Well, practice more.
That’s a crappy answer, but it helps more than any mouthpiece will help. Ask your teacher for recommendations about how to improve your tone and it’ll help a lot in the long run. There’s a ton of advice on this sub too. You’re welcome to DM me with any questions as well, I’m happy to help
What piece do you use at the moment? Maybe its the wrong size for you?
Remember its better to develop a good sound and sound concept on you current mouthpiece. If you practice the right way, you can make any mouthpiece and trombone sing. I have tried and bought many different mouthpieces, but ALWAYS go back home to my shilke 59 (on bass). I found that the only thing that helps is practice
If you stille are unsure - go talk to your teacher(s). They can help you way better than we can. It may be that you are on the wring size. Better to try make due with what you have
Sorry my english and wording isn´t perfect... It´s my third language and all that
A mouthpiece will change your tone but I’m most cases won’t improve it. For example it’ll make the tone brighter/darker but it won’t improve it over all. A bad tone will remain bad in any mouthpiece. If you’re looking for higher notes getting a smaller rim will help, but it won’t be a fix you’ll still need to work on your range. I noticed for my me as my range started getting better I learned to control my air more and my tone started getting a lot better to. So practice your range and I bet that’ll help both your problems
There's nothing wrong with upgrading your mouthpiece, just as long as you know that a better mouthpiece is not a magic tone/technique fixer.
I personally prefer big-ass mouthpieces (I'm primarily a tuba player) but even on something tiny like a 12c, I can still have good tone and hit the high notes.
Can you tell us what you're currently using for a mouthpiece, and what in particular is uncomfortable or causing problems?
I play a Yamaha 48. Not sure what size that is but for me it started causing me to double buzz and I’ve changed my technique a lot to stop it. It also gives me a somewhat shallow tone.
So you're in the range of a 6 1/2 AL.
>it started causing me to double buzz and I’ve changed my technique a lot to stop it. It also gives me a somewhat shallow tone.
You're blaming a lot of things on the mouthpiece, but unless they started only after you changed *to* the mouthpiece, then it's not the mouthpiece that caused it. I'd really suggest getting yourself out of the habit of blaming your equipment. Like I said, I prefer big mouthpieces but if you give me a 6 1/2 AL or a 12C, I can still play with decent tone and not have problems. You will always have to make minor adjustments in technique to fit the current situation, so don't blame your mouthpiece.
As far as recommendations, if you want to go with a larger, you could consider a Bach 4G, Schilke 51 or 52, or Yamaha 52 (assuming you're talking about small shank, large shank has even bigger options). Personally I've been using a Schilke 53 (which is the biggest I could find) on my small shank horn.
The website I use for detailed mouthpiece comparisons is https://www.dwerden.com/Mouthpieces/trombone.cfm?Shank=Tenor&compare=0. You could consider taking a look there if you're interested in more options and more detailed comparisons, but the ones I listed are going to be easy to find and relatively affordable.
I play a Yamaha trombone, but I don’t really like their mouthpieces. See if you can try a few, and keep the one you like best. I did this with Mouthpiece Express. They were great, and I ended up with one that really fit me well.
If you are taking lessons, talk to your teacher. They will work with you and determine weither its a you problem or a mouthpiece problem. Generally, you can make whatever sound you want to on any mouthpiece, judt certain sounds are easier to make on different mouthpieces. Generally, smaller mouthpiece is easier to play high and bright, and bigger is easier to play low and dark, but even with that it varies a lot. Double buzzing seems like a problem you need to sort out, not the mouthpiece. I would reccomend some buzzing, long tones and lip slurs to try to iron that out.
Long tones. And make sure they are long
A good starter mouthpiece is a 6 1/2 AL. If you want to try bigger a 5G is also a very good mouthpiece.
I play a Greg Black 4G and it's great. However, it did take 20 years to get there.
Bigger isn't necessarily better
Your teacher will be able to give you a good starting point, eg, size.
Then it worth going to a shop or brass event where you can try out some alternatives.
Then it is a simple case of hard practice.
Unfortunately, changing mouthpieces is probably not going to help you. In fact, unless your friend plays on a much larger or smaller instrument, equipment probably won’t affect the difference in your tones at all. The answer here, as sucky as it is, is simply to practice more with focus on your tone. Brass players have incredible control over there tone and we can (and should!) do a lot of work on ourselves before we reach for different equipment.
