[Trombone-l] Alto Trombone Mouthpiece Advice

[Mark Mohwinkel]

This is a follow up to my question on the alto bone
part for Beethoven's Fifth.  I got to thinking about
Daniel Pliskin's reply and comment to my querry (shown
below) and figured I'd ask that question here as well.


I'm having trouble finding the "right" MP to use.  My
main bone is an old (1967) 48H and my normal MP is a
Yamaha 48 MP. In my gig bag I also have the following:

Bach 18D
Denis Wick 12CS
Jet-Tone UG-S
Bach 12C
Bach 15C
Olds 1
Conn 3
A really old "FRANK HOLTON & CO - COREY" (whatever
that is - I don't even know where I got it)

Anyway, right now, I seem to get the best sound (to my
untrained ear) with the Wick.  I'm wondering if that's
a good place to start or should I focus on one of the
others or even move on to one of the Bach MPs designed
for alto (12E or 15E)?  I don't want to go to
something really expensive as this is an avocation for
me.  I know that ultimately, it's a personal decision
as to what works for each person/horn/etc, but I'm
just looking for some direction to get going.  Oh, by
the way, the alto's one of those cheap Selman's that
I'm using to learn - if I like it and progress, I may
look for something else.  Sorry this got so long
winded.  Thanks for listening and commenting!

Regards,
Mark Mohwinkel
Hudson, WI

>>DP's reply: "The biggest problem with playing high
notes on alto is that we tenor trombonists have a
sound in our heads, for what a trombone “should” sound
like and we want THAT sound, only higher.  But if you
look at the mouthpiece used on an alto horn, it’s way
more the size of a trumpet mouthpiece and turns out a
sound more like something one would use for hunting
and parades. If you could get used to a mouthpiece
like that, and the associated tone, you should be able
to get an extra half-octave out of your alto."<<



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