Mouthpiece (woodwind)
Encyclopedia
Woodwind instrument
A woodwind instrument is a musical instrument which produces sound when the player blows air against a sharp edge or through a reed, causing the air within its resonator to vibrate...
is that part of the instrument which is placed partly in the player's mouth. Single-reed instruments, capped double-reed instruments, and fipple flutes have mouthpieces while exposed double-reed instruments and open flutes do not.
Single-reed instruments
On single-reed instrumentSingle-reed instrument
A single-reed instrument is a woodwind instrument that uses only one reed to produce sound. Examples include clarinets, saxophones, and some bagpipes. In a single-reed instrument, the reed is attached to a mouthpiece that is blown into to vibrate the reed, producing the sound...
s such as the clarinet
Clarinet
The clarinet is a musical instrument of woodwind type. The name derives from adding the suffix -et to the Italian word clarino , as the first clarinets had a strident tone similar to that of a trumpet. The instrument has an approximately cylindrical bore, and uses a single reed...
and saxophone
Saxophone
The saxophone is a conical-bore transposing musical instrument that is a member of the woodwind family. Saxophones are usually made of brass and played with a single-reed mouthpiece similar to that of the clarinet. The saxophone was invented by the Belgian instrument maker Adolphe Sax in 1846...
the mouthpiece is that part of the instrument to which the reed is attached. Its function is to provide an opening through which air enters the instrument and one end of an air chamber
Bore (wind instruments)
The bore of a wind instrument is its interior chamber that defines a flow path through which air travels and is set into vibration to produce sounds. The shape of the bore has a strong influence on the instruments' timbre.-Bore shapes:...
to be set into vibration by the interaction between the air stream and the reed.
Single-reed instrument mouthpieces are basically wedge-shaped, with the reed
Reed (instrument)
A reed is a thin strip of material which vibrates to produce a sound on a musical instrument. The reeds of most Woodwind instruments are made from Arundo donax or synthetic material; tuned reeds are made of metal or synthetics.-Single reeds:Single reeds are used on the mouthpieces of clarinets...
being placed against the surface closest to the player's bottom lip (the table). The player's breath causes the reed to vibrate, which in turn causes the column of air inside the instrument to vibrate. The top half to three–quarters of the table is open to the inside of the mouthpiece.
As with the brass instrument
Brass instrument
A brass instrument is a musical instrument whose sound is produced by sympathetic vibration of air in a tubular resonator in sympathy with the vibration of the player's lips...
s, the shape of the interior of the mouthpiece can greatly affect the sound of the instrument. Mouthpieces with large, a rounded chamber will produce a quite different sound from one with a small or square chamber.
The facing (or lay) is a curved section that leaves the flat table and continues to the tip of the mouthpiece. The length of a facing — defined as the distance from the tip of the mouthpiece to the point where the reed and mouthpiece meet — can vary. Different facing lengths have different response properties.
The single reed is held tightly against the mouthpiece by a ligature
Ligature (musical instrument)
A ligature is a device which holds a reed on to the mouthpiece of a single-reed instrument such as a saxophone or clarinet. The ligature must allow the reed to vibrate freely without stifling its vibrations. Iwan Müller invented a metal ligature to replace twine. String is still used by...
. Anything that can hold the reed on the mouthpiece may serve as a ligature. Commercial ligatures are commonly made of metal or plastic. Some players (including many German clarinetists) prefer string or a shoelace, which is wrapped around the reed and the mouthpiece, to commercially manufactured ligatures.
Clarinet mouthpieces
The clarinet mouthpiece is narrow inside and typically has a square or rectangular cross section from the baffle through the throat. The bottom of the mouthpiece is formed with a tenon that is ringed with cork.Today, as with the saxophone mouthpiece, the reed is placed against the surface (the table) closest to the player's bottom lip. However, this was not always so: The earliest clarinetists would often place the reed on top of the mouthpiece.