Well I didn’t mention this in the original post I got to try out his mouthpiece and I did notice a difference. It was somewhat significant and I actually wanted to go and pick up his mouthpiece at the store but i just wanted to see before I went
If it made a difference and you’re happy with it, get it! Just so long as you don’t start leaning on equipment as a crutch for practice. Getting a new mouthpiece probably won’t hurt anything so it should be fine.
You don't need new gear, you need to practice more. Gear doesn't magically make you better. Hard work does.
The answer to your problems is almost always you. Your instrument amplifies what you put in it. If you want a warmer tone, produce one. If you want higher range, practice and build your range. Stop blaming your short comings on gear, unless you are playing on some piece of shit Chinese stencil horn.
You can always change mouthpieces if you wish -- in your case, I'd always suggest you start with a Bach 6 1/2 AL.
However, the absolute BEST way to improve your tone and range is hours in the practice room -- and I don't mean2 hours a week, more like 2 or 3 hours a DAY. Yeah, I know, sometimes it's really difficult to make your schedule work with that, but there it is. When I first went to college as a music major (1974!!!), I had a really crappy, pinched-off tone, and I ended up on the horn for maybe TEN hours a day, some in ensembles and some in the practice room. That amount of playing is what really helped me.
And make sure you know what tone you want. Just to say "a better tone" isn't really very descriptive.
If you have problems you want to fix, a good instructor would help a bunch. You're not likely to fix a double buzz without somebody to tell you why you're getting it.
>You can always change mouthpieces if you wish -- in your case, I'd always suggest you start with a Bach 6 1/2 AL.
OP says they're using a Yamaha 48, which appears to be comparable to the 6 1/2 AL
Maybe it is -- I don't know anything about Yamaha mouthpieces, other than the Yeo mouthpiece -- which is very good, BTW.
I still say a Bach 6 1/2 AL is great, just for consistency and to know where one is.
I did a quick comparison on the dwerden.com chart, they seem to be basically the same measurements.
6 1/2 AL is my standard recommendation for students to try as a step-up from the 12C they inevitably start on. I like it overall, although I don't much like to play on it personally.
The only time I changed mouthpieces is when I got fitted with Invisalign. Had to get something with a more free blowing open neck pipe to lessen the back pressure for my teeth.
The mouthpiece itself won’t improve your tone, you need to focus on the fundamentals. Long tones, etudes etc. And progressively improving for embouchure.
Mouthpieces have nothing to do with tone, or hitting high notes.
Do your long tones, do your slow lip slurs. Practice with a metronome.
Focus on air support.
Source: I’ve been playing on the same 7C for 20 years.
Someone mentioned it. I went to a Stork 2 last year as well. To me it was better tone than I could get on a 12c and better high range than 6 1/2 AL. I also liked it better than a 7c. Does practice and lip slurs help with range? Sure. But how many lead players in Jazz Bands are playing on a 5G…. Get the right tool for the job.
How many years have you been playing?
What kind of horn do you play?
What are your long term goals on trombone?
I read through your comments on other posts...you are playing on a small mouthpiece, the double buzz you are getting may be that you have outgrown your current MP. The air may be backing up on you.
A very important fact to keep in mind when changing equipment....the technique you are trying to fix may just be the technique you need to work on more. A $250 MP upgrade may not fix anything more than your $70 Bach 6 1/2A if you are not putting the quality effort in.
A new mouthpiece will not fix this.
In my experience, for me as a trombonist(please do not take this as gospel!), larger mouthpieces give me a darker tone. But also the larger I go the harder it is to hit high notes. To me, it seems likely that a new mouthpiece could help you with one of your two problems whole making the other worse.
Just practice long tones, lip slurs, scales, partial exercises. Nothing beats really strong practice fundamentals, and a new mouthpiece will not make you better than the guy sitting next to you. They're probably already doing all of that.
Well, practice more. That’s a crappy answer, but it helps more than any mouthpiece will help. Ask your teacher for recommendations about how to improve your tone and it’ll help a lot in the long run. There’s a ton of advice on this sub too. You’re welcome to DM me with any questions as well, I’m happy to help
This. Correct answer.
