 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: wanabe
Date: 2014-04-20 10:46
Please help out the newbie here. Just what is the purpose of the table on mouthpieces that have them? It just seems to me that regular mouth pieces work just fine without them and that the table would provide an area that air could leak out (between the side of the table and the embouchure),or am I missing something? Also, do oval shaped air channels in mouthpieces work or sound better than rectangular or round ones or any other shaped ones or is that just marketing hype?
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Author: AAAClarinet
Date: 2014-04-20 11:48
All mouthpieces have tables. It is the flat part the reed lays against.
AAAClarinet
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Author: Caroline Smale
Date: 2014-04-21 02:00
There is no correct or definitive answer to the second part of your question though you may get a lot of opinions.
The only way to assess a mouthpiece for you is to try it out.
If as a "newbie" you mean relatively new to playing the clarinet I would recommend avoiding all such considerations for quite a few years, just find a mouthpiece that works at this stage and practice - practice on it.
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Author: kdk ★2017
Date: 2014-04-21 03:25
Are you talking about a bump in the baffle (the top of the mouthpiece's inside) just behind the tip? Some makers put it there to increase resistance. That and the other shapes you mention certainly affect the sound and feel of a mouthpiece, but better or worse is something an individual player has to decide. The question always is, what makes it easiest to produce the sound you want to produce?
Karl
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Author: Bruno
Date: 2014-04-21 07:02
A lump in the baffle increases brightness. That's the reason for it.
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Author: wanabe
Date: 2014-04-21 10:42
Actually I was referring, incorrectly, to the flat part on the bottom side of the mouthpiece. I ran across one on which the flat part or table was raised slightly. It formed sort of a ramp that tapered down to nothing at the tip, but it was still slightly raised at the point where your embouchure touched the MP. I mistakenly thought that this was the ''table'' that was being referred to. But irrespective of what it is called, I still don't know the purpose for it. Why is it raised like that?
In response to Norman, you could say either that none of them work for me or that all of them work for me because I am so new at trying to learn this instrument that they all do the same and sound the same for me. They either squeal like a pig or honk like a goose. Please tell me I'll get better.
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Author: Paul Aviles
Date: 2014-04-21 15:31
I cannot imagine to what you are referring. Is there a name or any markings on this mouthpiece you are talking about? Could you add an image of it to a subsequent post?
............Paul Aviles
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Author: kdk ★2017
Date: 2014-04-21 16:41
wanabe wrote:
> Actually I was referring, incorrectly, to the flat part on the
> bottom side of the mouthpiece. I ran across one on which the
> flat part or table was raised slightly. It formed sort of a
> ramp that tapered down to nothing at the tip, but it was still
> slightly raised at the point where your embouchure touched the
> MP.
It seems as though you're correctly calling this the table, but, like Paul, I'm not sure what you mean by its being "raised slightly."
Can you possibly attach a photo of what you're describing?
Karl
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Author: Tony F
Date: 2014-04-21 17:58
Attachment: rico graftonite.jpg (6k)
I suspect that the op may be referring to something like the Rico Graftonite, where the edges of the table are machined away.
Tony F.
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Author: cigleris
Date: 2014-04-21 20:52
I would imagine the OP is referring to a mouthpiece that has a step that the reed sits on while on the lay. This is common of classical mouthpieces and I would be surprised to see this on a modern mouthpiece.
Peter Cigleris
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Author: Paul Aviles
Date: 2014-04-22 01:48
Never saw anything like the Graftonite before....yeah, that IS stupid.
...........Paul Aviles
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Author: Caroline Smale
Date: 2014-04-22 02:50
Jim, you can't fail to get better if you practise.
What you need is a good quality student mouthpiece and a reed with the correct resistance for (1) this particular mouthpiece (2) for your current state of embouchure development.
In the early playing stages you will need a somewhat softer reed than when you have a developed embouchure probably 1 strength lower.
So if the mouthpiece works best with a 3 reed then at this point you probably need a 2.
Ideally you need a qualified teacher in the early days at least to help you get started, it is incredibly easy to pick up bad habbits at the start and much much harder to eliminate them later on.
There are many threads on this board that suggest suitable good quality but reasonably priced student mouthpieces.
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Author: wanabe
Date: 2014-04-22 13:32
I don't know the age of the mouthpiece that I was shown, but it was pretty old. There may have been markings on it at one time, but they are worn off.
I am using a B45 now because it was recommended to me. My teacher hasn't commented on it, so I assume that it isn't too far out of line or at least not inappropriate. My reeds are Rico 2 1/2 and they too passed inspection without comment from the teacher, so I assume that it's all good.
If the clarinet is like most things, when starting out it probably doesn't make a lot of difference what's used in most aspects. After all, when learning to drive what difference does it make if you learn in a Chevy or a Mercedes? But it does matter whether you learn in a car with an automatic transmission or a standard. I'm just trying to understand the ins and outs of learning the clarinet.
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Author: Arnoldstang
Date: 2014-04-22 17:01
Perhaps wanabe is referring to the window of the mouthpiece and why it extends so far down the mouthpiece.
Freelance woodwind performer
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