SaxColossusJR said:
sorry for saying jazzy, but I only said that for lack of a better term (I didn't think jazz-like or jazz-ish was appropriate). I do love Sonny Rollins and I know him somewhat well, but although I haven't played any tenor bergs, I feel they seem too similar to Level Airs.
I checked out the Lawton website. Are there vintage Lawtons out there that are better or are the modern production ones just as good?
What material would you suggest? Ebonite, brass, bronze or stainless steel?
The problem is not in a name (Jazzy is not offensive) it is rather more the fact that you really cannot advise someone on the choice of a mouthpice just like that!...... you really have to move every part of your person to a reputable shop and start playing with your horn a selection of 20-30 pieces! If your hero is Sonny Rollins try his set up, he has had many (indicating that he was looking for a sound himself!)I found this on the internet somewhere
"......Sonny Rollins´ mouthpiece is, and has been since about ´66 (East Broadway Rundown), a Berg Larsen 130/2.He uses Hemke 2,5 reeds, switched from Hemke 2 and before that, in 70´s and 80´s, used Rico Royal 2,5. He also used La Voz mediums sometime. His 50´s mouthpieces were Otto Link 10 (for the most part) and a Selmer ebonite (maybe "K" which is 130 opening). He has also used periodically a Berg Larsen ebonite mpc (60´s and 70´s) and a Lawton mpc (70´s). His horn has been, since late 50´s, a Selmer MK VI and he maybe used a Balanced Action before `56 because that's the year MKVI came to market (he said in an interview that he started out with a King)......."
Does this help? I don't think so! It just tells you an historical record but there is no way that you will play the same (or play at all , most of us wouldn't be able to play a Berg Larsen 130....) soud that Sonny does (I wish ...).
Anyway, here my two pennies, if you want a bright projecting sound go for high baffle, if you want a more mellow sound go for almost no baffle, open chambers are more difficult to control and have less projection but give more possibilities, metal tends to be smaller and you have to worry less about the piece changing in time, subtoning tends to be more confortable for most on larger pieces than smaller (but that is in no way true for everyone), smaller pieces tend to be projecting more, small(er) chambers are very resistive but project more.
And now? You still have to go to the shop and try the 20-30 pieces that they have and if possible tour all the shops......by the way, after you've changed the piece, you might want to star looking for a new reed type or size or both......I told you.....it's not a choice ,it's a quest!
