 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Dano
Date: 2005-01-01 17:43
I am interested in trying a crystal mouthpiece and was wondering if anyone that has tried one would be able to tell me what their impression was. I have heard so many pros and cons about them. Is there a certain brand that stands out when it comes to crystal mouthpieces? How do they compare to other mouthpieces? Thanks.
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Author: Markus Wenninger
Date: 2005-01-01 17:54
As with everything concerning the tools of a woodwindplayer, things tend to be hysterical, heavily; there´s no objective feature distinguishing crystal, metal or ebonite mouthpieces besides that material, in the end it turns out a matter of the individual player´s likes and dislikes. I play a crystal Zinner since the beginning, I like the very focused, cold and brittle sound of it, but that´s just not intersubjectiviable I reckon. The one thing I think is most important is that it isn´t the mouthpiece alone,or the clarinet or the reed or whatever, alone, it´s the relation of Your particular joice of reed and the mouthpiece that´s counts. Pragmatic outcome: test as many of the crystals with Your favorite reed, against some ebonite, and if it sounds great to You, it is.
Markus
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Author: john gibson
Date: 2005-01-01 19:59
I find crystal MPCs to be superior to others thanks to their non-warping properties. The crystals I use are made by Pomarico in Italy and are much more consistent than rubber or wood. Though Pomarico does make ebony MPCs that are exceptional. The down side to crystals is that once dropped and broken or chipped...well.....that's IT. Take care of them, be careful with them and they'll last a lifetime.
The sound is warm and bright. I just like them. And they look good too.
Contact me by e-mail if you'd like a recommendation of which one would be best for you......
John Gibson........the clarinator
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Author: HedgeWitch
Date: 2005-01-01 21:10
I used to play with a Pomarico Ruby mp and really liked it, I sold it to fund another instrument and wish I'd hung onto it now.
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Author: Robert Moody
Date: 2005-01-01 22:12
I play on an old O'Brien (still wish I knew how to convince Bob to sell me his newly saved O'Brien ![[wink]](http://test.woodwind.org/clarinet/BBoard/smileys/smilie3.gif) ) and love it. While I cannot say verifiably that glass mouthpieces are more consistent than hard rubber, I can say that I have a significantly more consistent response from reeds on the crystal over time than I do from hard rubber mouthpieces.
There still seems to be this lingering bias against crystal mouthpieces. Sometimes, in a clarinet world sense, I feel like a minority when I walk into a group for the first time. You get all kinds of looks and not always accepting. Take, for example, at a recent military tatoo that I played. Many clarinetists from a number of services and even countries. The passing looks of my mouthpiece were noticed. But low and behold, after a day or two of hearing me practice out in the staging areas, clarinet players were coming over and asking, "What brand mouthpiece is that? You have a wonderful sound" etc.
Someone mentioned that their crystal had a bright sound, I hope you don't equate crystal with bright sounds. I do not have a bright sound with mine (unless you ask the Army Field Band clarinet section, but then everyone has a bright sound in their minds) and others I have heard do not. I believe that Jon Monasse was playing on a Palmorico Crystal for some of his recordings where he is acclaimed to have a wonderful (and boy it is) sound.
I say, try as many different kinds as you can and if you like one, get it. Take care of it and use it. Don't worry about what people say against the mouthpiece, worry about the feedback on your sound and how it feels to you. Don't forget to put a mouthpiece protector on top. Glass is notably harder than hard rubber.
[Addition: I also suggest trying a number of reeds on each one. You will see the consistent response across more reeds than hard-rubber.]
Robert Moody
http://www.musix4me.com
Free Clarinet Lessons and Digital Library!
Post Edited (2005-01-02 07:21)
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Author: TMK
Date: 2005-01-01 22:18
Dano
I play a Selmer Cystal #2 mouthpiece. I find it has a very clean and even sound. IMHO it plays better than all the other mouthpieces I have. Hope this helps but in the last word it is up to you to find one you like.
