VegasChris
12-09-2003, 11:53 AM
I don't see the Ponzol name mentioned here nearly as much as some others, especially for soprano. I was just wondering if there was any particular reason for this. I'm trying out a Ponzol Traditional right now for my soprano and I am liking it a lot. It blows easily and has a nice round tone. It has sort of a vintage character to it; it makes my Yanagisawa sound a little like an old Conn (to my ears anyway). I'm also trying a Super Session at the same time and while the Super Session definitely puts out more sound, to me it doesn't have the round, full-bodied tone of the Ponzol, especially in the low register.
The Ponzol played evenly through the horn--I didn't feel like I have to "muscle" the high notes. It also seems to play in tune. It did as well as anything on the electronic tuner, although I don't know if that's really a good test. What I did notice is that just sitting around playing tunes I have a lot fewer, "hmm that note didn't sound right" moments than I do with the Yanagisawa metal I have been playing recently. It seems like I can let my guard down a little as far as intonation goes, and concentrate on other things. As someone who as only been playing soprano a short time, I appreciate that.
A couple of other minor points, the Ponzol included a clear teeth guard in the package and had a removable film over the body to help prevent ligature marks while you're trying it out. I like that. It also included a Rovner "Light" ligature and cap. It was also priced right at less than $90. One thing I don't like is that it fits very loosely on the neck cork. I just had the S991's straight neck re-corked because my Yanagisawa Metal mouthpiece fit too loose. Now I have to work hard to get the Yani mouthpiece on there, but the Ponzol just slips right on. If I hadn't had my neck recorked recently the Ponzol would have just gone right over the cork and hit bottom (actually, this is exactly what it does on my S991's curved neck, which I did not yet have re-corked).
I'd really like to hear others' opinions on the Ponzol. What I'm really hoping for is some, "if you like the Ponzol Traditional you'll really should try..." responses.
The Ponzol played evenly through the horn--I didn't feel like I have to "muscle" the high notes. It also seems to play in tune. It did as well as anything on the electronic tuner, although I don't know if that's really a good test. What I did notice is that just sitting around playing tunes I have a lot fewer, "hmm that note didn't sound right" moments than I do with the Yanagisawa metal I have been playing recently. It seems like I can let my guard down a little as far as intonation goes, and concentrate on other things. As someone who as only been playing soprano a short time, I appreciate that.
A couple of other minor points, the Ponzol included a clear teeth guard in the package and had a removable film over the body to help prevent ligature marks while you're trying it out. I like that. It also included a Rovner "Light" ligature and cap. It was also priced right at less than $90. One thing I don't like is that it fits very loosely on the neck cork. I just had the S991's straight neck re-corked because my Yanagisawa Metal mouthpiece fit too loose. Now I have to work hard to get the Yani mouthpiece on there, but the Ponzol just slips right on. If I hadn't had my neck recorked recently the Ponzol would have just gone right over the cork and hit bottom (actually, this is exactly what it does on my S991's curved neck, which I did not yet have re-corked).
I'd really like to hear others' opinions on the Ponzol. What I'm really hoping for is some, "if you like the Ponzol Traditional you'll really should try..." responses.