Adult “Beginner” Mouthpiece?

[TriStateFans]

I say get a plastic Helleberg from Kelly.
Or one of their other standard size plastic mouthpieces.

It's what I did going from euphonium to tuba as an adult. Then I bought a stainless Kellyberg when they were on sale.

I'm no expert but I do love the Kellyberg plastics, I play one on my sousaphone which has been my main horn for the last 3 months (outdoor mobile type gigs). My main mouthpiece right now is a Stofer-Gieb which I first tried out at Lee Stofer's shop and fell in love with. I'll get one of his Air Corps one of these days.

You might give the Kellyberg a try (plastics are inexpensive) and if you love it you can upgrade to metal in the same mouthpiece.

The Geib is something I’ve seen and been curious about. Are you able to give a comparison between that style and the Helleberg style of mouthpieces?

There are people who are experts, I am not one of them. I can say only that the cup is significantly different in feel, it's deeper and I find I can articulate well with the Stofer-Geib. I'll have to leave any more comparisons than this to experts.

[bloke]

I'm neither "Mr. Tuba" nor "Mr. Answers", but I tend to credit a rim contour (mostly) with aiding or hindering good articulation (with "articulation" also including what we refer to as "slurs").

The overwhelming majority of mouthpieces are made of one piece of material, the rim is what it is, consumers don't seem to pay much attention to rim contours (particularly not when purchasing most all - ie. one-piece - mouthpieces), and there seems to be more attention given to cup depth...

...as it's basically a hole, and humans seem to love to stick their fingers into holes.

[Stryk]

Lorenzo Sansone 2K

[2nd tenor]

What might be considered a good starting mouthpiece for an experienced bass trombonist new to tuba?

My primary bass trombone mouthpieces have been in the area around a Bach 1 1/4G size-wise, but I don’t know how well that might really translate over to tuba.

At the moment I have access to a G&W Diablo and a Schilke Helleberg. What might your suggestions be? Anything to try?

Thanks, for any help.

My underlining.

Just refreshing the original post. We pretty much all know what our preferred mouthpiece size now is and are certain that it’s the best; it’s easy to just say get one like mine and all will be well (perhaps I did too) but in doing so a crucial part of the OP’s question is overlooked (he’s looking for a start point from a Bach 1&1/4G).

I reckon a good end point - there are other good end points too - is a Bach 18. When I moved to Tuba from Tenor Trombone I used a Bach 1&1/4G in a Eb with a small shank receiver, and over many years worked my way up to larger sizes. Surprisingly, and what it’s worth, the Bach 1&1/4G worked well in the three valve range. Later I moved onto the Wick 5 and 4 sizes and now play a 2, as a progressive activity it takes time (it took me years) for your chops to strengthen to control the bigger pieces.

Maybe I’ve said it already but imho a good start point on that journey (from a Bach 1&1/4G) would be a Bach 25.

[donn]

Really? I may be the wrong one to look at this, because I started without prior brass experience and without instruction, but it seems to me that ordinary tuba playing takes a relatively relaxed embouchure. That doesn't mean you don't need any embouchure development, but if mouthpieces in the normal range of say 32mm internal diameter are a real problem, I wonder if the beginner is better advised to look for a tiny special purpose mouthpiece, or reconsider his or her basic approach to playing.

Nothing against small mouthpieces, if one is a good fit, but working up from bass trombone to tuba with intermediate mouthpieces seems like potential trap, a way to end up playing the tuba as if it's a bass trombone. As I say, far from an expert here, so anyone's ideas about it are likely as good as mine.

[pompatus]

With a great many suggestions to stick with a known-good mouthpiece model, I put an order in for a lexan Kellyberg that should arrive today. The price was easy enough to handle, and shipping was quick.

On a related note, I also picked up a Conn 4J that had spent a moment in Lee Stofer’s shop.

I will keep the community updated on how the mouthpiece and the tuba are coming along.

[Mary Ann]

Really? I may be the wrong one to look at this, because I started without prior brass experience and without instruction, but it seems to me that ordinary tuba playing takes a relatively relaxed embouchure. That doesn't mean you don't need any embouchure development, but if mouthpieces in the normal range of say 32mm internal diameter are a real problem, I wonder if the beginner is better advised to look for a tiny special purpose mouthpiece, or reconsider his or her basic approach to playing.

Nothing against small mouthpieces, if one is a good fit, but working up from bass trombone to tuba with intermediate mouthpieces seems like potential trap, a way to end up playing the tuba as if it's a bass trombone. As I say, far from an expert here, so anyone's ideas about it are likely as good as mine.

I think cold turkey might be best. I went from horn to euph to tuba, but "horn to euph" was not a big deal. To tuba was a big deal; I made pffing sounds for a while and I was using a 32E. It was after I went to the PT64 (and my first Mfoone 184) and learned to blow, imitating the sound on that CB CD, that I got somewhere. Since I took up horn at 45 and never found decent instruction (my first teacher did not know what to do with someone with an atrocious embouchure who could pick the notes out of the air by ear) -- my learning curve was helter-skelter at best. With tuba, I think you are forced to loosen up or you are simply unable to access the low range. (And I did get a very few lessons from good tuba players, who actually showed me what they were doing with their embouchures -- something horn players simply never do.) I also know someone who has played tuba for decades who cannot play a pedal, because he can't stop trying to play the pitch with lip tension. In some ways, you either get it or you don't.