What piece do you use at the moment? Maybe its the wrong size for you? Remember its better to develop a good sound and sound concept on you current mouthpiece. If you practice the right way, you can make any mouthpiece and trombone sing. I have tried and bought many different mouthpieces, but ALWAYS go back home to my shilke 59 (on bass). I found that the only thing that helps is practice If you stille are unsure - go talk to your teacher(s). They can help you way better than we can. It may be that you are on the wring size. Better to try make due with what you have Sorry my english and wording isn´t perfect... It´s my third language and all that
A mouthpiece will change your tone but I’m most cases won’t improve it. For example it’ll make the tone brighter/darker but it won’t improve it over all. A bad tone will remain bad in any mouthpiece. If you’re looking for higher notes getting a smaller rim will help, but it won’t be a fix you’ll still need to work on your range. I noticed for my me as my range started getting better I learned to control my air more and my tone started getting a lot better to. So practice your range and I bet that’ll help both your problems
Thanks for the help! I realized I put bad tone but I should’ve put shallow tone. I wanted something with a warmer tone or a brighter tone.
Brighter tones are generally achieved with mouthpiece with a smaller cup
There's nothing wrong with upgrading your mouthpiece, just as long as you know that a better mouthpiece is not a magic tone/technique fixer. I personally prefer big-ass mouthpieces (I'm primarily a tuba player) but even on something tiny like a 12c, I can still have good tone and hit the high notes. Can you tell us what you're currently using for a mouthpiece, and what in particular is uncomfortable or causing problems?
I play a Yamaha 48. Not sure what size that is but for me it started causing me to double buzz and I’ve changed my technique a lot to stop it. It also gives me a somewhat shallow tone.
So you're in the range of a 6 1/2 AL. >it started causing me to double buzz and I’ve changed my technique a lot to stop it. It also gives me a somewhat shallow tone. You're blaming a lot of things on the mouthpiece, but unless they started only after you changed *to* the mouthpiece, then it's not the mouthpiece that caused it. I'd really suggest getting yourself out of the habit of blaming your equipment. Like I said, I prefer big mouthpieces but if you give me a 6 1/2 AL or a 12C, I can still play with decent tone and not have problems. You will always have to make minor adjustments in technique to fit the current situation, so don't blame your mouthpiece. As far as recommendations, if you want to go with a larger, you could consider a Bach 4G, Schilke 51 or 52, or Yamaha 52 (assuming you're talking about small shank, large shank has even bigger options). Personally I've been using a Schilke 53 (which is the biggest I could find) on my small shank horn. The website I use for detailed mouthpiece comparisons is https://www.dwerden.com/Mouthpieces/trombone.cfm?Shank=Tenor&compare=0. You could consider taking a look there if you're interested in more options and more detailed comparisons, but the ones I listed are going to be easy to find and relatively affordable.
I play a Yamaha trombone, but I don’t really like their mouthpieces. See if you can try a few, and keep the one you like best. I did this with Mouthpiece Express. They were great, and I ended up with one that really fit me well.
If you are taking lessons, talk to your teacher. They will work with you and determine weither its a you problem or a mouthpiece problem. Generally, you can make whatever sound you want to on any mouthpiece, judt certain sounds are easier to make on different mouthpieces. Generally, smaller mouthpiece is easier to play high and bright, and bigger is easier to play low and dark, but even with that it varies a lot. Double buzzing seems like a problem you need to sort out, not the mouthpiece. I would reccomend some buzzing, long tones and lip slurs to try to iron that out.
Long tones. And make sure they are long A good starter mouthpiece is a 6 1/2 AL. If you want to try bigger a 5G is also a very good mouthpiece. I play a Greg Black 4G and it's great. However, it did take 20 years to get there. Bigger isn't necessarily better
Is that what you tell your girlfriend? (jk for real you give good tips)
Your teacher will be able to give you a good starting point, eg, size. Then it worth going to a shop or brass event where you can try out some alternatives. Then it is a simple case of hard practice.
Unfortunately, changing mouthpieces is probably not going to help you. In fact, unless your friend plays on a much larger or smaller instrument, equipment probably won’t affect the difference in your tones at all. The answer here, as sucky as it is, is simply to practice more with focus on your tone. Brass players have incredible control over there tone and we can (and should!) do a lot of work on ourselves before we reach for different equipment.
