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Curry BBC -Wow!!!


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jhatpro
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PostPosted: Fri Mar 02, 2012 1:54 pm    Post subject: Curry BBC -Wow!!! Reply with quote

Just got mine and love it! Nice warm sound from C to C to C, and easier to play above the staff than the Wick Heritage I've been playing for brass band.
Thanks, Mark, for a great design! And thanks, too, to Lisa at Mouthpiece Express for the fast shipping!
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mattdalton
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PostPosted: Fri Mar 02, 2012 10:39 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Welcome to the club, Jim. I've been playing a BBC since they first came out and continue to be very pleased - it makes brass band playing that much more enjoyable.
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Maarten van Weverwijk
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PostPosted: Sat Mar 03, 2012 1:13 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Good hint.
Will try.
Thanks!

MvW.
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richardwy
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PostPosted: Sat Mar 03, 2012 6:14 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Jim, thanks for posting. Glad you the BBC thrills you.

Might you compare/contrast timbre changes in low, med, & high registers?
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Richard III
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PostPosted: Sat Mar 03, 2012 7:58 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

The sound is between a Wick no letter and a Wick B. Closer to the no letter actually. But ease of play through all ranges much easier than both. Upper range changes in sound very little. Unlike the no letter which I find glorious up there but a tiring endevour to match the sound of the lower range. When tired, the no letter upper range can become a quite dead sound. But most people I hear in person sound dead on the no letter in all ranges.
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richardwy
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PostPosted: Sat Mar 03, 2012 8:28 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Richard III wrote:
The sound is between a Wick no letter and a Wick B. Closer to the no letter actually. But ease of play through all ranges much easier than both. Upper range changes in sound very little. Unlike the no letter which I find glorious up there but a tiring endevour to match the sound of the lower range. When tired, the no letter upper range can become a quite dead sound. But most people I hear in person sound dead on the no letter in all ranges.


Richard, thanks so much. Great post. I can understand everything you said! A plus in this weird internet age.

I use a Wick 4 on cornet. And, I don't play cornet publicly either. So no ensemble proof is in the pudding here. But I just love the sound: to my ear, a glorious singing quality.

Your, but most people I hear in person sound dead on the no-letter in all ranges reminds me a TH thread where the OP might be running into what they hear and what others hear don't match up. Dunno for sure because the thread is still developing so to speak.

Back to your buddies who play no-letter Wicks. Are you close enough friends with them to have ever discussed their "dead sound?" I mean, none of us would knowingly play on a mouthpiece to get that result. Like, have you ever said, "Hey Joe. Boy, that is sure one dead tone you have there (nothing so saucy as that of course). What are you hearing in your sound that makes you stick with that no-letter Wick?"

Is it a case of folks not hearing the same thing? Or is it a case of those to which you refer not knowing what sounds good? Honest question on my part. Would not know what to do if at the end of the day I discover I don't know what sounds good when it comes to timbre.

Thanks!
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Last edited by richardwy on Sat Mar 03, 2012 10:35 am; edited 1 time in total
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Mark Curry
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PostPosted: Sat Mar 03, 2012 8:52 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Richard III wrote:
The sound is between a Wick no letter and a Wick B. Closer to the no letter actually. But ease of play through all ranges much easier than both. Upper range changes in sound very little. Unlike the no letter which I find glorious up there but a tiring endevour to match the sound of the lower range. When tired, the no letter upper range can become a quite dead sound. But most people I hear in person sound dead on the no letter in all ranges.


Richard (and All)

Thanks for your positive posts! I achieved pretty much exactly what I was aiming for designing the BBC cup- a "Wick-like" sound that plays much easier!!

Your comments on hearing other players in a live situation also have me questioning my own set of ears. How much of our own "personal" sound concept can be attributed to minor/major hearing loss?

May be worth a thread concerning this question...if it hasn't been already explored.
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tommy t.
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PostPosted: Sat Mar 03, 2012 10:29 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Mark Curry wrote:
Your comments on hearing other players in a live situation also have me questioning my own set of ears. How much of our own "personal" sound concept can be attributed to minor/major hearing loss?

May be worth a thread concerning this question...if it hasn't been already explored.


Well, Mark, this thread is about your mouthpieces and you're asking the question.

