Looking for mouthpiece suggestions

ashenfang · Regular Member Joined: 10 Oct 2018 Posts: 15

Hoping this group can help provide some options for me to try. For a long time, I have been playing on a Bach 3C. With this piece, I have good tone and range (D above the staff), but I find that my endurance isn't what I would like it to be, even with good practicing. After about 1/2 hour of playing, my lips feel like they are projecting too far into the cup of the mouth piece causing note slotting issues. To correct this, I start using more bottom lip by adjusting the mouthpiece so that my bottom lip is closer to the bottom rim.

I thought maybe a shallower cup could help so I tried a Bobby Shew lead and a Schilke 14a4a. While these pieces certainly help upper range slotting and endurance, the tone is too bright and airy and in some cases, it feels too shallow and a "buzz" is harder to procure.

Based on this info, any suggestions one what mouthpieces might be good to try out?

JVL · Posted: Mon Dec 16, 2019 8:10 am Post subject:

hello
if you feel you protrude too much lip into the cup and think this causes your issues, then you have to correct it, and not take a shallower mpc that will make things worse.
I'd suggest you to work very very softly, clear and clean, without pinching the lips, but with a good aperture control.

Do you know that Marcinkiewicz have different cup depths for the Shew line ?
best

Ed Kennedy · Heavyweight Member Joined: 15 Jan 2005 Posts: 3187

Crazy Finn · Posted: Mon Dec 16, 2019 10:39 am Post subject:

HERMOKIWI · Heavyweight Member Joined: 24 Dec 2008 Posts: 2581

Unless the mouthpiece you're playing now is totally wrong for you changing to a different mouthpiece won't have any significant effect on your endurance.

Endurance is not just a product of physical conditioning. It's also a product of the efficiency with which you play the horn. Two players can have the identical physical conditioning yet one of the players can have dramatically more endurance than the other simply on the basis of the relative efficiency with which that player plays the horn.

If you're getting worn out sooner than you'd like the first place to look/study is your technique in playing the horn. Some ways are much more efficient and much less tiring than other ways.
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HERMOKIWI

cheiden · Posted: Mon Dec 16, 2019 11:23 am Post subject:

FWIW, I find the modern 3C to be nearly the size and feel of the 1.5C. And I lost significant range/endurance (that didn't improve with months of effort) trying to play that size/shape. I found I did much better on a similar but slightly smaller vintage of 3C that compared more closely to a Yamaha 14B4. I actually played for a time on the Yamaha 14B4. It's not a bad piece and an easy transition from the Bach 3C. Might be worth a shot.
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Bach Strad 180ML43*/43 Bb/Yamaha 731 Flugel/Benge 1X C/Kanstul 920 Picc/Conn 80A Cornet
Bach 3C rim on 1.5C underpart

JVL · Posted: Mon Dec 16, 2019 12:24 pm Post subject:

i didn't want to talk about a possible unadapted mpc or ID for the OP didn't allude to such a thing and seemed satisfied with his mpc.
But i tought about an issue that the rim shape may cause, and for what concerns the lip protrusion, i personnally tended to do the same while playing a too large ID.
I agree with Cheiden on this point.
best

ashenfang · Regular Member Joined: 10 Oct 2018 Posts: 15

All great advice, thank you!