Saxophone Forum


by keycup
(12 posts)
18 years ago

Need advice, pls: mpc, lig for my 11-year old.

How important is mpc & lig for a starting sax player? He's using a freshly overhauled '68 Conn alto (14M Director) with the original Conn mpc/lig. Would there be any playability advantages for him if I got a new mpc/lig, say a Runyon Model 22? If so, which size facing (3, 4, or 5) would you recommend? Thanks for the help!

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  1. by Sax Mom
    (964 posts)

    18 years ago

    Re: Need advice, pls: mpc, lig for my 11-year old.

    With a Conn, I would stick to the original mouthpiece, especially for now. Often, other mouthpieces will cause a Conn Horn to play sharp, and your son is just starting, and won't be able to judge pitch as well. (When I put a different mouthpiece on my Conn tenor, I had to raise the neck slightly to get it to play in tune.)

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    1. by keycup
      (12 posts)

      18 years ago

      Re: Need advice, pls: mpc, lig for my 11-year old.

      Thanks, Sax Mom. I'm trying to think of any ways that I can make it easier and more enjoyable for him so that just maybe he'll stick with it.

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      1. by definition
        (963 posts)

        18 years ago

        Re: Need advice, pls: mpc, lig for my 11-year old.

        The older Conn tenors(30s, 40s) mainly are the ones that have had intonation issues IMO with some mouthpieces. Your '68 Conn there would be fine with a modern mouthpiece. The model 22 would be a fine choice for him, with the stock lig, or maybe a Rovner lig. I would go with the 4 or 5 facing, either will be fine. As for reeds, basic orange box ricos are cheap, and fine at this stage because he is bound to break and chip quite a few for a while.

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        1. by keycup
          (12 posts)

          18 years ago

          Re: Need advice, pls: mpc, lig for my 11-year old.

          Thanks for your thoughts, definition. You're right, he's a reed destroyer, so we are using the orange box Ricos. Can you explain how the ligature effects playability and/or tonal quality, and why the Rovner might be better than the stock Runyon lig?

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        2. by definition
          (963 posts)

          18 years ago

          Re: Need advice, pls: mpc, lig for my 11-year old.

          In short, different ligatures allow the reed to vibrate differently, causing changes in responsiveness etc when playing. I personally like the standard runyon ligs, though some people dont seem to care for them. The rovner ligs are my favorite ligature to use, because I feel they hold the reed very firmly, and evely so the response stays even. If you decide to get a rvner lig, the Rovner 'Dark' is very common in school aged students

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        3. by keycup
          (12 posts)

          18 years ago

          Re: Need advice, pls: mpc, lig for my 11-year old.

          Thanks for the info and for helping me understand the basics.

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