[trottingtree]

Hey guys - I'm looking some recs for an Alto mouthpiece... with this COVID thing going on I can't really play a test a bunch but I might just order something.

I'm primarily a tenor player. I use a Jody DV 7* because I like the edgy and bright sound I can get out it plus the fact that I can "fight" or muffle it to play dark if I need to. I've used Otto Link 7* throughout college but couldnt get the bright "commercial" modern sound I like. I also play an Optimum 3 for classical and controlled stuff... but when is that ever come up for a gig? I don't do pit stuff...

Right now I'm playing a Vandoren Optimum 3 on my alto, which has a beautiful sound I must say. Very round and very sweet. I'm looking for something that is still round and sweet but gives me some more tonal range. Something more dynamic that I can push if I want to, a "wider palette" of tones if that makes sense. The optimum is kind of one dimensional (or maybe that's just my playing on alto...). I've played Meyers on alto and was not a fan (too stuffy and not easy on my embouchure). I've also played a Beechler (I think it was a 7*) and I would describe it as too far in the other direction. It was a screamer but I couldn't tame it down to a nice sweetness or subtone. Can anyone recommend a good alto piece that is somewhat middle of the road but still dynamic? And maybe something that is comfortable for a guy very used to the tenor embouchure? I prefer metal on tenor, but I'm open to metal or rubber.

Thanks in advance!
-Andrew

 

[Dr G]

I am blowing a Phil-Tone Intrepid on my Borgani Jubilee alto. No screamer, not a Meyer clone - fat, almost tenor, sound when played with solid support. Cannonball Adderley is my kind o’ alto inspiration. Like the tenor piece that is my go-to #1, it ramps up in character and grit with increasing dynamics.

 

[click]

I went with a Ponzol to get at that problem, and it works very well.

 

[Eulipion2]

I'll second Phil-Tone, but a different model. The Orion is based on, and pretty close to, the Brilhart Tonalin. I find it a bit more free-blowing than a stock Brilly, but same soundscape. Or find a nice Brilhart Tonalin or Ebolin. Middle-of-the-road, can go bright or dark with reed choice. Generally inexpensive, and usually found in smaller tip openings, but can be opened up.

I have P-T Orions and several Brilharts for both alto and tenor. Couldn't be happier.

 

[turf3]

I'd suggest you give Meyer another run. I have no difficulty playing as loud and bright as I want on a Meyer 7 for alto, plus you can get a huge range of tones with practice. Your comment "hard on the embouchure" suggests to me you might have been fighting either a too-hard reed or a defective one. No stuffiness here, not to me.

 

[Reet McVouty]

Hey guys - I'm looking some recs for an Alto mouthpiece... with this COVID thing going on I can't really play a test a bunch but I might just order something.

I'm primarily a tenor player. I use a Jody DV 7* because I like the edgy and bright sound I can get out it plus the fact that I can "fight" or muffle it to play dark if I need to. I've used Otto Link 7* throughout college but couldnt get the bright "commercial" modern sound I like. I also play an Optimum 3 for classical and controlled stuff... but when is that ever come up for a gig? I don't do pit stuff...

Right now I'm playing a Vandoren Optimum 3 on my alto, which has a beautiful sound I must say. Very round and very sweet. I'm looking for something that is still round and sweet but gives me some more tonal range. Something more dynamic that I can push if I want to, a "wider palette" of tones if that makes sense. The optimum is kind of one dimensional (or maybe that's just my playing on alto...). I've played Meyers on alto and was not a fan (too stuffy and not easy on my embouchure). I've also played a Beechler (I think it was a 7*) and I would describe it as too far in the other direction. It was a screamer but I couldn't tame it down to a nice sweetness or subtone. Can anyone recommend a good alto piece that is somewhat middle of the road but still dynamic? And maybe something that is comfortable for a guy very used to the tenor embouchure? I prefer metal on tenor, but I'm open to metal or rubber.

Thanks in advance!
-Andrew

As usual everyone will tell you what's best for them, and that doesn't mean it will do a damn bit of good for you. So, now you've got a bunch of varying opinions. Are you going to try them all? You could have done that without even asking for opinions. Bottom line, you already have a mouthpiece that has a beautiful sound, round and sweet so you say. I think the answer to what you're looking for will come through you. Play some long tones and some overtones and other methods to help achieve a wider palette, and work it with the mouthpiece you already have.

 

[Mike T]

Hey guys - I'm looking some recs for an Alto mouthpiece... with this COVID thing going on I can't really play a test a bunch but I might just order something.

I'm primarily a tenor player. I use a Jody DV 7* because I like the edgy and bright sound I can get out it plus the fact that I can "fight" or muffle it to play dark if I need to. I've used Otto Link 7* throughout college but couldnt get the bright "commercial" modern sound I like. I also play an Optimum 3 for classical and controlled stuff... but when is that ever come up for a gig? I don't do pit stuff...

Right now I'm playing a Vandoren Optimum 3 on my alto, which has a beautiful sound I must say. Very round and very sweet. I'm looking for something that is still round and sweet but gives me some more tonal range. Something more dynamic that I can push if I want to, a "wider palette" of tones if that makes sense. The optimum is kind of one dimensional (or maybe that's just my playing on alto...). I've played Meyers on alto and was not a fan (too stuffy and not easy on my embouchure). I've also played a Beechler (I think it was a 7*) and I would describe it as too far in the other direction. It was a screamer but I couldn't tame it down to a nice sweetness or subtone. Can anyone recommend a good alto piece that is somewhat middle of the road but still dynamic? And maybe something that is comfortable for a guy very used to the tenor embouchure? I prefer metal on tenor, but I'm open to metal or rubber.

Thanks in advance!
-Andrew

Yes, I agree with Reet, above: I'm sure we all have a favourite mouthpiece to recommend to you, but you're not me, so what I like might not suit you. Two choices: make the 'piece you have work for you or alternatively why not just get the alto version of your favourite tenor mouthpiece ?