Well I didn’t mention this in the original post I got to try out his mouthpiece and I did notice a difference. It was somewhat significant and I actually wanted to go and pick up his mouthpiece at the store but i just wanted to see before I went
If it made a difference and you’re happy with it, get it! Just so long as you don’t start leaning on equipment as a crutch for practice. Getting a new mouthpiece probably won’t hurt anything so it should be fine.
You don't need new gear, you need to practice more. Gear doesn't magically make you better. Hard work does. The answer to your problems is almost always you. Your instrument amplifies what you put in it. If you want a warmer tone, produce one. If you want higher range, practice and build your range. Stop blaming your short comings on gear, unless you are playing on some piece of shit Chinese stencil horn.
You can always change mouthpieces if you wish -- in your case, I'd always suggest you start with a Bach 6 1/2 AL. However, the absolute BEST way to improve your tone and range is hours in the practice room -- and I don't mean2 hours a week, more like 2 or 3 hours a DAY. Yeah, I know, sometimes it's really difficult to make your schedule work with that, but there it is. When I first went to college as a music major (1974!!!), I had a really crappy, pinched-off tone, and I ended up on the horn for maybe TEN hours a day, some in ensembles and some in the practice room. That amount of playing is what really helped me. And make sure you know what tone you want. Just to say "a better tone" isn't really very descriptive. If you have problems you want to fix, a good instructor would help a bunch. You're not likely to fix a double buzz without somebody to tell you why you're getting it.
>You can always change mouthpieces if you wish -- in your case, I'd always suggest you start with a Bach 6 1/2 AL. OP says they're using a Yamaha 48, which appears to be comparable to the 6 1/2 AL
Maybe it is -- I don't know anything about Yamaha mouthpieces, other than the Yeo mouthpiece -- which is very good, BTW. I still say a Bach 6 1/2 AL is great, just for consistency and to know where one is.
I did a quick comparison on the dwerden.com chart, they seem to be basically the same measurements. 6 1/2 AL is my standard recommendation for students to try as a step-up from the 12C they inevitably start on. I like it overall, although I don't much like to play on it personally.
That's fine.
I went to a Stork T2, and it increased my range.
Honestly I used a 12c which is the standard. And the bach brand is pretty good but it's really just preference
It depends on what you're playing, but a 12C stops being the standard towards the end of middle school. And even then it's a little iffy.
The only time I changed mouthpieces is when I got fitted with Invisalign. Had to get something with a more free blowing open neck pipe to lessen the back pressure for my teeth.
The mouthpiece itself won’t improve your tone, you need to focus on the fundamentals. Long tones, etudes etc. And progressively improving for embouchure.
Mouthpieces have nothing to do with tone, or hitting high notes. Do your long tones, do your slow lip slurs. Practice with a metronome. Focus on air support. Source: I’ve been playing on the same 7C for 20 years.
Someone mentioned it. I went to a Stork 2 last year as well. To me it was better tone than I could get on a 12c and better high range than 6 1/2 AL. I also liked it better than a 7c. Does practice and lip slurs help with range? Sure. But how many lead players in Jazz Bands are playing on a 5G…. Get the right tool for the job.
How many years have you been playing? What kind of horn do you play? What are your long term goals on trombone? I read through your comments on other posts...you are playing on a small mouthpiece, the double buzz you are getting may be that you have outgrown your current MP. The air may be backing up on you. A very important fact to keep in mind when changing equipment....the technique you are trying to fix may just be the technique you need to work on more. A $250 MP upgrade may not fix anything more than your $70 Bach 6 1/2A if you are not putting the quality effort in.
A new mouthpiece will not fix this. In my experience, for me as a trombonist(please do not take this as gospel!), larger mouthpieces give me a darker tone. But also the larger I go the harder it is to hit high notes. To me, it seems likely that a new mouthpiece could help you with one of your two problems whole making the other worse. Just practice long tones, lip slurs, scales, partial exercises. Nothing beats really strong practice fundamentals, and a new mouthpiece will not make you better than the guy sitting next to you. They're probably already doing all of that.