Advice on Play-Testing New Saxophone Mouthpieces

I try new mouthpieces all the time, and sometimes it’s hard to truly evaluate the mouthpiece without playing on it a long time. Here are two tips to think about while trying new mouthpieces.

Advice for Trying New Mouthpieces

1. New mouthpieces need a bit of play time on a variety of reeds before you can evaluate them fairly. If it doesn’t respond the way you think it will immediately, don’t worry it can take time. Some of my favorite mouthpieces started out with a not so great impression. It’s by committing to discover all a mouthpiece has to offer that we unlock the treasure chests sometimes. This means putting several hours in and trying a variety of reeds until you get something that feels like it’s working.

2. A new mouthpiece almost never solves the problem of being unhappy with your sound. Only practice can do that and any decent mouthpiece will yield results. When you’re putting the practice time in, you will be able to sound good on all of your mouthpieces. Gear blaming is a dangerous trap and often leads to hours wasted looking for a better piece of gear when that time would be much better spent just playing what you’ve already got.

Here I’m playing a Jody Jazz DV 7 and a Boston Sax 3.5 reed on my Yanagisawa WO33 Alto Saxophone. Check out the instagram video below to hear this mouthpiece.

From Jody Jazz

“Jody Espina has introduced the concept of Golden Section Proportions to the art of high end saxophone mouthpiece design. The DV Alto Saxophone Mouthpiece has a perfect chamber/bore/facing combination will result in an extraordinary playing experience for you.

“Here, nature, science and imagination combine to create a revolutionary new saxophone mouthpiece. Jody Espina has designed the JodyJazz DV (U.S. Patent No. 7,470,844) using proportions and principles found in nature. For the most effortless playing experience of your life, we invite you to try the DV.”

Jody Jazz DV – Jody Jazz Website

Be sure to click on the video below and scroll through – there are 3 videos for you to check out.

Let me know what you think of this mouthpiece in the comments below!

Want more mini mouthpiece reviews? Check out the the “Jody Jazz HR Mini Mouthpiece Review.“

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