I have searched for a mouthpiece for my Soprano-trombone for decades but have not found anything that:
1. gives a trombone-like sound smaller than an alto, but soundwise closer to an alto- than a trumpet.
2. can be played in tune.
3. can be played with ease.
4. can play the whole register from
and up at least two octaves.I began fiddeling with a Jupiter Soprano in the early 90-ies and it has been a real challange to make it sound trombone-like. Six years ago I bought a Kanstul Soprano which is a much better instrument but still it has been a problem with mouthpiece.
Now I think I found the piece that makes all goals I have on my wishlist possible. I got three mouthpieces with my Monke Barock Sackbut. On the Monke the original Monke mouthpiece felt very weird. The second was a "Heide" that gave a more adequate Sackbut sound and that one will be my choice on the Monke as I learn to play it. The third was an "unnamed" mouthpiece that gave a very small and bright sound but was very easy to play. My friends who listened suggested this might in fact to be an alto-sackbut mouthpiece. They didn't think the sound I got with it made it sound like a Sackbut. I decided to try it on my Soprano-trombone instead.
The soprano has a removable leadpipe and without that the Bb on first is in tune with a=440. The mouthpiece is wide as a 11C but has a extremely shallow cup. The sound is absolutely more trombone than trumpet now and it gives the range I think I will need, and more. I played arpeggios up to octava
yesterday and up there they are good and very trombone-like.The single drawback is the lineup on each position. On first position the only tone that is in tune is the low Bb. The f must be played on sixth position and the Bb above on fifth. The d on fourth. The f above that (double high f on a tenor) is found on a very, very raised 4 position that nearly equals with the third position. F# is on ###3 that is almost equal to 2:nd position. G, G# and A are as expected in 4, 3 and 2. Bb (double high Bb) is to flat on the first. I get it in a very, very raised 3rd pos ( equals to 2:nd). I guess the strange lineup of partials is to be expected with NO leadpipe and this oversized mouthpiece. A few of the positions are everywhere, but I think I will learn those with time and a tuner.
Before I have had best result with a flugelhorn mouthpiece but it is very hard on my chops so I could not practice that much. Now this is not a problem. This mouthpiece will not be a killer to my lips. With a flugelhorn mouthpiece or a trumpet mouthpiece the horn has barely seven positions and the low e and b on 7:th are not possible because the slide falls of. With this mouthpiece the e and b can be played, it is even possible to lip down an eb on seventh if I must.