When I compared all of my existing cornet mouthpieces on my modified 80A, I had an auditor listen. Then when I compared the piece you made me with my "target pieces," I used the same auditor. She's been listening to me since 1959 and her judgment specifically with respect to my sound or performance is as good as just about anybody's.

We heard the sounds differently, but we rated and ranked the pieces in the same order. That is, we would both hear variation in the octaves using one of the target pieces and neither would hear that variation with the piece you made me. We would, however, use different adjectives to describe the timbres for example I would say "bright" but she would say "edgy" or she would say "mellow" where I might say "dead." (By the way, we both agreed that your piece was the ideal.)

I'm past 69 now and have some documented loss of hearing in the upper ranges -- I still hear all of the piano keys as clear, pitched notes, but the top piano octave, played on a good grand piano, no longer sounds "bright" to me, even when really pounded. The upper harmonics of the upper notes on the piano are just beyond what I can hear. (Around 80, my father began hearing the upper piano notes just as clicks rather than tones and the click effect gradually extended down the key board as he continued to age.)

I assume that I am hearing my trumpet family of instruments as "less edgy" at the top of my range. Well, to be clearer, I am hearing my top notes as more acceptably tonal than they used to be. Some of this, I hope, is due to good equipment and to a more rigorous and focused practice schedule (and my wife and stand-mates confirm that to a certain extent), but before I commit to playing a high F or a double A on a public solo, I play my intended piece for my wife and take her advice on whether the audience is going to enjoy it as much as I do.

She also hears something that she refers to as "tightness" in my tone sometimes. I assume it is a reduction in the fundamental, rather than the higher harmonics -- maybe I'm not centering the pitch. I believe that I "feel" the lower harmonics through my facial bones more than I hear them directly through the ear drum. This too suggests than personal judgment of one's sound can be suspect.

(Hey, guys! Before you propose, take the girl to an instrument shop and see how she does with a couple of hours of mouthpiece testing.)

Tommy T.
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Richard III
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PostPosted: Sat Mar 03, 2012 2:58 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

To Richard Oliver:

I don't tell people anything unless they ask. I learned a long time ago that people do not welcome comments they perceive as critical. There is a local group (British style brass band) that I've thought about joining but have not because of this factor. A long time member and soloist sounds quite dead. I perceive it as a lack of breath support and too much tension in the lips. I can sound exactly that way if I do that. Playing the Wick no letter demands an effort of breathing muscles as well as all the facial muscles. I can get sore in both body and face playing it. I think the reward is worth it on some days. Other days I think it's easier to just pull out the BBC and relax. Both are in the case right now.

The other factor I think is people who primarily play trumpet and a MP with a more restrictive bore might not be prepared for the Wick. They short stroke it, so to speak. Hence the dead, tight tone. Just a thought here.

Behind the horn I think they perceive it as mellow. Out front is where the dead comes out. I don't think anyone tells them. More people need to record themselves. I did. Quite eye opening.
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richardwy
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PostPosted: Sat Mar 03, 2012 5:12 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Richard III wrote:
Behind the horn I think they perceive it as mellow. Out front is where the dead comes out. I don't think anyone tells them. More people need to record themselves. I did. Quite eye opening.


Thanks! Over the past couple days, I've read posts about what folks say when it comes to telling what one sounds like.

I'm finding what I read remarkable. As in Wow. Do they mean what they typed?
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richardwy
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PostPosted: Sat Mar 03, 2012 5:14 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

tommy t. wrote:
(Hey, guys! Before you propose, take the girl to an instrument shop and see how she does with a couple of hours of mouthpiece testing.)

Tommy T.


Love it, Tommy!!
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Dale Proctor
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PostPosted: Sat Mar 03, 2012 9:57 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Mark - so which size BBC cornet mouthpiece would you suggest for someone who regularly plays a Bach 3C on trumpet? One with approximately the same cup diameter, or a larger one? How is the cup "feel" as compared to its published size? I get along pretty well in brass band with a Wick 4B on cornet right now, but I'm open to trying something new.
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jhatpro
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PostPosted: Sun Mar 04, 2012 3:04 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

richardwy wrote:
Jim, thanks for posting. Glad you the BBC thrills you.

Might you compare/contrast timbre changes in low, med, & high registers?


