Wanne Gaia Soprano

[caves]

Can anyone offer your insight of the Wanne Gaia soprano mouthpiece?
Thanks!

[livenupjazz]

Hi. I have just recently received a soprano Gaia from Theo and I am over the moon about it. To understand, I have been playing a Link soprano that was totally altered and customized for me by Theo over 10 years ago. I figured I already had the best Soprano mouthpiece on the planet. I was wrong. Now I have the 2 best Soprano mouthpieces on the planet. These are very open and play beautifully. I don't think I could give this mouthpiece a higher recommendation. It seals perfectly, and responds in kind. It is not a mouthpiece for the faint of heart though. It could change your whole concept of what a soprano can do. I would invite you to listen to my soprano sound on the tune "Askold's Waltz" at this link-[COLOR="rgb(0, 0, 0)"] http://perryconticchio.com/cds.htm[/COLOR] Also listen to Question & Answer at this link-[COLOR="rgb(0, 0, 0)"]http://www.myspace.com/perryconticchio[/COLOR] These will give you an idea of the sound I was getting with the OLD mouthpiece, and I like the Gaia better. That is seriously saying something. Hope this helps. Peace

[jlima]

Hi. I have just recently received a soprano Gaia from Theo and I am over the moon about it. To understand, I have been playing a Link soprano that was totally altered and customized for me by Theo over 10 years ago. I figured I already had the best Soprano mouthpiece on the planet. I was wrong. Now I have the 2 best Soprano mouthpieces on the planet. These are very open and play beautifully. I don't think I could give this mouthpiece a higher recommendation. It seals perfectly, and responds in kind. It is not a mouthpiece for the faint of heart though. It could change your whole concept of what a soprano can do. I would invite you to listen to my soprano sound on the tune "Askold's Waltz" at this link-[COLOR="rgb(0, 0, 0)"] http://perryconticchio.com/cds.htm[/COLOR] Also listen to Question & Answer at this link-[COLOR="rgb(0, 0, 0)"]http://www.myspace.com/perryconticchio[/COLOR] These will give you an idea of the sound I was getting with the OLD mouthpiece, and I like the Gaia better. That is seriously saying something. Hope this helps. Peace

Very informative, thank you. That's a nice way to inaugurate your posting activity. Welcome!

[jacco]

which tipopening does your gaia soprano mouthpiece have?

Very informative, thank you. That's a nice way to inaugurate your posting activity. Welcome!

[livenupjazz]

I have been working with Theo for at least 15 years so he custom made me an 11.
All the rest of the design however is like any other Gaia.

[caves]

Livenupjazz,

Great stuff. Thank you for sharing with us your experience with the Wanne Gaia soprano sax mouthpiece. Would anyone else care to comment or post a sound clip of the Gaia soprano?
Thanks!

[dzve]

I recieved mine today & its the best soprano mouthpiece I have ever played, its an 8 tip.Plays very easy, even across the registers. I am really happy with my purchase....

[DaveR]

I had a Gaia soprano piece with a 6 tip for a week or so recently and although it was very well made, it blew so easily that I had trouble finding a reed hard enough for it. I ended up with a V16 #4 which played well, but was only just hard enough for me - I could imagine it blowing in to be too soft or perhaps needing a harder reed still in a dryer atmosphere and I would prefer to play Javas which are a little softer anyway. I have given it back and will try a 7 tip or maybe even an 8 when I can.

[sirspinbad]

..got mine today

if anyone has read any of my praise for Theo before..this story is no different!!!

...i found my abilty to play on a wanne ambika wood...

i feel very much in the minority here on SOTW because i buy saxes with a brass players viewpoint...i consider materials,asthetics,and customability....

...and ive done very well for myself doing so!!!!

i bought a r1 rampone cazzani curved on ebay about 10 months ago...and i just havent been able to play it!!!....but that didnt bother me...I kne i just had to wait for the right mouthpiece...............

Theo has the ONLY stuff that i would buy without testing....and this is amazing

i was forced into an 8 due to availability....and was a little scared it would be too big.......

Man it sang immediately!!! and with a bright side!!!

now that was with the "active brass" reed plate (for all of you that think this is a ball of crap,you dont know what your missing).....I then switched to the heavy copper...and its
DARK

next comes the stering silver,titanium,aluminium.......

this is really a bonus...you can interchange all the plates from your tenor lig...

WAIT THERE'S MORE

this lig is the best ever on my Guardala!!!

....nobody's talking about the ligs.....unbeweevable!!!! thats a BIG bonus with your purchase...

ill update once ive tried the other plates...but for now I'm walking around with a big smile on my face!

[DaveR]

I had a Gaia soprano piece with a 6 tip for a week or so recently and although it was very well made, it blew so easily that I had trouble finding a reed hard enough for it. I ended up with a V16 #4 which played well, but was only just hard enough for me - I could imagine it blowing in to be too soft or perhaps needing a harder reed still in a dryer atmosphere and I would prefer to play Javas which are a little softer anyway. I have given it back and will try a 7 tip or maybe even an 8 when I can.

Ok, so I have had a Wanne Gaia Soprano 7 for a couple of weeks now. The reed problem is sorted, Java 4s work well on this piece and give me a few which are too hard, good for different 'chop' days and weathers.

I am playing a silver plate Selmer Series 3 sop.

