Saxophone Mouthpiece Kit
Saxophone Mouthpiece Kit
The saxophone mouthpiece is part of the musical instrument which is placed partly in the player's mouth.
There are a lot of different makers of mouthpieces for all kind of saxophones. They are very in quality and prices so one should have at least the basic information about it to make intelligent selection of the mouthpiece for his instrument.
The mouthpiece has a ring of cork glued to it, and the mouthpiece fits firmly onto the neck cork of the saxophone. As has been mentioned saxophone mouthpieces are available in hundreds of styles from dozens of manufacturers around the world. Saxophone Mouthpieces are often named after famous performers who contribute to their designs.
When Adolph Sax invented the saxophone he specified the shape of the interior of the saxophone's mouthpiece as being large and round. All saxophone mouthpieces were made in this style until the 1930s, when the big-band jazz made saxophonists experiment with different shapes of saxophone mouthpieces to get a louder and edgier sound. These saxophone mouthpieces give the instrument a brighter and edgier sound than the traditional shape as designed by Sax. By 1970, narrow-chambered mouthpieces had become nearly universally popular, and saxophone mouthpiece manufacturers largely ceased production of large-chambered mouthpieces.
Saxophone mouthpieces have been made out of hard (vulcanized) rubber, brass or other metal, crystal, glass, plastic, and wood. Today, the most common material for professional and classical saxophone mouthpieces is hard rubber. Jazz saxophone mouthpieces are made out of hard rubber or metal. There is some debate over whether the material affects the tone, or whether tone is shaped only by the internal shape and dimensions of the saxophone mouthpiece. With saxophone mouthpieces of any material, the tip, table, or facing can be ruined if it is scratched or worn down.
Saxophone mouthpiece is the part of the instrument to which the reed is attached. Its function is to provide an opening through which air enters the instrument and one end of an air chamber to be set into vibration by the interaction between the air stream and the reed.
Single reed instrument mouthpieces are basically wedge-shaped, with the reed being placed against the surface closest to the player's bottom lip (the table). The saxophone player's breath causes the reed to vibrate, which in turn causes the column of air inside the instrument to vibrate. The top half to three–quarters of the table is open to the inside of the saxophone mouthpiece.
As with the brass instruments, the shape of the interior of the saxophone mouthpiece can greatly affect the sound of the instrument. Saxophone mouthpieces with large, a rounded chamber will produce a quite different sound from one with a small or square chamber. Saxophone mouthpiece cap is used to protect the reed in idle time.
The distance between the tip of the saxophone mouthpiece and the tip of the reed is known as the tip opening. The tip opening has little effect on tone, which is more affected by the design of the mouthpiece's chamber (interior space).
The facing (or lay) is a curved section that leaves the flat table and continues to the tip of the mouthpiece. The length of a facing defined as the distance from the tip of the saxophone mouthpiece to the point where the reed and mouthpiece meet can vary. Different facing lengths have different response properties.
The single reed is held tightly against the saxophone mouthpiece by a ligature. Anything that can hold the reed on the mouthpiece may serve as a ligature. Commercial ligatures are commonly made of metal or plastic. Some players prefer string or a shoelace, which is wrapped around the reed and the mouthpiece, to commercially manufactured ligatures.
