Tommy Occhiuto?
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He recently did an interview with the best saxophone website ever. Look it up. Tommy is great! He’s also a member here @TOcchiuto
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About — OcchiutoWoodwinds
www.occhiutowoodwinds.com
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He’s in the Bay Area. My main piece I’ve been playing for almost 3 years is a Dukoff stubby that was refaced by Tommy. In addition, I’ve personally sat in the room and watched him work on Joshua Redman and Bob Sheppard’s mouthpieces (the players were actually there, not just the mouthpieces). He’s a good player and top notch refacer. He doesn’t just spend 20 minutes sanding away, he takes the time to dial the piece in and makes sure it’s playing well. Highly recommended!
The Art of Mouthpiece Refacing with Thomas Occhiuto
Introduction When it comes to making a mouthpiece change, the question as to whether to purchase a new one or to reface a mouthpiece you already own comes up quite a bit, and the answer really depends on your situation and why it is you are looking to make a change. In the past when [read more...]
www.bestsaxophonewebsiteever.com
And he has quite the resume...
Client List
- Joshua Redman
- Jerry Bergonzi
- Terrace Martin
- Bob Sheppard
- Bob Mintzer
- Larry Schneider
- Eric Marienthal
- Rob Lockart
- Jake Saslow
- Nathan Graybeal
- Danny Janklow
- Tim Lin
- Aaron Johnson
- Eddie Salkin
- Joe Cohen
- Carlo Barbaro
- Steve Neff
He had done refacing on my mouthpieces and inspired me on my refacing as well.
He is good!
He is good!
SOTW!
Hello everyone! I have not been as active in this community after my first born, but I value it greatly. I have many great friendships that started right here.
I would like to answer buddy lee’s questions more specifically. I totally agree that it always seems that some new refacer/maker appears out of nowhere. Back when I started there were only a few guys actually doing this work commercially, and in some ways it made things a bit easier. If you had a chance to play the work of [insert refacer] then you can assume a relative amount of consistency. Then you send them something, and presumably you get back a mouthpiece that has been noticeably improved. However, this wasn’t always the case. In some circumstances you don’t even get your piece back. It was through these experience$ both good and bad that I began the practice.
I would have never even bothered with this process if it weren’t for the first time I played a hand faced mouthpiece. I had put in the work on long tones, overtones, technique and so on, but it was a revelation. This was fascinating to me how two of the same mouthpiece could be so different. My gear was just flat out bad, and all my heroes who told me gear doesn’t matter were actually a disservice to me. At the very least I was forming bad habits to compensate for dysfunctional equipment. This is when a friend of mine, and (inactive) SOTW member airmouton began learning the craft. The general information is out there about facing curves/baffles/tables, but it didn’t explain why some were that extra 13%. That is what I was interested in.
This being said, I never set out to be the next name out there. The pandemic was a not-so-gentle nudge to provide for my family, and I am very blessed to have had another skill. I was perfectly content doing this work selectively and making my income gigging, but connecting with other players I began to enjoy the process.
Each mouthpiece that comes to me is a puzzle. There’s a set amount of potential and lack there of. Understanding how each parameter affects the other is the key to solving problems. However, the other part of the puzzle is the player. Physiology, approach, and sound concept are often left out of the equation and this has been the part that I’ve enjoyed the most. I also enjoy saving pieces from the heap.
This being said, I believe the best craftsman ever to do this work are alive today. The work is a direct extension of craftsman who left behind something that outlasted them. This is what I hope to be a part of.
Hello everyone! I have not been as active in this community after my first born, but I value it greatly. I have many great friendships that started right here.
I would like to answer buddy lee’s questions more specifically. I totally agree that it always seems that some new refacer/maker appears out of nowhere. Back when I started there were only a few guys actually doing this work commercially, and in some ways it made things a bit easier. If you had a chance to play the work of [insert refacer] then you can assume a relative amount of consistency. Then you send them something, and presumably you get back a mouthpiece that has been noticeably improved. However, this wasn’t always the case. In some circumstances you don’t even get your piece back. It was through these experience$ both good and bad that I began the practice.
I would have never even bothered with this process if it weren’t for the first time I played a hand faced mouthpiece. I had put in the work on long tones, overtones, technique and so on, but it was a revelation. This was fascinating to me how two of the same mouthpiece could be so different. My gear was just flat out bad, and all my heroes who told me gear doesn’t matter were actually a disservice to me. At the very least I was forming bad habits to compensate for dysfunctional equipment. This is when a friend of mine, and (inactive) SOTW member airmouton began learning the craft. The general information is out there about facing curves/baffles/tables, but it didn’t explain why some were that extra 13%. That is what I was interested in.
This being said, I never set out to be the next name out there. The pandemic was a not-so-gentle nudge to provide for my family, and I am very blessed to have had another skill. I was perfectly content doing this work selectively and making my income gigging, but connecting with other players I began to enjoy the process.
Each mouthpiece that comes to me is a puzzle. There’s a set amount of potential and lack there of. Understanding how each parameter affects the other is the key to solving problems. However, the other part of the puzzle is the player. Physiology, approach, and sound concept are often left out of the equation and this has been the part that I’ve enjoyed the most. I also enjoy saving pieces from the heap.
This being said, I believe the best craftsman ever to do this work are alive today. The work is a direct extension of craftsman who left behind something that outlasted them. This is what I hope to be a part of.
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Thanks for taking the time to chime in and introduce yourself!
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