What is the largest practical euphonium mouthpiece?

Chuck(G) · Post by **Chuck(G)** » Tue Apr 24, 2007 12:47 pm

Remember that there's the Bobo TT mouthpiece (bass trombone shank) that's more of a small tuba mouthpiece.

I never cared for it, myself. The sound that results is rather dull and muffled. But then, I'm not Roger Bobo.

I'll stick with my 51D when I'm called on to torture people with my euphonium technique.

leedummer · Post by **leedummer** » Tue Apr 24, 2007 1:26 pm

Arthur Lehman MPC, Large, is what you want, if you ask me.. Designed by a euphoniumist (Marine band retired), just exactly for that Besson you are playing.

Dave Houser makes them. http://www.housermouthpiece.com/
Send him an email, he does an excellant job. Make sure you get the right shank for your horn.

Highams · Post by **Highams** » Tue Apr 24, 2007 2:15 pm

I started on a very big Hawkes Kosicup euphonium mouthpiece many years ago (at school).

When the large bore instruments came out, I moved onto the Wick 2AL which did the job well for quite a while.

A few years ago I moved onto the Doug Elliot (LB series) 116 wide rim, M cup & shank on the Willson 2900 that I'm very happy with.

For my older, smaller bore euphoniums, I swap the cup & shank for the K series.

CB

OldsRecording · Post by **OldsRecording** » Tue Apr 24, 2007 4:38 pm

leedummer wrote:Arthur Lehman MPC, Large, is what you want, if you ask me.. Designed by a euphoniumist (Marine band retired), just exactly for that Besson you are playing.

Dave Houser makes them. http://www.housermouthpiece.com/
Send him an email, he does an excellant job. Make sure you get the right shank for your horn.

I have used a Lehman 1M for years and have been quite happy with it. Mine was made by Bob Pollansch (Arlington, VA). Not sure if he is still in business. The 2N is even bigger.

Toobist · Post by **Toobist** » Tue Apr 24, 2007 5:04 pm

I used to use (ages ago) a Kozicup(sp?) Eb moutpiece that had just about the same cup diameter as a bas bone mouthpiece but had a very wide rim. It worked like a dream. I wish I still had it.

Dylan King · Post by **Dylan King** » Tue Apr 24, 2007 8:24 pm

Tommy Johnson used to play that 4 valve Alexander tenor tuba he had with a special Marcinkowitz N4 (similar in size to the Miraphone C4) with a small shank to fit that particular instrument.

I regularly play a Giddings and Webster Churada on my bass trombone, and have actually been experimenting with a Dennis Wick #1 (which has a very small shank) on the bass trombone as well.

Carroll · Post by **Carroll** » Tue Apr 24, 2007 9:07 pm

I used a Shilke 59 for twenty years when I was also playing a lot of Bass Bone. Now I have wimped out to the LOUD 25.

oldbandnerd · Post by **oldbandnerd** » Tue Apr 24, 2007 9:22 pm

Highmas wrote:

.....A few years ago I moved onto the Doug Elliot (LB series) 116 wide rim, M cup & shank on the Willson 2900 that I'm very happy with.

I have seen that set up folks. Doug Elliot had one on display at the USAATEC in D.C. this past January . You can do dives into that mouthpiece from the 40 foot high board and never get the rim wet it's so big !!!

It's HUGE I tell you !!!

Gorilla Tuba · Post by **Gorilla Tuba** » Tue Apr 24, 2007 9:37 pm

I have used a Schilke 58 and 60 to some extent in the past. For me the ideal mouthpiece for the sound I want is the Schilke 52E2.

tubadoctor · Post by **tubadoctor** » Tue Apr 24, 2007 11:43 pm

absurd, but I did see it with my own eyes... hehe... I saw UStuba08 sit in on a gig on euph one night... He wasn't supposed to be playing euph, but the regular player ate some bad tex-mex or something that night and called in sick at the last minute... the only mpc he had was his PT 88, and the show went on... Honestly, he isn't that strong of a player(sorry bud, but you have to admit I'm right.. hehe...) but he didn't sound half-bad with that PT-88 on his yamaha 321.. Close enough for semi-pro(does a parking voucher and two drink tickets count as professional?) I always thought he sounded better on little horns with big mouthpieces, but I wouldn't recommend most, ok pretty much any, people try this at home...

