The Clarinet BBoard

RE: Mouthpiece Q's!

Author: Kevin Bowman  Date:   1999-02-07 18:42 << Courtney wrote: ------------------------------- I am looking to improve my tone. What is the very best mouthpiece I can pair up with a Buffet R-13 for a great sound? I'd also appreciate ligature suggestions. >> Courtney, mouthpieces are *very* individual. What works as the "perfect" setup for one persone may be completely wrong for another person. The reason for this is the individuality in embouchures, oral cavity shapes, and even dental structures. There's no way around just trying a whole lot of them in order to find the one that works best for you. Having said that, I'll tell you what I use on my R-13: stock Vandoren 5RVLyre-13 with a modified Bonade inverted ligature and Vandoren V12 #4 or 4.5 reeds. That works *for me* right now. I occasionally try different mouthpieces and ligatures and someday I may find a setup I like better. (BTW - the modification to the ligature is one that a lot of people make - the center section between the bands has been cut out). If I might make some suggestions on how to start looking for a mouthpiece/ligature: 1) When you go to a store to try out a bunch, take a tuner and a bunch of *different strength* reeds. Each mpc will have a unique affect on your tuning and each will require a slightly different reed (depending on tip opening and length of lay). 2) try a few different models within a manufacturers line. e.g. when trying Vandoren, try M13, 5RV, 5RVLyre, B45, etc. Look at the manufactures charts to see how they compare in physical dimensions and use that as a basis for determining what qualities you like. 3) Once you think you have found what model you like, try a few of the *same model*. Slight differences will exist due to manufacturing inconsistencies. 4) Once you've found *the* mouthpiece for you, try some different ligatures. Ligatures can have a big effect on the tone and response of your instrument. When I try out ligs I use ad "ideal" read (or as close as I can get) and a couple of reeds that are not quite ideal then I compare how the ligature acts on each reed and the overall sound. Sometimes a good ligature can make troublesome reeds more tolerable. Happy hunting Kevin Bowman Clarinet and Saxophone Instructor, Rochester Conservatory of Music, Rochester, MI and Saxophones, Clarinet, and Keys, B-Side Blues Project

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