Beginners Jazz Tenor Mouthpiece

[AlistairD]

Hi,
I've recently started Sax and am really enjoying it....:)

I've got a Bently (which is Chinese I know but sounds and works fine...) Ideally I want to develop a Jazz sound so was looking for advice on a Jazz sounding mouthpiece that was suitable for a beginner.:?

Any suggestions greatfully received...

[ZenBen]

get a hard rubber otto link. there are several reasons for this.

they are not just for beginners - many pros use thses mouthpieces.

if you develop a sound that you like on one of these you will know that it is you creating that sound and not the mouthpiece creating it for you. there is a trap that some beginning sax players fall into: they get lazy developing their own sound and buy a highly tailored mouthpiece. the highly tailored mouthpiece produces a sound that the beginning sax player likes so the beginning sax player thinks that he is producing a good sound. the trouble is that the beginning sax player will often neglect developing a proper air stream to support the saxophone properly.

[bass]

I've been playing about four years and have fretted about graduating from the stock mpc to my first jazz one. When I had my Yamaha student tenor I wanted to dump the stock 4C as soon as possible. I tried a HR Link but didn't like it. Seemed hard to play and stuffy. Looking back I think it was a dud.

Then I got a nice Yani T901. The stock Yani 4 mpc that came with it had too narrow a tip. Then a friend gave me a Yani 5 and that worked better. It produced an acceptable jazz sound that I could live with. I tried another Link along the way, but still didn't like it. So I played that Yani 5 until recently when I bought a Meyer 7M from a guy on SOTW. Meyers have a reputation of being easy to play and having a classic jazz tone (dark with a little edge). Both have been true for me. I'm going to stick with the Meyer for the time being.

So moving to a Meyer is an option for the beginner. Bear in mind the numbering system on the Meyer varies quite a bit from other mpcs. Most 7s fall around a 1.00 tip opening. The Meyer 7 is about .8-.85 so the line runs more narrow. Best to check a mouthpiece chart before deciding on which Meyer to get. Better, try them out at a store.

Incidentally, in my quest for a new mpc, I once tried some HR Morgans. I found the tone totally dark. Too flat for jazz, but might be good for classical playing. [On further study, I see that Morgans come in various types. One made just for Classical. That may have been the kind I tried at the music store. So don't take what I said as a reflection on the Morgan mpcs made for jazz.]

[retread]

Hite premier or Morgan Protone. They're good mouthpieces. Don't spend more until you've got more mastery of the sax.

[AlistairD]

All,

I have a Yamaha 5C which is ok and have just bought a Brilhart Metal off SOTW and will let you know how I get on when it arrives from the US...