Bernhard Henrik Crusell
Bernhard Henrik Crusell
Bernhard Henrik Crusell was a Swedish-Finnish clarinetist, composer and translator, "the most significant and internationally best-known Finnish-born classical composer and indeed, — the outstanding Finnish composer before Sibelius".-Early life and training:Crusell was born in Uusikaupunki ,...
was one of the first clarinetists of note to consistently place the reed against the bottom lip.
Of particular note is Reginald Kell
Reginald Kell
Reginald Clifford Kell was a British clarinetist.-Career:Born in York, England, Kell was the first prominent player to apply vibrato consciously and consistently to his tone, in which respect he modelled himself on his colleague the oboist Léon Goossens...
who was known for using a "double embouchure
Embouchure
The embouchure is the use of facial muscles and the shaping of the lips to the mouthpiece of woodwind instruments or the mouthpiece of the brass instruments.The word is of French origin and is related to the root bouche , 'mouth'....
". This is a technique popular in the UK up to the 1960s, whereby the reed is placed against the lower lip, which covers the lower teeth —as in the single embouchure— and additionally, the upper lip is tucked in between the top of the mouthpiece and the upper teeth. This technique has been revived lately both in the UK and the US.
Interestingly, some clarinetists in Madagascar
Madagascar
The Republic of Madagascar is an island country located in the Indian Ocean off the southeastern coast of Africa...
today still play with the reed on top as can be heard on the CD "Bémiray: Polyphonies des Hauts-plateaux" recorded on the music label Silex.
Clarinet mouthpieces are available in hundreds of styles from dozens of manufacturers around the world. Mouthpieces are often named after famous performers who contribute to their designs. Popular mouthpiece makers include Selmer
Conn-Selmer
Conn-Selmer, Inc. is a manufacturer and distributor of concert band, marching band, and orchestral instruments. It is a subsidiary of Steinway Musical Instruments and was formed after Steinway bought musical instrument manufacturers The Selmer Company and C.G. Conn.-Founding:In the late 1800s,...
, Vandoren
Vandoren
Vandoren is a well known manufacturer of mouthpieces and reeds for clarinet and saxophone. Vandoren's products are used by professionals and amateurs around the world.-History:...
, and the Woodwind Company (presently owned by Leblanc
Leblanc (musical instrument manufacturer)
Leblanc, Inc. is a musical instrument manufacturer based in Kenosha, Wisconsin.The company was purchased on 1 August 2004 by Steinway Musical Instrument Company, which now operates Leblanc as a division of its Conn-Selmer subsidiary.Leblanc inc...
).
Differently sized clarinets (sopranino, soprano
Soprano clarinet
The soprano clarinets are a sub-family of the clarinet family.The B clarinet is by far the most common type of soprano clarinet - the unmodified word "clarinet" usually refers to this instrument...
, alto
Alto clarinet
The alto clarinet is a wind instrument of the clarinet family. It is a transposing instrument pitched in the key of E, though instruments in F have been made. It is sometimes known as a tenor clarinet; this name especially is applied to the instrument in F...
, bass
Bass clarinet
The bass clarinet is a musical instrument of the clarinet family. Like the more common soprano B clarinet, it is usually pitched in B , but it plays notes an octave below the soprano B clarinet...
, and contrabass
Contrabass clarinet
The contrabass clarinet is the largest member of the clarinet family that has ever been in regular production or significant use. Modern contrabass clarinets are pitched in BB, sounding two octaves lower than the common B soprano clarinet and one octave lower than the B bass clarinet...
), each require a different size of mouthpiece. One exception is B♭ and A soprano clarinets, and in some cases C soprano clarinets; as they are so close in size that players typically use the same mouthpiece on both.
Saxophone mouthpieces
The saxophone mouthpiece is outwardly similar to that of the clarinet, but it has no tenon. Instead, the saxophone's neck has a ring of cork glued to it, and the mouthpiece fits firmly onto the neck cork.Saxophone mouthpieces are available in hundreds of styles from dozens of manufacturers around the world. Mouthpieces are often named after famous performers who contribute to their designs.