I am surprised by the way this piece blows so easily, maybe too easily actually - and I say this with a little trepidation since no-one else has dared to be at all negative about Theo Wanne's soprano pieces so far - I am not yet convinced that Theo's design is entirely spot on for me on soprano. I have played soprano professionally as a specialist for over 20 years now and I feel that the Gaia soprano -although beautifully and spotlessly manufactured - is actually quite a difficult mouthpiece truely to 'slot in' on. Intonation is excellent, but with a reed that is even slightly too soft it has a tendency to sound empty and buzzy (like a kazoo) and has little or no support for the palm key register. This is for me a major problem as I am not comfortable playng a mouthpiece that is deficient in one area, despite it's strengths. This maybe due to my being used to small bore pieces - SR Tech Legend, Vandoren (S6, S25, S15 SL4 etc), Selmer Soloist, which all give higher back pressure and more secure palm keys. Also, on my horn, I find the middle C# very, very thin and nasal with this piece.

In the end, much as I actually WANT this piece to be amazing, recent recordings comparing it to the SR Tech and Vandoren S6 demonstrate that I have some way to go before the Gaia responds as I would wish it to. I still find that I can be more relaxed with the small bore pieces. So, before I am heaped with opprobrium, I concede that it may take me a while longer to become entirely comfortable with this piece. I have requested a Gaia 8 which may well suit me better since the 7 is in many ways better for me than the 6 was.

[zorrosg]

Can anyone offer your insight of the Wanne Gaia soprano mouthpiece?
Thanks!

Excellent piece, well worth buying. God bless!

[Black Obelisk]

Its been my experience, with the Serie iii, that the "simpler the better" as far as mpcs go. In other words, the iii works best with some kind of smaller round chamber mpc. I've bought & sold about 20 mpcs from ebay, in the last 6 years that I've had a Serie iii & IMHO, the horn plays the best on a S80, V5 vandoren, Meyer, Bari, SuperSession, etc., etc.,

Large chamber mpc's seem to not work out as much with this horn. Some better than others, but still tough to "lock in" in comparison to the smaller chambers.

I think they work better on Yamaha's & MKVI's, for some reason

Ok, so I have had a Wanne Gaia Soprano 7 for a couple of weeks now. The reed problem is sorted, Java 4s work well on this piece and give me a few which are too hard, good for different 'chop' days and weathers.

I am playing a silver plate Selmer Series 3 sop.

I am surprised by the way this piece blows so easily, maybe too easily actually - and I say this with a little trepidation since no-one else has dared to be at all negative about Theo Wanne's soprano pieces so far - I am not yet convinced that Theo's design is entirely spot on for me on soprano. I have played soprano professionally as a specialist for over 20 years now and I feel that the Gaia soprano -although beautifully and spotlessly manufactured - is actually quite a difficult mouthpiece truely to 'slot in' on. Intonation is excellent, but with a reed that is even slightly too soft it has a tendency to sound empty and buzzy (like a kazoo) and has little or no support for the palm key register. This is for me a major problem as I am not comfortable playng a mouthpiece that is deficient in one area, despite it's strengths. This maybe due to my being used to small bore pieces - SR Tech Legend, Vandoren (S6, S25, S15 SL4 etc), Selmer Soloist, which all give higher back pressure and more secure palm keys. Also, on my horn, I find the middle C# very, very thin and nasal with this piece.

In the end, much as I actually WANT this piece to be amazing, recent recordings comparing it to the SR Tech and Vandoren S6 demonstrate that I have some way to go before the Gaia responds as I would wish it to. I still find that I can be more relaxed with the small bore pieces. So, before I am heaped with opprobrium, I concede that it may take me a while longer to become entirely comfortable with this piece. I have requested a Gaia 8 which may well suit me better since the 7 is in many ways better for me than the 6 was.

[Nefertiti]

I love my Gaia 7 also. It is very easy blowing. I'm using 3 1/2 Java reeds but sometimes those feel too soft. The thing I like about the piece the most is that I feel so comfortable playing it. I can play it easily and the intonation is as good as I have played on my Yamaha 62 soprano. I put up a sound clip on my site a few months ago.

http://www.neffmusic.com/blog/2010/1...ne-mouthpiece/

[DaveR]

Excellent piece, well worth buying. God bless!

zorrosg, as a matter of interest, what type of soprano do you play?

[BbBoy]

yeah mine is very good, need a slightly stiffer reed than usual, great MP.

[DaveR]

yeah mine is very good, need a slightly stiffer reed than usual, great MP.

BbBoy, could you let us know what tip opening you have? Thanks.

[DaveR]

I now have an 8 to try as well as the 7 and I find that I have now really 'slotted in' on these pieces and can enjoy them. I don't really have a preference for either one, the 8 with a 3.5 Java seems to have a slightly greater freedom in the sound, the 7 with a 4 is more compact - pretty much as you would expect.

So to answer the original question:

Can anyone offer your insight of the Wanne Gaia soprano mouthpiece?
Thanks!

Yes. I do agree that the more open facings are not to be feared, these mouthpieces work extremely well from #7 facing upwards with excellent pitch and control. I still feel that smaller bore pieces are more solid in the palm keys but the Gaia has a broad, natural sound that is difficult to get on a small bore piece. You'll have to walk a long way to find anything as well made off the peg as the Gaia. IMO these pieces are really worth the money.

[Redbeard]

I have Gaia soprano 9. It is a very free blowing, responsive mouthpiece. I found it required a bit more resistance in the reed than smaller chambered mouthpieces I'm used to.
So I use a Marca 2.5 with it, rather than a Brancher 3 that I would play with my regular mouthpiece (a Soprano Planet Metropolitan). For modern horns, I prefer the Metropolitan -- it is a darker and tunes better for me. On my vintage Conn, which tends to be a bit quiet, the Gaia is great. Also, the Conn seems to want a large chambered mpc, and the Gaia tunes more easily than the modern mouthpieces I've tried with it.

[avan]

The sound (resistance) can be modified with a new bite plate.I put a thick ruber vandoren patch on top and it cut a lot in the vibration and this give the feeling of more resistance.

[MojoBari]

This is like saying you can change the sound by putting cotton in your ears.