with these, i'd like to know. please email me at angella@rice.edu
thanks!
angella
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Author: Mark Charette, Webmaster
Date: 1999-07-02 11:41
I play a Hawkins and like it very much; however, Greg's a friend of mine and I'd want very much for you to try his mouthpieces, too! I don't think you can go wrong with either if you find one you like.
I hear that Greg has a bit more "personal service" with his mouthpieces.
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Author: Joanne
Date: 1999-07-02 16:34
I have a Greg Smith mouthpiece which is marked 1+. I've had no reed problems whatsoever since getting it last year - every Vandoren 3.5 plays beautifully right from the box. When I play on my B45 I feel like I'm always fighting with the reeds. The Smith is the only mouthpiece I have really enjoyed playing on since I was loaned a Kaspar by a teacher, probably because it's quite similar. Unfortunately, my local music shop doesn't come across many high quality mouthpieces, so I didn't get to try any of Smith's other facings. Try as many mouthpieces as you can, with different strength reeds - the perfect MP is well worth the wait!
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Author: Daniel
Date: 1999-07-02 19:36
Both makers are good craftsmen. I haven't had much experience with the Hawkins mpcs. And i haven't had a chance to try Greg's newer model. I feel bad because i'm getting behind in the mouthpiece world. i usually try to test everything so i have a good idea how stuff is and what's out there.
I like the sound Greg's mouthpieces make, but they don't offer enough projection for me. I've heard that some people really like Richard's mpcs. I had a Kaspar that was refaced by him that i used for slightly over a year until i got my new Kaspar refaced by Brad Behn. I have also heard people not like his facings... I would suggest waiting for Greg's mouthpiece and compare the two.
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Author: Shima
Date: 1999-07-02 20:12
the tip rails of Hawkins mps is not symmetric
, it did not work for my dental configuration
I have heard Smith mps has a symmetric tip rail
you should wait and see which one suit you better
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Author: Mark Charette
Date: 1999-07-02 20:29
I talked with Richard about his mouthpieces; as someone alluded before, some people love 'em, some don't. Richard just asks that people try them, and make their own decisions - he doesn't care about the technical aspects of "why" they're shaped the way they are - they work for him and some other people.
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Author: Shima
Date: 1999-07-02 22:29
Mark:
is that what you mean by Hawkins lacks
"personal service" compare to Smith?
since he don't care whether people will
like his product or not and he is not willing to
adjust it to fit some people that does not
like this design?
Shima
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Author: Mark Charette
Date: 1999-07-02 23:05
Shima wrote:
-------------------------------
Mark:
is that what you mean by Hawkins lacks
"personal service" compare to Smith?
since he don't care whether people will
like his product or not and he is not willing to
adjust it to fit some people that does not
like this design?
------
No, you misconstrued completely the meaning of my post. Richard has a particular design that he uses. All his mouthpieces have that design; there's no different facings available either in his regular mouthpieces. That's why there's "Hawkins" mouthpieces. I'm sure he'll make minor adjustments if you need, but in most cases you'll try a bunch and find the one that suits you and your clarinet best. This is realistically the way most people buy mouthpieces.
However, Richard will make you a custom mouthpiece, reface your current mouthpiece, duplicate a mouthpiece, or whatever to your specification. Then it's not a "Hawkins" mouthpiece, but a mouthpiece that was made (or changed) by Richard.
I think if you talk with most mouthpiece makers with a "name" you'll find exactly the same sentiments; each has a particular design that they've created, and they're not going to change the base design just for you - then it wouldn't respond or sound or respond the same way.
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Author: Alec Thigpen
Date: 1999-07-04 02:34
I just bought a Smith mouthpiece, he sent three, and a Chadash barrel, and there were very noticeable differences in all three of the same facing. They all played very well, but I was able to choose one over the others due to slight differences in the higher registers on control and smooth transitions in the ranges. Gregory is very prompt, and quite a gentleman to deal with. I would hope you wait and compare, or at least to consider more than just one premium mouthpiece.
I am still waiting on my trial order from Charles Bay, from almost four months ago.
I also have a Morgan that is not as centered, but plays quite well for some things. It is probably the easiest playing mouthpiece I have ever played.
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