Regards
TMKing
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Author: Dano
Date: 2005-01-01 22:40
Thanks all for the info. I think I will try and get my hands on as many crystal mouthpieces I can find and take it from there. You are correct, in the end, if I do not like "The Crystal" I will stick to what works, which is a Vandoren 5JB. Thanks again.
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Author: Don Berger
Date: 2005-01-01 22:56
I also have found glass/crystal mps to be the best. For the older ones, I believe that O'Brien made those Selmers as well. The major mfgr now I believe is only Pomarico, and IMHO are very good, contact Riccardo for his advice, I'd suggest the "mellow" bore/facing and highly recommend them. Just dont drop them. Luck, Don
Thanx, Mark, Don
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Author: bill28099
Date: 2005-01-01 23:10
I'm with TMK and think that a Selmer #2 is a good crystal mouthpiece. I prefer my 50 year old Clarion HS* but don't use it often since I dropped and broke a 30 year old one last summer. At least one can go out and replace the Selmer.
A great teacher gives you answers to questions
you don't even know you should ask.
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Author: super20dan
Date: 2005-01-02 01:50
i played an obrien 4* for 25 years (till some one else broke it) no matter how carefull you are you will eventually break it. always carry a spare mpc if using xystal. doubt if you can find one as open as a 5jb (what is) i use runyon jazz mpcs now -they come in clear so it still looks like xystal
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Author: GBK
Date: 2005-01-02 04:01
Robert Moody said:
> I believe that Jon Monasse was playing on a
> Palmorico Crystal for some of his recordings
> where he is acclaimed to have a wonderful
> (and boy it is) sound
For many years Jon Manasse was playing on an O'Brien crystal, which he showed to me after a performance at Clarinetfest in the early 90's.
For more than 30 years, I have been using the same pair of Vandoren crystal mouthpieces. (I have a third one which Dave Spiegelthal masterfully touched up and improved, but it is not even in the same league as the first two.)
Crystal mouthpieces with the same facing can have lots of variability between samples, due to the manufacturing process involved. Thus, the odds of getting a great one on first try is less than with hard rubber mouthpieces. When I picked out my pair of Vandoren crystals, I tried more than 20 of them, all supposedly identical. The most common fault in all the rejects were high resistance and a stuffy, muffled sound.
With prudent care, a fine crystal mouthpiece can last a lifetime ...GBK
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Author: sfalexi
Date: 2005-01-02 07:11
I believe (not sure) but the slight differences in crystal mouthpeices happen during the cooling process after the 'mold' has been made. There ARE people out there that can reface them, but not many as crystal tends to be more of a pain in the arse to face cause if it's hardness.
If you're interested in trying them out, don't base your views on them on the trial of one or two. Try a few out (if you can). Maybe you won't have too if you like the first one you try, but if you don't, don't X them out right away.
GBK had to try 20, but it paid off in the end.
Alexi - Who wonders if GBK had tried 20 Selmer HS*s, would he be swearing by those today . . . . . .
US Army Japan Band
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Author: Brenda Siewert
Date: 2005-01-02 14:32
You either like them or you hate them. I've never stuck with using one for very long. At first they have a great, different sound. Then I notice little things I don't like about them and go back to my old ones. I'm sticking to my wood Greg Smith. Actually, I've used it for about 2 years and that's longer than I've stuck with any other mouthpiece.
The breaking factor is also a consideration, as mentioned by John.
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Author: sfalexi
Date: 2005-01-02 15:46
Brenda Siewert wrote:
> I'm sticking to my wood Greg Smith.
> Actually, I've used it for about 2 years and that's longer than
> I've stuck with any other mouthpiece.
Hmmm . . . sounds like you and I might have the same mouthpiece disease . . . . cause it looks like I might be headed down the same road of changing mouthpieces like I do part-time jobs.
US Army Japan Band
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