Hi, I wonder you guys ever heardthe Yamaha's Custom mouthpiece? I've booked one from the shop but it never came, my friends told me that the mouthpiece had a better tone, I wonder... And while using a plastic model of clarinet playing in an airconded room, the sound could go flat or sharp, and the sound become weird, not in the warm, dark tone, how to get the result?

Hi Kenny,

I bet the temperature in Malaysia is higher than North Italy. It's freezing here!

A custom MP with a plastic clarinet? So the MP cost more than the clarinet?

You might want to try the forum at

www.woodwing.org

They'll know a lot more.

Regards,

Steve

that is true, I think, maybe the mouthpiece will cost more than RM500, about 75pounds, about to reach the price of my second handed instrument. It's winter right now isn't it? Then maybe you could practice right away! Malaysia is just as hot as ever, I really need to turn on the air-cond to FREEZE for a while, then I can start training the sound quality.

If you want to pay that amount for a Yamaha custom, I would also try a selection of Vandoren mouthpieces too. A normal Yamaha mouthpiece e.g. 4C is a good mouthpiece for a student (better than most mouthpieces that come with student clarinets) but I would always recommend vandoren mouthpieces over Yamaha Custom as an upgrade. Try the "M" series e.g. M13, M15 as well as the popular "B" series too e.g. B45.

Have you played on the M15 or the B45 I bought an M15 to use for my grade 7 thinking that it would be easier to get the top notes in tune than on the B45 as it has a narrower tip. The problem I had in the end was I play flat on the M15 and a bit shaarp on the B45. Am I just strange?

Sorry to disappoint you, but you sound perfectly normal to me.

Do you have an electronic tuner? They cost about 10 pounds.

You should try playing long tones across all octaves, keeping a careful eye not only on the tuner, but how your embouchure changes the pitch.

You can't use the same embouchure for all registers. As you go higher, you'll have to take a bit more of the MP in your mouth and probably slide your bottom lip forward a little.

However, you should also experiment with the barrel joint (pulled out 2mm...etc) and the mid joint.

As you probably know, you always play a clarinet with the barrel pulled out slightly at the start. As it warms, you can push the barrel in a bit. Experiment with the midjoint...and even the bell.



Yes, totally. I love the B45, but I wouldn't recommend it for a beginner. I've heard a lot of good reviews about the B45 'dot', a new model that's supposed to be even better. Perhaps I'll get one for Christmas? Then again pigs might fly!


Steve