Mouthpiece Shuffle

[TenSax]

Wondering if anyone changes mouthpieces during a gig to change tone, like using a mouthpiece for a particular type of tune like a latin song to a possibly softer mouthpiece for a slow ballad, or bossa type tune.

[themacintrasher]

Wondering if anyone changes mouthpieces during a gig to change tone, like using a mouthpiece for a particular type of tune like a latin song to a possibly softer mouthpiece for a slow ballad, or bossa type tune.
I saw James Carter do it.

[Frank D]

Can't say that I change from tune to tune, but I will change from gig to gig, even with the same band. Last night I played a Link in a room where we have to play quitely. The week before I played a Guardala in a place with an outdoor stage where we had to punch it out.

I think changing tune to tune is a bit extreme, you should be able to vary your sound on a single mouthpiece to make it through an entire gig w/o changing pieces.

[HonkBopSax]

I have never seen anybody switch up in the middle of a gig. I know Phil B. talks about Stanley doing it once with some pieces, and I'm sure a guy like Stanley can get away with it. But for guys like us...I dunno. It seems like a physical manifestation of the "it's not me, it's the gear!" syndrome. I know some gigs are tougher and we need more projection, etc...it's good to have something that we can use in a pinch, but going from one end of the spectrum to another with pieces invites a host of intonation issues, comfort on the horn, etc. I just got back from a gig with Roomful of Blues, where I played the same piece with a 4 piece horn section that I did the night before with a jazz trio. It works when I work it.

[MojoBari]

There was a recent thread on this in the alto mouthpiece section (I think).

[area51recording]

I typically change between 3 pieces depending on the gig. I use a Morgan 6L w/a Plasticover 3 for gigs where I'm really needing to be soft, like small restaurant where you're 4 feet from the tables. Most often I use a Morgan 7L w/a Plasticover 2-1/2, which gives me a bigger sound, maybe a tad brighter but still fat. For the odd occasion when I have to "peel the paint" off the wall I go with a Rico Metalite w/a Plasticover. Out of these 3 the Morgan 7L is my main piece however.

[bruce bailey]

I had a teacher that switched mouthpieces of the same model but with different tips to match a reed during jobs. Actually a preety good idea as if he was using a C** and the reed was too soft, he would go to a D.