 The Doublers BBoard
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Author: rodb
Date: 2006-07-20 12:23
I've been getting along best with the john pierce mp on clarinet. and am wondering if there is an equivalent mouthpiece for sax? Actually I'm playing a cmel using a tenor mp, seems like wasting a lot of air? Anyone know what I mean? Also thinking of hahing the sax neck bent up a few inches so the angle is more like clarinet and the horn deesn't have to be so high up. Do we do this?
Thanx
Rodb
Post Edited (2006-07-20 14:36)
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Author: GBK
Date: 2006-07-20 12:39
So that's how JP Morgan made his great fortune - selling mouthpieces. ![[wink]](http://test.woodwind.org/clarinet/BBoard/smileys/smilie3.gif)
Actually, Ralph Morgan makes an actual C melody sax mouthpiece. It might be worth looking into ...GBK
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Author: Steve Epstein
Date: 2006-07-20 14:08
I have an older (hard rubber, not plastic) Brilhart 3 I use on my Conn c-melody. It's shorter than most modern tenor mp's.
Steve Epstein
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Author: Roger Aldridge
Date: 2006-07-22 22:59
Rodb,
It's my opinion that having your c-mel neck bent upwards a "few inches" is a terrible idea. I don't see how it can be done to that extreme without causing harm to the neck. Several years ago I asked my repair tech to do some work on my c-mel's neck. He was extremely careful and stopped the bending work when it felt to him that it had gone far enough. The before-and-after distance wasn't all that much -- perhaps around only a half inch. However, it was helpful in having a more comfortable playing position. With that in mind, the notion that a saxophone neck can be bent several inches isn't realistic. Anyway, if you're serious about the saxophone please learn to approach it as a saxophone and not as a clarinet.
I'm in agreement with GBK about the Ralph Morgan c-melody mouthpiece. Believe me, I tried every c-melody mouthpiece that I could lay my hands on and -- in terms of intonation, tonal quality, and projection -- I found Morgan to be the very best.
Here's the "secret" that I learned about c-melody mouthpieces: The best acoustical match for a c-mel is a mouthpiece that has a length similar to an alto sax mouthpiece and an amount of chamber volume that is LARGER than a comparable tenor mouthpiece. Study original 20's and early 30's c-melody mouthpieces and you'll discover what I'm describing. It's important to remember that c-melody saxophones were designed for this kind of mouthpiece to be the "missing cone" (ie, the amount of length and volume beyond the end of the neck). The trick, then, is to find a mouthpiece that has the length and chamber volume measurements of a vintage c-melody mouthpiece while, at the same time, having a superb sound and level of projection....that is, not sounding like a stuffy vintage mouthpiece. For me, the Morgan mouthpiece meets all of these requirements.
Anyway, this is the understanding about the c-melody I've come to have after several years of trial & error and discussions with a number of mouthpiece designers and other players.
Having said all of that, most c-melody players I know use whatever works for them. Thus, if you'd do a poll of c-melody guys you'll find various alto, tenor, and c-melody mouthpieces being used. Really, when it comes to the c-melody it's like the Wild West regarding mouthpieces. Personally, this does not make logical sense to me. Especially, after trying various alto and tenor pieces on a c-mel and having terrible intonation with them. Never the less, with the c-melody it's often a matter of trying a selection of mouthpieces and hopefully finding one that gives you and your particular horn the best possible intonation and the type of sound that fits your tonal conception.
Good luck!
Roger
Post Edited (2006-07-23 14:03)
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