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Mouthpiece capsule review

Author: rtaylor
Date: 2012-04-26 21:03

Let me state up front that I have no affiliation with Nick Kuckmeier.

I recently sent for some trial mouthpieces from this Austrian maker. If you are unfamiliar with Nciholas Kuckmeier look him up on www.playnick.at. There is extensive information about his approach to mouthpiece making, materials and the relationship of the reed to the mouthpiece.

I submitted an e-mail inquiry and received a prompt response that a sampling would be sent out soon.

I play on a matched set of Wurlitzer Reform-Boehm 185 clarinets along with a Paulus and Schuler barrel. I do a variety of both chamber music ensemble playing and orchestral gigs. My reed of choice is the Vandoren 56 RLP #3.

I received one example each of the following:
Soloist Model - French Style
Soloist Model - German Style
Playeasy Model B2
5 Legere/Kuckmeier synthetic reeds ( these are supposed to be designed for the Playeasy mouthpiece).

So after multiple weeks of trial and error I narrowed it down to the Playeasy B2 which surprisingly is supposed to emulate the Vandoren B45, or there abouts. I didn't much care for the feel of the Legere reeds. they sound good on this mouthpiece but I never got beyond the actual feel of how they play. On the plus side the Vandoren 56RLPs work very well.

I did request some additional examples of the B2 to be sent for trial. All three 3 B2s were very close with some slight variances in the resistance.

Overal sound: This is a hard rubber mouthpiece which is supposed to be some proprietary formula for Kuckmeier. What ever it is, the sound is very good. The amount of overtones above the fundamental note are some of the best I have ever gotten out of my setup.

Articulation: Things like the Mendelsohn Scherzo and Story of the Soldier are a breeze on this mouthpiece. Kell studies are also a good indicator for me, and they can be executed with a great deal of precision.

Intonation: There is no free lunch with this aspect, but the amount of variance sharp or flat is quite manageble in ensemble playing.

Final Thoughts: These mouthpices take the "effort" out of playing that so many setups can add for the sake warmth or articulation ease. As the name says, they do "play easy".

So,here is my 2 cents. Your experience might be different.

Robert

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