[The Saxist]

My kid is starting college and will be in a couple perf organizations for scholarship. He may be asked to play Bari from time to time (not a music major) on a shool horn. What is a good all round piece that could work both legit and jazz and not cost an arm and a leg. Those usually found in the case of an institutional horn are little better than door stops...

I know, I know... I hate these wide open questions too. But, I'm not familiar with what's hot in the Bari world. And he wouldn't have a way to test 'em out before hand.

 

[saxxsymbol]

jody jazz "classic" about $ 150. very durable . good sound and articulation. will do jazz or legit. has a spoiler you can put in to make it powerful too. i love these mouthpieces. go to jodyjazz.com for more info.

 

[dirty]

The JJ classics are cool, I like those a lot, plus they're super consistent, so you don't need to worry about getting a bad one. You might also want to look into Hard Rubber Otto Link Tone Edge mouthpieces, around a 6-7* or a Meyer around 6M-8M. Those are both nice, full, dark mouthpieces that you can push to pick up a nice edge for jazz.

 

[Martin Williams]

On bari, the Runyon Custom or Jody Jazz Classic are great choices, and very similar pieces. They're made from the same blank, just finished a little differently(barely) Look for one in a 7 or 8 size, very comfortable and flexible.

The Custom is a piece I use fairly regularly.

A Berg Larsen hard rubber is a good choice as well, I find it to be very versatile and one of my preferred pieces for bari work. One in a .100 to .110 or there about is great for most bari work and most players

 

[Rahspeak]

for 65 bucks, you can't beat a Runyon Custom...

 

[SpeckledLemon]

I was going to suggest some sort of Meyer, since they're very good on baritone, but I think it has too much edge with that long and low ramp baffle. I'd try a legit-oriented piece with a larger tip opening.

With no way to test 'em out before hand (I know that situation), I'd try the Vandoren B35. Nice and flexible.

 

[Martinman]

Try a Rouseau Classic with a medium opening.

 

[gearaholic]

Honestly, as a college music major, I don't think one mouthpiece will cut it.

I don't know how big his school is, but a good studio teacher (budget willing) will make sure a suitable mouthpiece is available for use with the instrument. This is especially true for baris, which few students can afford to own. The likely ensembles he may play in include big band, sax quartet, wind ensemble/symphonic band, and saxophone choir. All of these except big band can use a typical Selmer C* or similar classical style mouthpiece. For big band, bari's gotta lay a strong foundation for the sax section, so he'll need a good open jazz mouthpiece, such as Metal Otto Link around 7*.

My advice would be to talk to his future studio teacher (the saxophone instructor) and see what the studio has available for use with school instruments. If he plans on playing mostly bari in all ensembles, two mouthpieces would be a worthwhile investment. However, the studio may own enough mouthpieces for him to have his own. Your best bet is to ask his teacher. Good luck!

 

[Rahspeak]

I'm a college music major too. I used the Runyon Custom (it's a .090 or size 7 refaced by EZ) in the Wind Ensemble, which was weird because I figured it would be more of a jazz mouthpiece, but I was able to tame it for the wind ensemble. This was on a YBS-62. The only other option was the Yamaha 5C mouthpiece which comes with the horn, but I chose to play my Runyon because A.) it was more responsive due to the high quality of Ed's facing work, and B.) the guy playing bari in our Latin Jazz Ensemble was using the 5C and I hate sharing mouthpieces. But it worked, the .090 is small enough to be easy to control, and yet the piece is capable of good power when pushed.

Now I've got a Vandoren B75 in the hands of Erik Greiffenhagen to be turned into one of his "double-chamber" pieces. It sounds like it'll be a great match for my Bundy Special and also a better piece for me to develop my bari sound on, I'm gonna start playing bari more as a small combo horn. I love the bari! And after auditions, if I get asked to play bari in the wind ensemble again, I'll get a Vandoren Optimum, those are great classical pieces. So I agree with you that one piece is not ideal, however, if you have to go with one, a Runyon Custom 6 or 7 and a lot of long tones can work.

 

[Kini]

I played bari in the wind ensemble both freshman and sophomore (I was a music major but didnt know anything about equipment) years and used a Berg Larsen 85/1/m and it worked fairly well, but I'm not sure that I would recommend it.

The Yanagisawa HR mouthpiece that comes with new Yani baritones seems to be a good compromise piece. New they are expensive, but are sometimes on ebay at reasonable prices.

My opinion is that, excluding sax quartet, the bari piece can have a little more edge for ensemble work, so you could try more traditional jazz pieces such as a HR Link. You can modify the sound by using different reed ligature combinations, such as Hemke reeds with a Rovner dark ligature to tone down the sound if needed, and then switch to a jazz set up to brighten the sound.

 

[blindside398]

I'd honestly also vouch for Runyon Custom Classic - about 80 bucks, and you can't go wrong =].

 

[ianhart]

I used a Yamaha 5C for just about everything, then bought a Rico 7C from here for 15 bucks. Great for jazz, especially with a lavoz medium reed, but I could also play classical on it, including those slow songs that seem to give a bari nothing but slurred whole notes, and a few soli lines with the tuba. I was able to blend equally well in classical and jazz, and it was nice being able to buy cheap reeds for once, instead of the Vandoren 3 and 4's that I was using on the 5C.

 

[MojoBari]

You can jazz up a Yamaha 5C by putting a bright reed on it. A Plasticover ot a Bari brand plastic reed.

I think the Runyon Custom Spoiler is the best recommendation. .095" to .105" tip.

I use a metal Quantum .105" tip. I mostly play big band but can tame it for wind ensembles. I find the Spolier to bright in it, but if you sand the Spoiler down by taking 1/3rd of the plastic away, it is more usable in an amplified band (rock, funk).

 

[El Spot]

I think you should consider the selmer S90 in 180 or 190, they're very free-blowing with a good sound. IMHO they're much better than S80 (The S90 have a bigger chamber).

 

[martinm5862]

The JJ classics are cool, I like those a lot, plus they're super consistent, so you don't need to worry about getting a bad one. You might also want to look into Hard Rubber Otto Link Tone Edge mouthpieces, around a 6-7* or a Meyer around 6M-8M. Those are both nice, full, dark mouthpieces that you can push to pick up a nice edge for jazz.

I couldn't get the Link Tone Edge to play in tune on my MK6 bari, but my Jody Jazz Classic does everything. I leave the spoiler in for all styles. I used a 6* Link. I use a JJClassic #7.
Martin