Author: William
Date: 2002-09-28 17:13
I personally play on a Chicago Kaspar, a Gregory Smith (Sneezy Sponser) "Cicero" Kaspar model and a Charles Bay Ithica Custom, all expensive hand crafted products, but well worth (IMNSHO) the money in terms of sound and response. FYI--I have tried a variety of Pomerico's and do not like them--for me, they are "stuffy." Other, more economical commercial mouthpieces that I do like are the LeBlanc LC#3, the LeBlanc K10, the VanDoren B45 and M13 and the Selmer HS**. I do not equate "dark" with "stuffy" but more with "chocolate" or "resonate" and prefer the lighter, more flexibil sound that a more open mouthpiece lets you play with. "Dark", but with *perk*. The best and cheapest mouthpiece on the current market might be the Yamaha student line, (Model 4C I think). But I do not believe they are "hand finished." For that, you pay more.
You may want to check out Clark Fobes website as well. I have not tried his mpcs but he has written some good articals regarding clarinet accoustics in relation to mouthpiece design and many claim his products are great. (also a Sneezy Sponser)
Bottom Line: try as many different mouthpieces as you can because, even with mouthpieces that have identical names and numbers, they will play differently. That's one of the variables that makes clarinet playing so interesting--and which produces so much material for us regular Sneezy commentators (many of whom all eventually agree to disagree).
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