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Thread: Demondrae MP

  1. Demondrae MP

    Could anyone give me their impressions of the "Demondrae" mouthpiece by Warburton? What does it most similarly compare to? What do you like about it or not like about it? I'm interested in trying it but I don't know a whole lot about it.

    Thanks

  2. #2
    I know it's in the rim size range of a Bach 3G. I also know that it was designed specifically with the Miraphone 5050 in mind, and that Mr. Thurman has a wind capacity that most mortals can't hope to match. But above all things, I know that Warburton offers a trial period on all of their mouthpieces for the price of shipping and a restocking fee, and what matters most of all is how you work with the mouthpiece, not how the mouthpiece works with others. I've owned and used Warburton's Gail Robertson model for about 2 months, and I found it to produce a fantastic tone, but air management and slotting were both a bit unruly. It's a big cup size, and even with a small throat, it's hard to fill. Without a sharp rim, you run the risk of your high range going to hell, which means that you have to retrain your musculature, and in the mean time, you sound becomes strained above a high F or so. I'm sure it's a great mouthpiece for those who know how to use it, but given the vague information on the Warburton site, I think you might run in to the soft rim problem with the piece. Other than that, the throat might be a hair too big for such a large cup. If you want a narrower rim, try the Gail Robertson (even with the added variable of the mouthpiece body being bronze). If you want a V cup, go for the Brandon Jones model (and look him up on the forum. I'm sure he'd be willing to walk you through the design of his mouthpiece). If you like the V cup an want an even sharper rim, I'd advise stepping out of the Warburton catalog and checking out the Mike Finn PS Solo model in the Just for Brass website.

    And these are just a few of your options entirely contingent upon you liking the rim size. Which leads me to ask, what specifically intrigues you about the Demodrae model?

  3. #3
    Quote Originally Posted by Doug Barr View Post
    Could anyone give me their impressions of the "Demondrae" mouthpiece by Warburton? What does it most similarly compare to? What do you like about it or not like about it? I'm interested in trying it but I don't know a whole lot about it.

    Thanks
    The Warburton Demondrae is very different from any other mouthpiece, and it is designed around Demondrae's style of playing. Demondrae uses a fair amount of pressure, and a broad round rim is necessary to prevent pain from using pressure. I switched from a SM4U to the Demondrae at the same time I got the 5050, and the results were awesome in sound and range.

    The mouthpiece is not ONLY for use on the 5050, though. One of my section mates was using an SM2U on a Yamaha 642, and was having major intonation issues, not fitting in with the section. I lent him a spare Demondrae, and his intonation issues cleared up immediately, and the blend in the section became first rate.

    I spent a week earlier this month at a workshop with Demondrae, and everyone who tried the MP got great results (1 Yamaha, 1 Sterling, 1 Willson 2950).

    I would strongly suggest trying it with an open mind. Don't believe everything everyone repeats about mouthpiece characteristics, and if you get a chance to take a lesson or attend a workshop with Demondrae, do it, do it NOW!

    Don Winston

  4. #4
    Quote Originally Posted by djwpe View Post
    ...I lent him a spare Demondrae, and his intonation issues cleared up immediately...
    Can you provide a little detail? I'd be curious of the particular notes/ranges that were affected. Thanks.
    Dave Werden (ASCAP)
    Euphonium Soloist, U.S. Coast Guard Band, retired
    Adams Artist (Adams E3)
    Alliance Mouthpiece (DC3)
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  5. #5
    The mouthpiece is relatively shallow, deliberately so -- Demondrae told me at a workshop that he feels many players use too deep a mouthpiece. It is a bit of an outlier on the 3G/3AL size spectrum, with the wide rim, very open blow and shallow cup. It's not for everybody, but what mouthpiece is....

    Don, just a thought -- going from an SM2U to a Demondrae mouthpiece might clear up some intonation issues if the SM2U (quite deep and wide) is a bit too big a mouthpiece for the player.
    Last edited by JTJ; 06-29-2013 at 09:27 PM.

  6. #6
    But I've heard tell the Mr. Thurman pushes his own tweaked embouchure. Were these intonation issues and other results cleared up with the use of his special embouchure, or was it just a matter of popping the mouthpiece in and magic fairy dust coming out of the horn?

  7. #7
    Quote Originally Posted by davewerden View Post
    Can you provide a little detail? I'd be curious of the particular notes/ranges that were affected. Thanks.
    I don't remember exactly, Dave. It was a while ago. I do recall they were not typical "bad" pitches.





    Quote Originally Posted by DaTweeka View Post
    But I've heard tell the Mr. Thurman pushes his own tweaked embouchure. Were these intonation issues and other results cleared up with the use of his special embouchure, or was it just a matter of popping the mouthpiece in and magic fairy dust coming out of the horn?
    There are so many argumentative misstatements in the above quote I don't even know where to start. However, in the case of my section mate, Dr. Thurman wasn't involved, so it was just a mouthpiece switch. No fairy dust was in evidence, only good sound.

    Quote Originally Posted by JTJ View Post
    Don, just a thought -- going from an SM2U to a Demondrae mouthpiece might clear up some intonation issues if the SM2U (quite deep and wide) is a bit too big a mouthpiece for the player.
    John, that was my thought as well, that he SM2U was way too big for him, and the rim too sharp, based on his reasons for choosing the SM2U, which he gave as "comfort".

    Certainly mouthpieces are very personal, and things that work for some don't work for others. But "conventional wisdom" is often wrong.

    Don Winston

  8. #8
    Let me clarify; a few months ago when Steven Mead was in town, he held a concert with the Georgia Brass Band. I attended with my private teacher, and afterwards when we went out to eat, Mr. Thurman popped up in the conversation. One of the grad students from GSU had stated that a couple years back, Mr. Thurman had convinced him to change up his embouchure, given that those who Mr. Thurman called the "hero players" all used some version of this embouchure, which he had either developed or learned from one of his teachers before him. I think that it might just be the higher pressure on the mouthpiece rim, but I can't be sure for now. And the 2AL and its more recent incarnations have always been bass trombone mouthpieces in my book.

    That said, I now have a dark and burning need to get my hands on a Demondrae piece some time in the near future. I think a trial is coming my way.

  9. #9
    Quote Originally Posted by DaTweeka View Post
    That said, I now have a dark and burning need to get my hands on a Demondrae piece some time in the near future. I think a trial is coming my way.
    So, am i to understand that with all those words you wrote, you've never either actually played the mouthpiece or met or spoken with Demondrae?

  10. #10
    Quote Originally Posted by djwpe View Post
    So, am i to understand that with all those words you wrote, you've never either actually played the mouthpiece or met or spoken with Demondrae?
    I'd never said I had. The OP had asked what it compared to, and expressed an interest in trying it out, so I gave a frame of reference relative to some more common mouthpieces, and some comparable models he could try out as well from Warburton. I'm not trying to slam Mr. Thurman, his work, or his methods; I'm just trying to develop a better understanding, though I might not have phrased things as well as I should have.

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