I have a B&S Guardala alto but have never been happy with the tone. I've tried a few different mouthpieces -- Meyer 5, Vandoren V16 6, 10mfan Daddy-O 6, and a bunch of others -- but something is missing with all of them. The timbre is kind of shrill and lacks body, warmth and color. The other day I tried playing this horn with my tenor mouthpiece, a metal Link 8*, and suddenly I was getting something much closer to the full-bodied tone I want. Of course, the intonation is all over the place, so simply using the tenor piece isn't going to work. But maybe this is a clue for what to look for in an alto piece? Given this knowledge, what alto pieces would you try? More generally, does the fact that a tenor piece sounds good on this horn mean I should be looking for a large chamber alto piece / other general characteristics like that?
Tenor metal Link sounds good on my B&S alto, what alto MPs to try?
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Have you played many other altos besides your Guardala? I have the same model alto and I love it, I've never had an issue with any mouthpiece on it. It's my favorite alto in the world, and I've played many many.
But if you're comfortable playing an 8* on tenor, it wouldn't surprise me if you prefer a larger tip opening on alto as well. Your Meyer/Vandoren/10m five and sixes are relatively small. If I were you I'd try alto pieces in the .085" to .100" range, maybe a Vandoren A7 or Meyer 7 or even 8. Or a D'Addario Select 7 or 8. Experimenting with a larger chamber might work too, but medium-chamber pieces usually seem to work better with alto for most people.
For what it's worth, here's a clip of me playing on my Guardala alto with my current alto piece of choice, which is a Selmer Magni-Tone that Matt Marantz opened up to .085" (which would be a Selmer "F" opening). It's medium-chambered with a vibe somewhere between a Meyer and a Selmer Soloist.
But if you're comfortable playing an 8* on tenor, it wouldn't surprise me if you prefer a larger tip opening on alto as well. Your Meyer/Vandoren/10m five and sixes are relatively small. If I were you I'd try alto pieces in the .085" to .100" range, maybe a Vandoren A7 or Meyer 7 or even 8. Or a D'Addario Select 7 or 8. Experimenting with a larger chamber might work too, but medium-chamber pieces usually seem to work better with alto for most people.
For what it's worth, here's a clip of me playing on my Guardala alto with my current alto piece of choice, which is a Selmer Magni-Tone that Matt Marantz opened up to .085" (which would be a Selmer "F" opening). It's medium-chambered with a vibe somewhere between a Meyer and a Selmer Soloist.
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Billy Drewes, a jazz saxophonist in New York, plays a Link 8 (I think ... maybe it's a 10?) on alto. A tenor Link. You are not alone.
Billy plays 2nd alto in the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra, and appears with many other groups. There's a great video where Ed Joffe interviews the sax section of the VJO, and Billy's setup is mentioned there.
He also plays tenor and soprano, as well as flute and clarinet. Really fine player.
Billy plays 2nd alto in the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra, and appears with many other groups. There's a great video where Ed Joffe interviews the sax section of the VJO, and Billy's setup is mentioned there.
He also plays tenor and soprano, as well as flute and clarinet. Really fine player.
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Thanks for sharing this, Steve. What a great interview!
Billy talks his setup at 20:10 - it's an Otto Link metal 10* with a #5 reed. Don't listen to Dick Oatts regarding reeds - ewwwwwwwwwwww. Says he rinses it but leaves it on for several weeks, reed turns green, plays a few weeks more - constantly adapting to the reed. It's a fascinating approach, but ewwwwww... I'd have to take up smoking to avoid smelling the reed.
Billy talks his setup at 20:10 - it's an Otto Link metal 10* with a #5 reed. Don't listen to Dick Oatts regarding reeds - ewwwwwwwwwwww. Says he rinses it but leaves it on for several weeks, reed turns green, plays a few weeks more - constantly adapting to the reed. It's a fascinating approach, but ewwwwww... I'd have to take up smoking to avoid smelling the reed.
Chops of steel.
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Billy said he plays a 10* alto Link with 5 strength tenor reeds. What a fantastic interview!!
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What Alto mouthpiece should you try? Definitely try the new "Eric Marienthal" Alto metal mouthpiece #7 specifically which is made by Retro Revival. Go to 3.11 on video to hear Eric play a solo on it.
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Please listen again. I heard that he emphasized that it was a TENOR piece.
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Interesting. No idea what works with that alto specifically. Luck!!
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Thanks! My mistake as I didn't listen carefully and jumbled what he said about his setup and Gene Quill's alto setup. 10* tenor Link with a 5 strength tenor reed...on alto...goodness gracious!!
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What I like about this interview is it shows us that our gods are a bunch of seriously crazy muthas.
I couldn’t be prouder to play saxophone!
Be sure to check out all of Joffe’s interviews. These are one of the best oral history collections I’ve ever experienced, all of them are great.
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
I couldn’t be prouder to play saxophone!
Be sure to check out all of Joffe’s interviews. These are one of the best oral history collections I’ve ever experienced, all of them are great.
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
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well, there maybe a number of reasons.
I think that one may be the sheer size of the mouthpiece. Otto Links are very large outside therefore they may be more conducive to a more relaxed embouchure for you.
I'd suggest you try also an otto link METAL alto and see what happens, contrary to what many think Otto Links can be great on alto. I have given many times examples of the English/Dutch player Benjamin Herman who plays an OL and can get warm and bright out of it at will.
The there is the possibility that you may like the lay of a tenor reed on an alto mouthpiece. It isn't unheard of, it allows for combinations which are less than usual. Try that too.
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Yes, it was pretty funny listening to the others at the table - they, too, thought it was pretty crazy. Billy even mentioned that he had to push it on quite a bit to get it to intonate. I wish that had shown a closeup of the mouthpiece on the neck.
Billy also commented that he tried using a tenor reed on an alto mouthpiece and did not like it.
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Yeah, I thought the way it was brought up was funny. Kind of like 'I think Billy's setup is the most unique' Joffe clearly didn't know about it and the astonishing reveal continued, they joked about trying it out and that's when the subject of Gene Quill"s alto mouthpiece/tenor reed setup was discussed. It would be interesting to know if Billy ever tried his setup with an actual tenor.
I have an alto metal Florida STM I use which i like very much....I also used to have an alto metal STM Early Babbitt that played quite well which i stupidly sold when i started playing mostly tenor...Caught the tenor mouthpiece gas and sold several alto pieces i would like back....Those vintage pieces are not nearly as expensive in alto as tenor....you could also try and find a used modern alto STM and send it to a refacer....
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I played a tenor Dukoff on an old Conn 6m for a while. Probably a few years. I experimented a lot with s at one point. I had to have extra cork put on and sure enough, had to jam it pretty far for intonation. That being said, big wall of a core of sound.
“I play sax but mostly it plays me”
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Having owned 4 B&S altos I found the Vandoren A55 Jumbo Java and a Greg Wier's "Ringer" 7M worked best on my horns.
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