Mouthpieces!

iiipopes · Post by **iiipopes** » Wed Oct 19, 2005 10:17 am

On my Conn sousaphone I use a Kelly 18, as most of the gigs are outdoors. But it turned out to be such a fine mouthpiece and a perfect fit to the sousaphone that I use it for everything. The only thing I did to it was to wrap a 1/2 inch wide strip of golfer's lead tape around the shank where it meets the cup to help the centering at louder dynamics. This tamed the little bit of fraying I sensed without it. Everyone should have a Kelly mouthpiece in their lineup, as you never know when the gigs or the horn require it. The lexan is easy on the lips, and their version of a Bach 18 is a little deeper, which improves the range of tone greatly, while retaining all of the overtones to help the sousaphone get that good "grit in the gizzard" tone for projection without becoming harsh. On the other hand, I can tone down and make my souzy sound very tuba-ish indoors and blend very well.

I use a Wick 1 on my 1971 Besson BBb 3-valve comp. A vastly underrated mouthpiece. The rim is like the Wick 2, only 1/100 of an inch narrower due to it being on the same blank, and almost identical to my Kelly 18 that I use on my Conn sousaphone. The rim is Bach-ish, if maybe slightly more curved. The cup is a deep Helleburg style cup, if maybe slightly more rounded at the bottom before going into the throat, which is the same as the Wick 2 and my Kelly 18.

The difference between the Wick 2 and the Wick 1 for me is the difference between driving my Chevy Aveo (Kalos in Europe) and my Jaguar E-type. Like my Aveo, the Wick 2 got me where I needed to be directly, concisely, and with stability, but without any flash, and no high performance, either in dynamics or range. The Wick 1, on the other hand, is somewhat of a difficult piece to drive, but oh, does it drive. Range is consistant from top to bottom, low notes are smoother from the longer stroke, er, deeper cup, while high notes actually center better, dynamic shading and inflection on intonation are available, and the statement in the brochure description about needing a well developed embouchure is almost an understatement. But when you need to rev it up, it goes right with you. You can take your turn through a phrase straight in and on, take a high groove lightly and hold the suspension set with slight understeer, or dive an apex and come out with throttle oversteer, and if you need full on 4-wheel drift it delivers in spades. No, it is not an easy or cushy mouthpiece, like a Bach 24AW can be, but it is THE perfect match to a 3-valve Besson BBb comp (As it should be, seeing it was designed for it!). I can see why on the 4-valve comps a Perantucci or similar is preferred, especially if you need the more substantial torque grunt of a true bottom dweller, but that is not my personal style, either. Since it is a more difficult mouthpiece, focus on precise slurs and intonation is a must until it becomes second nature, similar to navigating my double gated synchro 4-speed transmission and clutch - a missed shift results in a whopping crackup!

With the rim almost perfectly identical to my Kelly 18, both in size and profile, transition between my Besson and my pickup-character sousaphone is almost seamless, and both will now benefit from playing the other.

Ladies and Gentlemen, start your engines!

ufoneum · Post by **ufoneum** » Wed Oct 19, 2005 10:20 am

I use a Wick SM3. I like the feel of the rim. I, like most, was brought up on the 51D, which is a fine mouthpiece. To my taste, it seemed a bit limiting on what I could do with it - the SM3 is huge though, not for everyone. If you find the 3 a bit large, try the 3.5 or the 4 - this entire line of mouthpieces are just absolutely wonderful.

- Pat Stuckemeyer

Teubonium · Post by **Teubonium** » Wed Oct 19, 2005 12:41 pm

Marcinkiewicz N4 on my Mira 186.

Bach 4GB on my Besson 967 euph. Have tried and rejected Wick 4AL, SM3.5, Schilke 51D.

Choice of mouthpiece is a very personal thing. What works for one player may not work for another.

David · Post by **David** » Sat Oct 22, 2005 5:05 pm

My teacher tells me its bad, but I play most of the time on Reynolds 'Dr.Young' model mouthpiece. It basically looks like a very large french horn mouthpiece. No tapered backbore. Just a straight pipe. I just love it to death....

Tubaryan12 · Post by **Tubaryan12** » Sat Oct 22, 2005 6:26 pm

See below

David · Post by **David** » Sat Oct 22, 2005 8:53 pm

That's what I say. So what if its a little harder to keep in tune. I like a challeng and I love the way it sounds

MartyNeilan · Post by **MartyNeilan** » Sat Oct 22, 2005 10:08 pm

Rotary F: Rudy Meinl RM-9 (8 mm backbore) and Floyd Cooley Helleberg

Big rotary CC: Warburton-Neilan (derived from a AJ mouthpiece with a C4 rim and a heavyweight profile) and G&W Alan Baer stainless

Bass Bone: Griego .75

My (wife influenced) philosophy on mouthpieces - if it is not used regularly, sell it. No practical need to have more than a couple mouthpieces per horn.

Looks funny but sounds great:

Chriss2760 · Post by **Chriss2760** » Mon Oct 24, 2005 12:14 am

Ooh... Good question, Euphba. But make sure you ask what type of music, what size group, what horn, etc...

As for me, I'm playing a Marcinkowicz N4 Jim Self (a bit tight on the bore,) a Perantucci PT88 (nice big bore, nice deep, round cup, but the rim is too round,) and the Canadian Brass YAC BBCB-REP. This one is good, but maybe a bit too small in the rim diameter department. Close, though. My horns are a Miraphone 186 and a Yamaha 621, both in BBb. I play big German band, small polka band, brass quintet, and a lot of stuff that really doesn't fit in any category but maybe "contemporary/commercial." The round cup mp's give a good "german" sound, but are too slow in response for anything else. Paul Sidey has just introduced a new mouthpiece that may be just the ticket. Flat rim, sharp inner rim, open bore and ample diameter. We'll see....
Just my $.02 worth.

Teubonium · Post by **Teubonium** » Mon Oct 24, 2005 4:21 pm

[quote="Chriss2760"]
As for me, I'm playing a Marcinkowicz N4 Jim Self quote]

Is that different from a Marc N4 Tommy Johnson?

Louis · Post by **Louis** » Mon Oct 24, 2005 6:13 pm

Wick/Mead SM4 on Boosey & Hawkes Sovereign euph
Wick 4BS on Besson Sovereign baritone
Wick 4AM on Conn Connstellation euph

Louis

Kevin Hendrick · Post by **Kevin Hendrick** » Mon Oct 24, 2005 7:27 pm

Teubonium wrote:
Chriss2760 wrote: As for me, I'm playing a Marcinkowicz N4 Jim Self

Is that different from a Marc N4 Tommy Johnson?

A bit -- the Jim Self Marc is the ETU1 (slightly smaller cup ID and larger throat diameter than the N4).

SplatterTone · Post by **SplatterTone** » Mon Oct 24, 2005 9:00 pm

The last rehearsal, I got some stuff with a lot of "high" notes (high for me) up to middle c, and one piece with an 8th note octave leap that I could not do reliably. So, I finally gave up on trying to show how manly I could be by playing big-boy mouthpieces, went back to experimenting with a 25, Yamaha 65, and the old reliable 66D4. Voila! Things got a whole lot better: articulation, those "high" notes, the octave leap.

Another thing I've noticed is that if I play the big mouthpieces for too long, I start playing with too much tension all the time. Go back to the smaller mouthpieces, relax a little bit, and things start sounding better again even when I go back to the larger mouthpieces.

The moral of the story is to heed the advice of one of the 20th century's great philosophers: A man's got to know his limitations
- Harry Callaghan

TubeNet

Mouthpieces!

Yep

Yep