ps.. if you do, please record the moment... youtube... post the link here... can't wait to hear... hehe

Norlan Bewley · Post by **Norlan Bewley** » Tue Apr 24, 2007 11:52 pm

I now use a Monette BT2L, which is like a Bach 1/2G. I keep thinking maybe it's too big, but it sure plays well. I was using a Bach 1/2G Megatone before I started using the Monette.

joshwirt · Post by **joshwirt** » Wed Apr 25, 2007 1:32 am

I've played Bobo's Alexander Tenor Tuba with his actual mouthpiece and it was great. I then bought the set of prototypes with a copy of the final product and couldn't use it at all on my MW 451......just not right.

I've doubled for a long time on bass bone and euph and my face is adjusted to the smaller mouthpiece. For me, I've finally settled on my Ferguson 'Jeff Reynolds L' mouthpiece for my Getzen 1052FDR bass bone and my 451 euph. It sounds great on both and the bass bone doesn't sound like a slide tuba! If I'm having to play a lot of high euph stuff, then maybe I'll plug in the SM2, but I find that the Reynolds responds well for me and how I blow the horn.

As a sidenote, a lot of people talk about how the Meinl euph's blow painfully sharp, but I've found that with the right mouthpiece and slowing the airstream on certain notes, you can make a most envious sound (that's in tune) with what I think is a fantastic instrument.

-Josh

Chuck(G) · Post by **Chuck(G)** » Wed Apr 25, 2007 3:33 pm

Bob1062 wrote:My dream euphonium is one of those Getzen/Willson/Kurath/... front action NON-COMP euphoniums with a honking big mouthpiece.

I'm befuddled.

Why the non-comp one? I've got the 2975 and love it--the low end is plenty open.

lgb&dtuba · Post by **lgb&dtuba** » Wed Apr 25, 2007 4:00 pm

Maybe a big mouthpiece would be useful for pedal tones, but in the music I play an extended high range is a lot more of a requirement than pedal tones. I find the Shilke 51D to be way too large for that. It gave good low end but was too difficult (for me) in the upper register.

After trying quite a few mouthpieces, both large and small, I've found that the p.o.s. no-name or number mouthpiece that came with my p.o.s. Selman oval euph is actually the best match. After that, a Kelly 5G works almost as well. The Selman is a European shank horn, so using an adapter for small shank trombone mouthpieces may have been a factor in them not working as well. Or not.

On trombone I typically use a Jet Tone Urbie Green UG-S model. The trombone is a King 2B Urbie Green and that's the mouthpiece that was intended for that specific horn. If you were Urbie Green, that is

The point is, if you're going to do any amount of doubling there's really no substitute for putting in the hours and work on all your instruments so that your embouchure is conditioned properly such that you can use the best mouthpieces for the sound you want out of each or your horns.

Anything else is, at best, a crutch.

Think of it this way. If a Conn Helleburg is what sounds best on a given tuba, then you'd probably not advise a bass-bone player to find something closer to what he was used to playing instead of putting in the hours on the Helleburg to build up his embouchure. Not if he was serious about playing the tuba well.

Same argument against using a bass-bone mouthpiece in a euph. YMMV

Chuck(G) · Post by **Chuck(G)** » Wed Apr 25, 2007 4:24 pm

Bob1062 wrote:I've never liked the idea of compensating instruments, even though the Miraphone played absolutely fantastic.

Also, I would think that the non-comp version (if I can find one!) would be hella cheaper than the comp.

Big "if". Neither is very common.

So, you'd pass up a Besson 983 Eb because it was a compensating instrument? Wouldn't it be better to judge an instrument on how it plays instead of what the plumbing does?

Chuck(G) · Post by **Chuck(G)** » Thu Apr 26, 2007 12:07 am

Bob1062 wrote:Chuck, by any chance have you tried your tenor tuba mouthpiece in a small old Eb?

Yup, but I like my Wick 3 better. I've also got a ridiculous old Revere tuba mouthpiece (reminds me of a Rudy Muck) that actually has a smaller cup than the Bobo TT. The cup on my old Johnson-Hoffman Eb mouthpiece is about the same size as the TT.