Announcement, Saxophone Mouthpieces - A Short Guide

When thinking about the purchase of a new mouthpiece for your saxophone it is easy to get bogged down, not only by the huge number of products in the marketplace, but also by the rather bewildering array of terminology from manufacturers surrounding mouthpiece construction and how this may affect tone quality. There is absolutely no doubt that the mouthpiece has an enormous effect on the tone your saxophone will produce, but there are in fact just three main elements to initially take into account when thinking about the kind of tone you want to achieve.

Tip opening

The tip opening refers to the distance you can see between the tip of the reed and the tip of the mouthpiece when they are attached together. Somewhere on the mouthpiece, a number will be etched which refers to the gap between the reed and the mouthpiece – the bigger the number, the greater the gap.

Many beginner saxophonists will start on a Yamaha 4C mouthpiece (the 4 referring to the tip opening). This is quite a narrow opening which makes blowing the saxophone easier and offers a focused sound. A narrow tip opening also gives the player lots of precision, making articulation such as staccato playing easier to perform, for example. As a result, classical saxophone players will often stick to a narrow tip opening.

For jazz players, a wider tip opening is the popular choice. This allows more air through the mouthpiece which will give players more projection and a wider tonal shape. Jazz players may refer to a focused, pure tone as ‘flat’ or ‘dead’ and instead will seek a ‘fatter’ sound that has lots of overtones - the opposite of a classical, focused tone.

It is worth noting that a wider tip opening will make the saxophone trickier to play, especially in the bottom register. When changing to a wider tip opening, you might also consider changing to a softer reed to begin with because of the extra control required. Jazz and contemporary players tend to prefer this combination, compared to a narrower tip and stronger reed combination preferred by classical saxophonists.

Baffle

The baffle is the part of the mouthpiece located just behind the reed. The air which is vibrated by the reed strikes the baffle directly and therefore its shape, which affects air flow, is crucial to the type of sound that will be achieved.

The speed at which air travels through the instrument will affect how loud and bright the overall tone will be. The less of a baffle there is, the more space there is for air to travel. Air will move slower through a bigger space which will produce a nice full tone, but with less attack. The more built up the baffle is (or the bigger the step within the baffle), the less space the air has to travel in. This means that the air travels faster through the smaller space, resulting in a brighter sound with plenty of attack.

Simply put, the closer the baffle is to the reed, the more powerful and bright the sound will be.

Chamber

The chamber is in the mouthpiece itself which also has a hand in shaping the overall tone. The chamber delivers the air from the mouthpiece to the saxophone and comes in one of three shapes – small, medium or large.

The most common chamber size is medium, meaning that the chamber size is the same as the bore. The air can therefore travel consistently through the mouthpiece to give a neutral tone with a rich core throughout the range.

In large chambers, which are commonly seen on tenor saxophones, the chamber is bigger than the bore. This allows the airflow to slow down a little which produces a fuller sound.

Small chambers are opposite of large chambers – the chamber itself is smaller than the bore. The air has less space to travel through before reaching the instrument, creating a very focused sound.

In the end, the most important choice you need to make when considering a different mouthpiece is finding something that feels and sounds good for you. A new mouthpiece can really elevate your tone to the next level and in turn, increase your playing enjoyment!