Mouthpiece shank tapers

[bloke]

It appears as though someone's been fishing through a bunch of old threads to find something to disagree with, when there's really no disagreement. Mouthpiece tapers have barely varied over the years, and still continue to do so - albeit to a lesser extent.

Schilke still continues to offer (special order) a goofball large trombone shank taper that is more cylindrical and seats better in vintage Conn trombones. In the past, way more people simply played the mouthpiece that came with the instrument. Even when I was in graduate school (before I realized that I needed to stop paying for years of my life, and it was high time to start getting paid for years of my life) the non tuba player who was teaching me was bragging about using the mouthpiece that came with their trombone, because surely it was the best mouthpiece for the instrument , since it came with it.

Again, the older the instrument, the more likely it's not going to be quite the same taper as most of today's off the shelf mouthpieces. I don't seem to have encountered the problems that other people claim to encounter with Miraphone receivers, but I don't doubt that they encounter them. My own mouthpieces fit nicely into two different 1960s 186 C tubas that I restored not long ago (without altering the original receivers) as well as this less than a decade old Miraphone instrument that I currently own, which is also rotary, and which also features a receiver formed from the mouthpipe tube.

Back when I was playing a Rudy Meinl 5/4 (6/4), I had to change it's mouthpipe tube's receiver taper from something oddball to what today is called euro, because it was large at its exit bore and tight towards the choke point.

I don't think the problem is with all of the slightly varying receivers, but more the problem that there aren't too many people who are willing/able to alter them for owners of these instruments for current use. To have one mouthpiece turned to feature a goofball/obsolete taper may not be the best idea, because then that's the only mouthpiece that can be used with a particular instrument. I don't know about other people, but I tend to change my mind from time to time about mouthpieces.

[donn]

^^^^ A year and a half later?

No, I get 1.3 years.

[donn]

Back when I was playing a Rudy Meinl 5/4 (6/4), I had to change it's mouthpipe tube's receiver taper from something oddball to what today is called euro, because it was large at its exit bore and tight towards the choke point.

Too bad, I may have had the mouthpiece that went with it. Unplated brass thing (I think ... hmm), with a more extreme taper. Small cup, small throat.

[bloke]

You must have been a friend of my graduate school studio teacher trombone player guy.

..."The best mouthpiece is either the one that came with the instrument or one that fits in the receiver, etc..."

People think all sorts of ways, which is not surprising since there are 8 billion of them.

[the elephant]

^^^^ A year and a half later?

I only read it because it appeared at the top of the Music Chatter forum yesterday. I thought it was a new discussion because of that. And what I posted stands. The only more appropriate post after all that nonsense would be the beer girls or my famed plate of enchiladas.

[bloke]

Mrs bloke left the room with the television on, I don't know where the remote control is, and that stupid ancient sitcom - that involved an anteater as one of the characters - came on while I was encountering this mess. It seemed to somehow fit right in.

[iiipopes]

Getting back to Mary Ann's original question, if you still have that euph: have you tried a Wick medium-size shank mouthpiece? I have an older B&H 3-valve comp. Like you, the current large mouthpiece shanks are too large, and what we call a baritone or trombone shank is too small. Wick makes the medium-size shank mouthpieces as standard stock items, as this used to be the standard shank size decades ago. I have an Ultra 6 in the medium shank for my euph. It is like a Bach 6 1/2 AL, but with a deeper cup to help tone.

[Mary Ann]

What I ended up using and which works fine for my purposes is a Kelly 5G with painter's tape around the shank. A 6-1/2 AL is too small for me, and even with all the talk about "the gap" I haven't found anything to complain about. I've used that for quite a while now, in my Sterling, which the quintet likes a LOT better than any of its predecessors. Quite likely a Wick would fit, but I haven't liked the Wick tuba mpcs I've tried so --- all is well. I'll have to go back and read the original post, now.

[iiipopes]

Yes, Denis Wick does make a series of mid-sized shank mouthpieces that fit the pre-1974 B&H/Boosey receivers. I have one for my B&H 3-valve comp. They come in the standard sizes, just the slightly smaller shank diameter than current standard.