GW Alan Baer model mouthpiece

[Paul S]

Short and sweet...if you're a C4 person, you'll love it; if you're a 4N (narrow rim, flat top) you probably won't. I've played on the latter for years. The Laskey was more my cup of tea.

Endurance is not a problem on the Laskey, but, patience is needed to achieve slur perfection. Very easy to get segmentation slurring up if you're not used to the rim. The C4/Baer didn't have this problem. Unforturnately, I didn't dig the big rim at all. My 2. D

This is my take on the mouthpiece as well.

I really like a lot of things with the Baer but would have liked it even more with a Schilke II/Laskey/Helleberg rim. Even giving it a few weeks, my articulation suffered a bit from the change. The less massive design is a very good one. Output and colour are exactly what I want and I think it can be a superb "use it for everything" mouthpiece IF you like the rim.

a screw rim option?.....

[crbarnes]

Spent Mon. last with Ivan playing an Al Baer on my 1291. Like a few of the players in the other posts, I had been using a Laskey 30 G (Al Baer's idea that confirmed my own research and experimentation). I ended up buying the Al Baer because it was very free in the lower register and comfortable and seemed to just "work" for the horn. We played over 2 hours of duets and then I had a 2 hour rehearsal. Normally, I would have had some serious edema the next day but this just did not happen. Very nice!

If you just back off and just play this MP seems to do its thing. No issues with range. Some changes in the intonation pattern of the horn, which I found interesting, but solvable. I will experiment a bit with a few other horns but for the 1291, this seems to be the best option.

Ivan mentioned that there is a possibility of this becoming the "standard" for the horn from the factory. It would certainly be a better choice than the one that ships now. (TU-33).

I tried all his other MPs a few months ago and did not find one that I really liked for the 1291. Understand that I really was not in the market for a new MP, but the idea that it had been built with my horn in mind intrigued me and I am fortunate enough to live near enough to Ivan to try one out easily.

I did not have issues one way or the other with the stainless steel. I have always played silver plate and don't think all that much of gold plating, but this felt fine. Perhaps a bit slicker than the silver. All in all I think it is one of the best I have played in the 40+ years I've been at it.

[Tom B.]

I've only been playing on the mouthpiece for a few days, but I can give some initial impressions.

My mouthpiece for the past 6 months has been a Conn (UMI) Helleberg. I've also experimented with a PT-44 and a Bach 12, so I can make those comparisons. I play on a Kroner 4/4 CC.

I really prefer a mouthpiece with less mass--I get a livelier tone with them, so this mouthpiece fits the bill nicely. That's why I no longer use the Bach. I also like the Helleberg for it's sharp inner rim. My articulation really improved when I went to that. The PT-44 gives me a sweeter sound than the Helleberg, but at the expense of articulation, so I've stuck with the Helleberg.

The funnel of the G&W is shallower than either the PT-44 or the Helleberg, but it is definitely a funnel. The inside rim is not quite as sharp as a Helleberg, but it is sharper than the PT-44. The G&W rim is wider than any of the other mouthpieces--by a considerable amount. I did not mind the narrow Helleberg rim, so this is taking a little getting used to. However, I suspect the wider rim may contribute to its nice sound. Other than a slightly sharp inner rim, the G&W rim is round and (as everybody else has commented) comfortable. I don't notice a huge difference between stainless steel and silver--except it's a tiny bit more slippery.

So how does it play? Really nicely so far. I was able to instantly produce a sweeter focused sound on the G&W. My wife even noticed it in the next room. It reminds me of the PT-44 in that regard. It is slightly harder to articulate on then the Helleberg, but much easier than the PT-44. I have a bit more trouble with slurs. It continues to have the "liveliness" of the Helleberg. It's a keeper. I suspect it will become my main mouthpiece. If I have other thoughts after a month or so, I'll post again.

Tom

[Kevin Hendrick]

Specifications of the mouthpiece available? From where can this mouthpiece be ordered? Price?

Thanks a lot.
Hubert

http://www.gwmouthpieces.com/

[Paul S]

Could anyone familiar with the Laskey 30H or 30G compare those mouthpieces with the Al Baer 'piece?

