What are the top reasons customers tell me they want a new mouthpiece?
“I want to play higher/lower."
“I want to play louder/softer."
"I want better endurance."
“I've improved, I want a bigger/smaller mouthpiece."
“Can I get the one that *famous artist* plays?"
Should these needs be the basis of our search, or are there better "morals" that should be practiced?
Over the past 10 years of selling mouthpieces and equipment to brass players of all ages, I seemingly always get one of the above answers to the question “Why?" Reflecting on the many discussions I’ve had, I’ve come to realize that there is a moral code to trying mouthpieces. Good morals bring future success, and bad morals bring future injury.
The above statements are valid requests of a mouthpiece but what is the moral code that guides those requests. Let’s begin with the bad moral conduct. The player wants to play higher, faster, and louder. They look for the mouthpieces that have advertised high fast and loud by their colleagues, brass deities, or ads in
their respective journals. They try their highest notes on their fastest and loudest passages. Something sounds great at the store, they bring it home and a week later they’ve reached the moral to their story: their lip is injured and they can’t play anything. In short, the player wants to play higher, faster, louder
and thus higher, faster, louder has guided their search and become their code.
I use the grand “they" in this scenario, but I think we all can relate in some degree to this situation as we all have at some point searched for the tool that would magically make something work when practice and study seem to have failed us. A magic tool will rarely appear for us and work for the rest of our lives.
If not magic, what then should guide your search? The moral code of sound. The moral code of sound suggests that good moral conduct is guided by good sound. As beginners, our task was to learn how to make a sound. Once we were able to do that consistently, we began to learn how to make a great sound. In
order to create great sound, we have a great sound concept. This sound concept that we latch onto gets so engrained in us it becomes our musical heart and soul. Your sound will tell you immediately if your equipment is not the right fit, if something is healthy for you or unhealthy.
Whether you are looking for a specific tool (like a lead trumpet mouthpiece) or for an improved all- purpose mouthpiece, always begin your search with the question “What is the best sound I have ever heard – the one I want to sound like all the time?" With each of the following steps, be aware of whether your desired sound production is happening naturally or through manipulation.
• Have a selection of mouthpiece options ready. I would compare no more than 3 at a time.
• Using a familiar scale, start in the middle register of the mouthpiece and then explore the range, both
high and low, loud and soft
• Using the scales test the articulation in all registers both loud and soft, legato, staccato, etc.
• Use lip slurs to focus on the tuning of the mouthpiece
No matter how comfortable you think the mouthpiece is or how high or low you can play on it at the store, if the sound is not what you expect in all registers, you will uncontrollably manipulate your air and embouchure to create the sound you want. Prolonged usage like will injure your lip and keep you from playing. Note there is no “might injure" and “might stop you" in this discussion. It will. Physical manipulation over a period of time will injure you. If you are sitting in the audience and can’t see the soloist at a concert, you bend your head to the side so you can. You’ve solved the problem of not seeing the performer, but 30 minutes later you’ve created the problem of a stiff neck.
Let your mouthpiece choice be guided by what your sound is telling you, and it will be hard to take home an unhealthy option.
Find all our Denis Wick resources in one spot on the Denis Wick app. Download to view videos, clinics, educator resources, podcasts, product information & more!
To get the latest news and information from Denis Wick Products including offers, promotions and special deals with our retail partners please sign-up to our newsletter. We will never share your information.
