Mouthpiece

What it means

The mouthpiece is the component at which the player blows the wind instrument. On brass instruments it is a cup-shaped or funnel-shaped piece of metal in which the lips vibrate; on clarinet and saxophone it carries the single reed, which is fastened with a ligature. Double-reed instruments have no mouthpiece in the strict sense but the reed itself; on flutes, the embouchure hole in the headjoint takes on this role. Dimensions such as cup depth, rim width, and bore are small but great in their effect.

Musical use

The mouthpiece co-determines tone colour, response, intonation, and endurance. A shallow cup favours height and brilliance, a deep one a round, dark sound; this is why trumpet, cornet, flugelhorn, and horn each use their own shapes, which are what establish their tonal character in the first place. On clarinet and saxophone, tip opening and reed strength together determine the resistance and thereby the sound. Orchestration theory and performance practice reckon with these differences: an instrument with the wrong mouthpiece does not sound like itself.

Performance practice

Choose the mouthpiece to suit the instrument and the task, not by reputation or the habit of others, and do not change it shortly before a performance — the embouchure needs time to adjust. Set it with little pressing force; high pressure tires the lips and makes the high register unreliable. Keep it clean, for deposits measurably change the bore; clean it regularly with water and a brush. Do not jam it into the instrument but insert it with a light twist. With reed mouthpieces, check whether the reed sits centred and flush with the rim, because even small deviations spoil the response.

Bear in mind that a change of mouthpiece takes weeks until embouchure and tonal conception have adjusted: plan such changes for quiet times and not before a performance. For different instruments of the same family, mouthpieces of their own are necessary; a single one for all purposes does not exist. Check the rim for damage, because nicks injure the lip. With reed mouthpieces, the reed position belongs to daily checking, and ligatures should sit firm but not overtightened, so that the reed vibrates freely.