In general I like the Baer. It produces a great sound colour, super output and is easy on the chops. I just wish it was available in at least a somewhat flatter, thinner rim. If it offered screw rims like the LOUD brand stainless line it could be a real winner for me. There is a lot to be liked about the Baer sound throughput. I just have a problem with the "cushiony" rim. The less "heavyweight" design is a winner.

The only comparison I can really come up between the Laskey 30H and the Baer Stainless are that they are both nice tuba mouthpieces.

Comparing rim, feel, shape, articulation, cup depth, material, sound produced... to me, all from different galaxies with the Laskey. A rough description might be to think opposite of Helleberg, yet not a bowl, and you have a Baer.

I am trying a LOUD LM-5 that has a lot more of what I would consider the positive similarities to the Laskey 30s (flatter, thinner rim for control, deep funnel) but that is all I will say about it until I spend a few more weeks seeing where it fits. For now I really like the Loud LM-5 although I am keeping my Baer as well. They are very different beasts.

Check out Loud Mouthpieces at: http://www.loudmouthpieces.com/index.php
and G&W Mouthpieces at: http://www.gwmouthpieces.com/
Both makers are great people. Both designs are extremely well made and well thought out. It is great to have these options! If you have questions contact them. They both know their stuff and are super gentleman to talk to.

[MartyNeilan]

Paul,
I understand what you are saying about the very wide rim. I found it was poking me in my protruding chin when playing in the upper middle to high register. Since it is stainless and not plated, I decided it was time for some surgery (on the mouthpiece, not me.) I sanded almost 1/8" off the outer edge of the rim, and rounded it carefully to avoid cutting my chin. I may take another 1/16" off in the future, I am undecided. The has only just slightly reduced the amount of metal in contact with my chops but now I don't get a dent in the top of my chin. Now, I just need to polish the rim back to its glassy smoothness while removing as little from the surface as possible, any ideas?

I do like the piece, it gives a very different sound from the megamouthpiece Warburton-Neilan - it is more focused, brighter, and suprisingly "punchy". (Which, needless to say, means the W-N is broader and darker.) Although the Baer piece is a large shank, I have to have the tuning slide out as much or more than the standard shank W-N because it is a little shallower.

[Ivan Giddings]

Marty,

The nice thing about stainless steel is that you can modify it with no replating needed after the mods are finished. I'm not sure how you took the extra material off the rim. But you have a few options for polishing it back to new. I'm assuming you used a very rough grit sandpaper to remove the material. I would recommend going throught the grits to get it back to a finish polish. Start with a black stainless steel compound on a hard spiral sewn wheel, then use the same comound on a medium spiral sewn wheel. next go to white compound on a spiral sewn, and finally a red comound on a soft wheel. Remember these compounds are not good for you to breath, use an approved mask for the polish you are working with, and a fan to keep your work area air from getting too thick with compound in the air.

If you , or any others would like for a small fee we can make these modifications, and polish it to good as new. Modifications are done as our time permits and depends on what you want done, but usually we get work done within a two week time period.

Ivan

http://www.gwmouthpieces.com

[MartyNeilan]

Yesterday I tried using some "rubbing compound" - available in the auto body section of most hardware or auto parts stores - to polish the part of the mouthpiece I had sanded down. Put some on a shop rag (OK, baby burpcloth) and worked it for about 10 minutes. It seemed to work very well, and made the surface slippery again. If I wanted to get back to the factory mirror finish, I would probably then use "polishing compound" - the same thing used to polish worn paint on cars.

[Tom B.]

I promised to post again if there was anything new worth reporting on this mouthpiece. I've been playing it 4 weeks now, and my ability to rapidly tongue has almost returned to where it was with my Conn Helleberg. Slurs no longer feel more difficult. I'm not aware of the large rim width anymore. The sweet tone is there when you want it. I have also started to be able to produce quite an intense, focused, yet lively tone when called for--sort of a "heroic" sound.

All-in-all, this is a very nice mouthpiece.

Tom