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Thread: tuba mouthpiece

  1. tuba mouthpiece

    I have come across with two mouthpieces that I might get but dont know which one to get. The two mouthpieces are:

    .schilke 67

    .schilke helleberg II

    If any of you would please help me choose which one to get or if you know another good mouthpiece please help me out.


  2. The Helleberg II has been a "warhorse" and "standard of the industry." From its early days in the 20s and 30s. it was a premiere mp. (I have an original that I will never part with) It would be hard to go wrong with it. Other mps that are modifications of it offer special advantages but there is always a "tradeoff." Certain makers claim that they have deepened the cup or opened the throat or redesigned the back bore. That is all well and good, but then it is not the same mp and if there are 'new benefits,' then there are also 'new drawbacks' when the "dust settles and the smoke clears." Enlarging dimensions seems to be a modern 'trick of the trade' that so many mp makers get drawn into. Yes, at first we will get a much larger sound, and if we are weighing single notes for their timbre, core, center, and power - well yes they do deliver. But think about things a little bit. The little bit of resistance in an older model, is not the "spawn of satin." Good god, listen to the older NY Phil recordings with Wm Bell on Tuba. A standard old Helleberg or a King 26 and he blows away the orchestra in Tshaik 4 on a .687 bore King CC tuba. Less than gigantic equipment can produce awesome results. A great player from that "Great Generation" once told me, it is all about resistance and turbulence. Smooth it all out and what do we have? We can draw all kinds of conclusions from this and I will not pretend to go there. Bell, Harvey, Torchy et al and many others of the old school simply used the piece that came with the horn and made it work. Enough said. All that said, I do love my G&W Beltane.
    Last edited by paulmaybery; 12-03-2014 at 04:24 PM.
    BMB F tuba 445s
    BMB CC (BAT) 865s
    Mack Euphonium 1150s
    Wessex F Cimbasso

  3. Jacobs had given John Fletcher his "lucky" mp - a Helleberg. One that he claimed he fell back upon whenever his chops did not particularly feel that great.
    i undertand Steve Wick now has possession of it. A wonderful legacy. Perhaps a mp such as this has in its greatness something that does not favor one particular aspect of playing over the other, but is simplly the perfect "all around" mp.
    BMB F tuba 445s
    BMB CC (BAT) 865s
    Mack Euphonium 1150s
    Wessex F Cimbasso

  4. #4
    Join Date
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    Central North Carolina
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    Quote Originally Posted by paulmaybery View Post
    Less than gigantic equipment can produce awesome results.
    Absolutely. I am a great fan of the Schilke tuba mouthpieces and have tried (at great length) and owned most of them. My favorite by far (and this includes using it on Eb and BBb tubas) is the 66. I never liked the 67 -- just a bit too big for me. I find anything over 32mm diameter to be uncomfortably large, and so both the 67 and the SH-II are out of my league. The S-H was okay for me, but not nearly as good as the 66.

    However, everyone is different, and in part this depends on your mouth, lips, and face.

    You also don't say what horn you have, and this can make a difference as well. It takes me a LONG time to find a mouthpiece that I'm happy with -- a LOOOOOONG time and lots of playing.

    Oh ... For comparison sake, take a look at http://www.mouthpieceexpress.com/pag...ilke_tuba.html
    Last edited by ghmerrill; 12-04-2014 at 09:18 AM.
    Gary Merrill
    Wessex EEb Bass tuba (DW 3XL or 2XL)
    Mack Brass Compensating Euph (DE N106, Euph J, J9 euph)
    Amati Oval Euph (DE 104, Euph J, J6 euph)
    1924 Buescher 3-valve Eb tuba (with std US receiver), Kelly 25
    Schiller American Heritage 7B clone bass trombone (DE LB K/K10/112/14 Lexan, Brass Ark MV50R)
    1947 Olds "Standard" trombone (Olds #3)

  5. I have played both on a Reynolds tuba, which for all practical intents and purposes is identical to a King tuba. The Schilke Helleberg II gave the better tone and intonation of the two listed.

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