Richard, I find discussion of timbre challenging. For me, it's akin to trying to articulate the qualities of wine. The best I can do is say that the Curry BBC enables me to produce a sound that, to my ear, seems exceptionally smooth and pure in all registers. Also, I feel as though I have more control, almost as though I were an artist using a brush with bristles that enabled a more precise stroke.

I've not yet recorded with the Curry, nor have I conducted a comparison test for a second listener so my impressions are very subjective. And, while I've had excellent instruction in trumpet playing I don't have a degree in music or physics so I have to resort to layman's terms when discussing sound.
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richardwy
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PostPosted: Sun Mar 04, 2012 6:36 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

jhatpro wrote:
Richard, I find discussion of timbre challenging. For me, it's akin to trying to articulate the qualities of wine. The best I can do is say that the Curry BBC enables me to produce a sound that, to my ear, seems exceptionally smooth and pure in all registers. Also, I feel as though I have more control, almost as though I were an artist using a brush with bristles that enabled a more precise stroke.

I've not yet recorded with the Curry, nor have I conducted a comparison test for a second listener so my impressions are very subjective. And, while I've had excellent instruction in trumpet playing I don't have a degree in music or physics so I have to resort to layman's terms when discussing sound.


Jim, it's all good, "exceptionally smooth and pure in all registers" works for me!

And it bothers me not in the least that you've neither recorded nor had a 2nd buddy around for a listening test. And your subjective impressions are exactly what I was hoping for. After all, you are the subject who's doing the playing. So thanks for your impressions!
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mattdalton
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PostPosted: Sat Mar 10, 2012 1:37 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

For anyone who is wondering how "Wick like" the sound of a Curry BBC is, here's a video of a January 28, 2012 live performance that might give you an idea.


Link


I'm the tired-looking guy (7 straight nights of rehearsals/shows for the musical Hairspray prior to this concert) in the middle of the front row players - back center cornet choir during the first piece. I'm playing a Curry 3BBC on a Lawler TL cornet. The others in the front row are playing Wick B cups of various diameters. Sections of exposed playing where you can judge the Curry BBC sound are at 1:05-1:14 and 14:37-15:18.

Everyone sounds different, even on similar equipment, but hopefully this can help demonstrate how a Curry BBC fits in with other players using Wick mouthpieces.
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wiemelen
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PostPosted: Sat Mar 10, 2012 3:35 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Really nice sound you got on that Curry mouthpiece.
Can withstand any comparison with a Wick or Alliance mouthpiece.
Given that and all the good comments about playability, I might give this mouthpiece a try myself.
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Flattergrub
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PostPosted: Sat Mar 10, 2012 4:51 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

mattdalton wrote:
For anyone who is wondering how "Wick like" the sound of a Curry BBC is, here's a video of a January 28, 2012 live performance that might give you an idea.


Link


I'm the tired-looking guy (7 straight nights of rehearsals/shows for the musical Hairspray prior to this concert) in the middle of the front row players - back center cornet choir during the first piece. I'm playing a Curry 3BBC on a Lawler TL cornet. The others in the front row are playing Wick B cups of various diameters. Sections of exposed playing where you can judge the Curry BBC sound are at 1:05-1:14 and 14:37-15:18.

Everyone sounds different, even on similar equipment, but hopefully this can help demonstrate how a Curry BBC fits in with other players using Wick mouthpieces.


Love O.R.B. - Just played it with our BBB (Central Ohio Brass Band) recently.
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Mark Curry
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PostPosted: Sat Mar 10, 2012 5:07 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Matt-

the BBC cup sounds great in that setting!

A nice pure, singing sound floating on top of the section while blending well with the Wicks on the inner parts. Nothing "out of kilter" that would make it stick out.

Nice ensemble selections and performance as well. Kudos to the whole group!

I hope you didn't have a "Hairspray" show that night!

MC
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richardwy
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PostPosted: Sat Mar 10, 2012 5:30 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Matt,

Thanks for the post!
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barryj1
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PostPosted: Tue Mar 13, 2012 9:51 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Quote:
Richard, I find discussion of timbre challenging. For me, it's akin to trying to articulate the qualities of wine. The best I can do is say that the Curry BBC enables me to produce a sound that, to my ear, seems exceptionally smooth and pure in all registers. Also, I feel as though I have more control, almost as though I were an artist using a brush with bristles that enabled a more precise stroke.


Couldn't have said it better. My #2BBC on a Getzen 3850 is heavenly.
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