I always enjoy finding out what others are playing and such being a complete gearhead.
My horn is a Keilwerth black nickel SX90II soprano with a Joe Giardullo (SopranoPlanet.com) Open Sky mpce and Hemke 3 reeds.
She's a fussy bitch on the palm keys with a gorgeous rich chocolaty tone. I work very hard to eliminate any trace of ancestry to ducks or geese. I once had a jazz critic make the mistake of thinking I played clarinet (probably the colour and bad ears). Sometime next year I will get an R & C Saxello which I have been told by those who know them will be perfect for the sound I try to get.
My main instrument is guitar which I have been playing for more decades than I will admit to. I play a custom built Michael Dunn that was finished on January 23, 2010. I am very fortunate to have this one as it turned out to be a very special guitar with a lovely rich timbre and lots of GJ style power and sustain when picked hard. Michael thinks it one of his best.
The Magic really starts to happen when you can play it with your eyes closed
Comments
The tuning of a few notes on this old sop is a bit of a compromise, but it's "close enough for jazz".
I also have a Yamaha YSS-62R, but I never use it.
On Clarinet: I tripped over an immaculate 1936 Buffet "pre-R13" for £90 in a local auction, so that's my main gigging clari, though I'd easily go out to play on my Yamaha 250 student model. (£80 in the pawn shop - why pay £400?)
The mouthpiece is from a cheap Selmer plastic clarinet, I haven't really started messing with hundreds of mouthpieces: clarinets seem less sensitive than saxes, mouthpiece wise.
[ I've only been on clarinet for 18 months , though. :roll: ]
I quite fancy a metal clarinet, that might work well for GJ.
I'm (now) trying very hard not to be a gearhad, it's about the notes you play, they're more important. It's easy to get sidetracked into gear comparisons when we should be discussing the licks, riffs & tunes, or woodshedding arpeggios .
I have a guitar too, of course, an old Ibanez AS100, gathering dust in the loft. *and* a violin...
-A-
Funny I have lots to say about gear but about which notes to play wellllllllllllllll ............... :shock: I guess to me it is such a personal thing that I never have much to say except that I will adapt a nice phrase from anyone
I think I have found my right voice I am just loving it and IMO the instrument is pitched well to fit into GJ genre. I just got an SML gold medal 1 stencil made in 1963. That and a Selmer NY older larhe chamber refaced by Brian Powell mpce. Intonation is very good but not certain about the sound yet. I have a Meyer 7 refaced and slightly worked by mojobari on the way. This one is a medium chamber but opened up to .82 tip. Still using gonzalez 2 3/4 reeds.
Hopefully finding a mpce reed combo that works well for me will be over soon.
I mainly play an E.J Albert Albert system Bb clarinet with a ROC 5 star mouthpiece, I also play a French 'C' Albert system using a Vandoren 5JB mouthpiece, my alto sax is a good old silver Buescher Trutone, I use the mouthpiece it came with when I bought it in 1980 a lovely old 1950's Selmer, never wanted to change it, I also have 'Eb' and 'A' Albert system clarinets, I must not forget my Boehm system clarinets, two main ones, a Selmer Centeredtone and Selmer Sterling metal clarinet, I am comfortable with both systems. my tenor sax is a cheap and cheerful student model, sounds OK,
Bazzer
On alto I play Meyer G 5M with Hemke reeds, I think I get a sweet Desmondy sound. I'd like to try a Phil-Tone Solstice to see if it takes me further in that direction but they're hard to find in UK.
I haven't been playing tenor long, I'm using a Yani metal 7 and V16s, which seems to work well for me but I'd like to try JodyJazz HR* and 10mfan Merlot sometime.
Boss 8 tenor mpce on 3 1/2 Legere Signatures. Currently playing a refaced Selmer Jazz on alto but still looking.