Hi everyone,
With all the talk of mouthpieces lately, I'd like to share my thoughts on evaluating them and what influenced my thinking.The thesis, "Norman Herzberg: An Icon of Bassoon Pedagogy," available for free here:
http://libres.uncg.edu/ir/
"Herzberg developed a rigorous procedure for testing bocals. He preferred to play on the best equipment available and was constantly trying new bocals in order to find the best match for his bassoon....There were several rules to be followed. The first rule was that any identifying marks, letters, numbers, or brand name had to be covered. Secondly, the performer himself was to be the primary and ultimate person making the decision."
His test consisted of comparing a new bocal to a reference bocal, "The trial bocal must speak for itself without influence from the player. In Herzberg’s words, 'The differences can be stark and the qualities of the better bocal will be apparent. So will the lesser qualities of each.' The player should then select the better of the two bocals and set the lesser one aside. The player then selects the next bocal to be tested..." Herzberg said that any bocal which passed his stringent test was worth the cost and he would purchase it regardless of price. I agree, but would stipulate that I won't test anything which I can't afford to purchase outright.
http://cellotalks.com/post/
The test Finckel uses is appropriate for professionals: he wants to project a particular sound to the audience in the hall which paid to hear him play, that sound can be different from what he hears under his cello.
- Rory