When Adolphe Sax
Adolphe Sax
Antoine-Joseph "Adolphe" Sax was a Belgian musical instrument designer and musician who played the flute and clarinet, and is best known for having invented the saxophone.-Biography:...
invented the saxophone
Saxophone
The saxophone is a conical-bore transposing musical instrument that is a member of the woodwind family. Saxophones are usually made of brass and played with a single-reed mouthpiece similar to that of the clarinet. The saxophone was invented by the Belgian instrument maker Adolphe Sax in 1846...
, he specified the shape of the interior of the instrument's mouthpiece as being large and round. All saxophone mouthpieces were made in this style until the 1930s, when the advent of big-band jazz made saxophonists experiment with different shapes of mouthpieces to get a louder and edgier sound.
Between 1940 and 1960, it became common for classical saxophonists to use narrow-chamber mouthpieces, based on those designed for jazz use. These mouthpieces give the instrument a brighter and edgier sound (more high partials) than the traditional shape as designed by Sax.
One saxophone player and teacher, Sigurd Raschèr
Sigurd Raschèr
Sigurd Manfred Raschèr was an American saxophonist of German birth. He became one of the most important figures in the development of the 20th century repertoire for the classical saxophone.-Career in Europe:...
, spoke out against this change in mouthpiece design. He believed that when used in classical music, the saxophone should sound as its inventor, Adolphe Sax
Adolphe Sax
Antoine-Joseph "Adolphe" Sax was a Belgian musical instrument designer and musician who played the flute and clarinet, and is best known for having invented the saxophone.-Biography:...
, had intended, and that the gradual change to narrower and "brighter" sounding mouthpieces was a distortion of Sax's tonal
Timbre
In music, timbre is the quality of a musical note or sound or tone that distinguishes different types of sound production, such as voices and musical instruments, such as string instruments, wind instruments, and percussion instruments. The physical characteristics of sound that determine the...
concept. His students and other disciples felt that the desirable tone for a classical saxophone was a softer, rounder sound - a sound that can only be produced by a mouthpiece with a large, rounded interior (often referred to as an "excavated chamber"). By 1970, narrow-chambered mouthpieces had become nearly universally popular, and mouthpiece manufacturers largely ceased production of large-chambered mouthpieces, though some are still available, including one designed by Rascher.
Materials
Clarinet and saxophone mouthpieces have been made out of hard (vulcanized) rubber, brass or other metal, crystal, glass, plastic, and wood. Today, the most common material for professional clarinet and (classical) saxophone mouthpieces is hard rubber. JazzJazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
saxophone mouthpieces are made out of hard rubber, metal, or (rarely) wood. There is some debate over whether the material affects the tone, or whether tone is shaped only by the internal shape and dimensions of the mouthpiece. With mouthpieces of any material, the tip, table, or facing can be ruined if it is scratched or worn down.
Capped double reed instruments
On a capped double-reed instrumentDouble reed
A double reed is a type of reed used to produce sound in various wind instruments. The term double reed comes from the fact that there are two pieces of cane vibrating against each other. A single reed consists of one piece of cane which vibrates against a mouthpiece made of metal, hardened...
the function of the mouthpiece is simply to provide a chamber within which the reed can vibrate, with a hole through which air can be blown.
Fipple flutes
On a fipple fluteFipple
A fipple is a constricted mouthpiece common to many end-blown woodwind instruments, such as the tin whistle and the recorder. These instruments are known variously as fipple flutes, duct flutes, or tubular-ducted flutes.-How it works:...
the mouthpiece, or fipple
Fipple
A fipple is a constricted mouthpiece common to many end-blown woodwind instruments, such as the tin whistle and the recorder. These instruments are known variously as fipple flutes, duct flutes, or tubular-ducted flutes.-How it works:...
, provides a shaped passageway for air to be blown against an edge, producing turbulent
Turbulence
In fluid dynamics, turbulence or turbulent flow is a flow regime characterized by chaotic and stochastic property changes. This includes low momentum diffusion, high momentum convection, and rapid variation of pressure and velocity in space and time...
flow which excites the resonant vibrational modes of the air column.