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Permalink Reply by Russ Weaver on August 21, 2008 at 10:29pm

Generally I like for MS players to avoid any metal mouthpieces, so this discussion will center around only those hard rubber mouthpieces that I have had personal success with. If you can keep one of each around for students to try, they will end up wanting to purchase their own.
A Mouthpiece choice should be made by a student and their private instructor, however there are a few mouthpieces that keep working for those students, both with and without private instruction. As mentioned above, the Meyer hard rubber mouthpiece is tough to beat for a good solid MS jazz lead player or section player. However the Meyer does not work for every student. Some alternative mouthpieces I have had success with include:

Bari RC7 (this is the Brand "Bari" not an actual Baritone sax mouthpiece) This has a somewhat brighter sound than the Meyer and I use it for those students that get a real "tubby" sound on the Meyer. This is a real versatile mouthpiece and really does work well, however it can become too bright for those students who get a bright sound on the Meyer.

Rosseau Studio Jazz Mouthpiece SJ5 or SJ6. Again, this mouthpiece is somewhat more controlled and darker and I use it for those students who get a laser beam sound with the Meyer. It works most of the time and some of the nicest Alto ballad sounds have come out of students playing this mouthpiece.

Jody Jazz HR* 5M or 6M Again, for those students not comfortable with the Meyer hard rubber and who are geting too bright a sound, I have had some success using the Jody Jazz HR* 5M. It really is a great mouthpiece and the facings are consistent.

If none of these mouthpieces are working for you and you have the occasional student that gets a tubby sound on every hard rubber mouthpiece they have tried then have them play their "stock" alto mouthpiece. If this is still too dark and classical sounding you might try the Brillhart "Ebolin" mouthpiece. I prefer the 3* for middle school students and the price is right.

Finally there is the Jewel Performance Alto Saxophone Mouthpiece. When all else fails, try the Jewel. At around $24, a person can't go wrong. I find it to be better than the stock mouthpieces from most companies and seems to hold up well to dropping. I have played professional gigs on this mouthpiece and it really works.

As a jazz judge for the Florida Bandmasters Association, I see many Middle School programs simply having the students play on their stock mouthpieces. This is fine to a point, but I believe if you will allow, and encourage, your students to experiment with their private instructor's choice of jazz mouthpiece, it will make a noticeable difference in your program's overall saxophone sound and projection.

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Permalink Reply by Jon Young on April 4, 2011 at 10:08pm

Russ, I think you are right on here.  I bought the Jody Jazz Classic for my alto and tenor. It has that removable baffle which makes it versatile tone wise.  I switched from a Beechler 7 metal - I'm loving the control I have with these mouthpieces!  Jody will respond to email too - fantastic service.

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