Saxophone Forum


by chalazon
(547 posts)
16 years ago

pitch problems on old bari sax

I have an old Beuscher bari th

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  1. by chalazon
    (547 posts)

    16 years ago

    Re: pitch problems on old bari sax

    I know. I know..it's Buescher...so, alrite, already

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  2. by newreedsyndrome
    (343 posts)

    16 years ago

    Re: pitch problems on old bari sax

    pull the mouthpiece out

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    1. by CajunSax
      (76 posts)

      16 years ago

      Re: pitch problems on old bari sax

      that and work on that embouchure (i can never spell that!!?!?!) :)

      Reply To Post Yahoo!


      1. by kneejerk52
        (397 posts)

        16 years ago

        Re: pitch problems on old bari sax

        replace cork on neck in order to pull and still have proper seal with mpc

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        1. by chalazon
          (547 posts)

          16 years ago

          Re: pitch problems on old bari sax

          ; pull the mouthpiece out. ;...well, duh..both the band leader and I have been playing sax for decades..so, we've already considered that..although thanks for the vote of confidence..and, of course, if you pull the mpc out to far, it de tunes the instrument altogether..no, we both checked the horn out with a tuner, and it plays sharp..I think I'll just go ahead and drop the key heights

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        2. by kneejerk52
          (397 posts)

          16 years ago

          Re: pitch problems on old bari sax

          is the neck dented, bent , or has it been repaired in any way?? neck very sensitive in this way. Maybe it's not even the orig. neck?

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        3. by chalazon
          (547 posts)

          16 years ago

          Re: pitch problems on old bari sax

          actually, I checked out the neck first thing..I think it's original..although I can't be sure..it's had a good bit of work done on it over the years, and some of it is less than great..anyway, I lowered the key heights by replacing the foot corks with one grade thicker and then doing the appropriate sanding, and the horn plays much more in tune with it self and the tuner now, thank you all

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      2. by MusicMedic
        (5 posts)

        16 years ago

        Re: pitch problems on old bari sax

        I think it would be best if you were more specific. When an instrument plays "Sharp" the logical answer is to pull the mouthpiece out. When that is no longer possible (because there is no more neck to hold the mouthpiece) then an extension may need to be built. If pulling the mouthpiece out makes the whole horn out of whack, it will do good to find out what exactly is thrown off by pulling the mouthpiece out further. I play a vintage instrument with a modern mouthpiece. If I put the mouthpiece on where it might seem to go, the horn plays sharp. I had to build an extension on Mouthpiece to hold in further out from the horn. Now, it plays in tune. If you lower the heights of the keys to correct general intonation, rather than targeting a specific area, you will likely end up with extremely sharp palm keys notes. The bell key notes are also going to be very sharp. You will also likely end up with a stuffy horn. It sounds to me like the problem is the mouthpiece/horn combination the band director is using. If she loves the way the mouthpiece sounds on that horn you may need to modify something to get it to work. If not, try a larger chamber mouthpiece. Mouthpieces that will play well on a Buescher Bari include: A Babbitt, Old Brihardts, Caravan, Rascher, vintage links (large chamber), Vintage Woodinds, vintage Buescher, vintage Conn, vintage Martin I'm sure there are many others. Best of luck! Curt Altarac www.MusicMedic.com

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        1. by chalazon
          (547 posts)

          16 years ago

          Re: pitch problems on old bari sax

          very informative and intelligent post..on further examination of the instrument, it was apparent that the corks on the stack keys were too thin..so, remove the keys, install thicker cork, and with the aid of a tuner, and a couple of pair of experienced ears, begin to adjust the heights to optimum intonation and sound. The palm keys did need to be lowered..the bell keys raised abit...the horn is playing pretty well in tune, now. It's been my experience that neck piece extensions cause more intonation problems than they solve, and often lead to gurgling in the lower register, but, whatever works for ya

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