Saxophone Forum


by sr14051
(1 post)
10 years ago

Sax doubler - looking for the perfect combination

Hi,

My name is Sheryl, I'm new here. I'm an oboe/english horn player who doubles on sax. Currently I have a Selmer intermediate level sax. It's not bad, but certainly not like the 5 digit Selmer Mark VI or Conn Chu Berry. I love the sound of those horns and I was wondering if anyone had any suggestions as far as mouthpieces to check out. There are an endless number of choices and variety and I realize I have to just try them and see what works with my horn, but wondering if anyone had any suggestions. I don't want harsh or brash sounding low notes, but a smooth, effortless velvet sound. I realize that much of this depends on the player, horn, reed, etc, but maybe someone has some suggestions of mouthpieces I can try since there are just so many out there. I couldn't possibly try them all. I listened to some sound samples, and as far as sound, I like the classic meyer mouthpieces, Otto Link (not sure about the newer Otto Links, maybe the older ones) Yanigisawa - actually kind of had the sound I'm looking for, but again, could be different on my horn. I liked the sound of the E. Rousseau mouthpiece and was surprised at how affordable it was. Forgot which one, will have to look it up, I think like JDX or something like that. I like a larger tip opening with a softer reed. I use Vandoren ZZ but recently got into the Rico Jazz reeds. I use a 3 soft. I really like the sound of these reeds. I currently use a selmer mouthpiece that came with the horn. Not bad I guess, but I love experimenting. Some of the Drake mouthpieces are nice, but they are a bit pricey, and as a doubler, not sure if it's worh it. I was considering looking for an older, used Mark VI neck for my alto. Wondering if that would improve anything or not or if it would fit since I have a selmer. Anyhow, sound-wise, I like a full, vibrant tone, that's not harsh, partricularly in the low register. I prefer a slightly "warmer" sound, but not dull or stuffy sounding. Does anyone have any suggestions of mouthpieces/reeds to try? Thanks.  

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