Posted by Joseph Felton on October 29, 1999 at 19:55:18:
In Reply to: A-typical Mouthpiece question... posted by Todd on October 29, 1999 at 14:45:34:
Without hearing you play it is difficult to guess where the problem actually lays. As a rule when I run into problems like this on a horn that I am playing I always look to myself before I consider the equipment. At some point in time for reasons that I don't completely understant I developed the attitude that it doesn't matter what the equipment is.. I should be able to figure out how to feed it to make it sound great regardless. I tend to look at mouthpieces less to fix playability issues and more as a way to allow me to change how the horn sounds. This is merely my philosophy and I'm sure that it is possible to make a very solid argument that there are playability issues in the low register of your horn with your current mouthpiece.
Having said that.. If I were you I would just pick a mouthpiece that I found comfortable and I would stick with it for a while. I feel that the bigger horns really have to be lived in for a while before they begin to feel natural. I would spend lots of time listening to live performances of great orchestral players in your area and as a part of my daily practice routine I would spend time each day playing something sustained and low/loud such as Rochut down two octaves or some Wagner excerpts. If I'm correct, I suspect you will find a lot of inefficiencies will disappear from your playing and when you pick up smaller horns you may surprise yourself with the sound you get.
just my two cents.. I hope it helps..
As always, I'm open to other ideas and suggestions.
cheers!
joseph