Hey there crew!
Today I would like to discuss something very much more concrete. That is, rotary trumpet mouthpieces, rotary trumpet mouthpiece brands, their catalogs, and how they related to piston trumpet.
I am a bit of a closet equipment nut. I’m sure there are bigger nuts out there (ahem), and I theorize that most of the great players whose names we all know are more into trying and tweaking mouthpieces than they typically let on (for instance, one principal trumpeter of a “Top 5” orchestra who is famously a ‘one mouthpiece man,’ I know for a fact owns many hundreds of them).
So I’m going to discuss a topic on which I have probably more experience than most. I am going to talk about two popular brands of rotary trumpet mouthpieces, Breslmair and Josef Klier, and give you the skinny on where to start and where you might go next.
Let me lead by saying that rotary trumpet and rotary trumpet mouthpieces are pretty different from piston. The intonation tendencies, sound, rim shapes, and bore sizes are all different. So I suggest that when you are working on rotary, you try and spend some real quality time with it. I have found it useful to play exclusively rotary for a day per week, and every once in a while to spend a week or more, making sure I have the opportunity to play all of my fundamentals on rotary with a tuner and a metronome and to see what it sounds and feels like over the course of a period of time. I think the same is true when you are trying rotary mouthpieces. It takes dedicated space in your practice schedule.
Now, let’s dive in, first with Breslmair. The first thing you should know is that they have a document out there called the “Trompete-Bibel” (Trumpet Bible), that discusses (auf Deutsch) their extensive catalog of mouthpieces. Here is the short version.
Their best work is their 3-piece modular system, which is threaded differently than the Bach/Warburton/Parke system. They are not interchangeable. The rims are threaded a little farther up, so you get a little less cup.
The backbores, on their face, might look like any old piston trumpet backbore. But they are not the same. They are a little bigger around. So if you put a Breslmair backbore in a piston trumpet, it won’t go in as far. And on many rotary trumpets, a piston trumpet backbore will go in somewhat farther than on a piston trumpet (although this depends on the exact make/model).
Breslmair has numbered their cups from deep to shallow (G1 being the deepest, G2 being moderately deep, etc). There are other in-between models, usually denoted with an “S” or an “A”.
Breslmair makes so, so many rims. And what’s more, they make them out of a lot of different materials, from brass, to resin, to titanium. There is no uniform naming convention for rims, although they borrow some of the nomenclature from famous Bach rim types (for instance, you can buy a 114, aka a 1-1/4).
The sam can be said about the backbores. Although if you collate them a certain way and squint, there is some method to the madness. For instance, the “lettered” backbores are sort of kind of in ascending order of volume. And here again they borrow some nomenclature from Bach (117, 10). These are at least handy reference points when deciding how a mouthpiece might feel in relation to the rotary counterpart, although I think the distinct diameter and architecture makes such comparisons less useful.
You can read more from the Trumpet Bible, which you can access by clicking here.
But let’s discuss what you should play, and what I have played.
Most people should start with the one-piece G2. This is a “G” rim, which to a lot of people is going to feel like a Bach ‘3’ rim, and a 2 cup, which will feel like a deep bowl to an American. The standard backbore for a G2 is a “2,” which is large even by Breslmair’s own catalog of options. But it will help you learn how to play rotary, which in my opinion requires a slightly different feel of blowing and for the trumpeter to hear things a little differently.
You can get to know their catalog if you want to explore other options from there, but let’s imagine you, like me, play a 1-1/4C or 1C on piston and you’re looking for a rim that’s a little friendlier to transitioning. I might suggest you start with either a 14X, V, or 114i. All of these are variations on a 1-1/4 inner diameter. The 14X is based on a Mt Vernon, the ‘V’ is a modern 1-1/4, and the 114i is like a slightly wider 1-1/4. Breslmair also makes some of these in the heavier “Berlin” style, which adds a little more mass to the rim.
Now cups. For a lot of Americans, a G2 is going to feel quite deep. I know many Americans who play a G3 instead. In rotary land, this would be a little shallow/bright for a true orchestral rotary trumpet sound, but for our American sensibilities, it is one solution. One big downside of the G2 is that I think you lose a little definition in the lowest register that is really valuable for us when we play 2nd trumpet or are taking 2nd trumpet auditions where a great and responsive and in tune low register is absolutely vital. As a 2nd trumpeter myself, I like the G2S. I feel that I can get the rotary warmth and still get lots of snap on low Gs. I own a G1 but I have yet to find it useful. It strikes me as too deep. The G2A is an interesting cup if you have the opportunity to try one, especially if you don’t play a lot of rotary. The cup itself is basically a 5B cup, almost identical to the Parke 285, Curry BC, Pickett BC, and other hybrid BC cup designs.
Speaking of backbores, they are all quite different, and make very little sense in a taxonomic way. A lot of people start with a 2. This is what comes standard on G1s and G2s. It is a very large backbore, especially compared to a typical piston trumpet backbore. The G3, on the other hand, is for “jazz” piston trumpet, and as such comes with a piston-appropriate backbore, the S. I think that if you are really interested in approaching Germanic works in a Germanic way, or only occasionally play rotary, you might want to avoid this. But for many it makes the transition easier. In my experience, many of the “Top 5” orchestras are really advancing an American style of playing, and so are not particularly interested in sounding Germanic. They often play standard piston mouthpiece on a rotary trumpet (or skip rotary entirely), and an audition committee would likely not care whether you play rotary or not, as long as it sounds good. But there are many American orchestras that do play rotary on true rotary equipment as well. It pays to listen a lot, ask questions, and read between the lines of audition announcements.
For me, I like to have a couple of Breslmair backbores in my repertory. For most uses, I like the P backbore with the standard 2 cup and the V rim. As an American, this backbore provides a warm Germanic sound but without a feeling of swimming in deep water I have when I play the 2. The V rim fits the 2 cup perfectly with no lip between them, and matches close enough what I play on piston For second trumpet, I like the W1 backbore and the G2A cup. It gives me a lot more clarity on the low Gs and the bigger backbore provides lots of air security to keep a wide open air tunnel.
If you are interested in experimenting with Breslmair on piston, I suggest starting with a 114i rim in the Berlin blank, G2A or G3 cup, and either an N, B, or 66 backbore. The 66 will give you kind of a standard “10” type feel, the B perhaps like a modest 24 or 7-style backbore, and the N like a true full bore 24. Personally I find that the 114i Berlin, G2A, and B backbore work very well especially for the 2nd trumpet style playing I often do, and if I played more principal, I would use a 66 backbore. This would give someone a very familiar feeling of an American 1-1/4C 24/24, and make for easy transitions onto rotary.
I have also played around with a Yamaha 16E4 cut for Breslmair rims, to unsatisfactory results. I have also tried piston rims on a G2 underpart, and not been thrilled.
Okay, let’s talk now about Josef Klier. These are fantastic mouthpieces. First, I think they are *slightly* more American-friendly if you play in an orchestra that uses a lot of rotary but performs in a large space where a true Germanic approach might not fit as well. I think for most people they sound a little more colorful and project better in our big American halls. That said, they do not have the flexibility of a 3-piece system and so there are infinitely fewer off-the-shelf combinations you can noodle with. I also think the rims are a little more… alien. They require some upkeep in terms of practice. For me, it is worth it. I play a 4D Classic most of the time, and occasionally a 4C.
The rim sizes are very different from the Bach number system. A JK 4 is more like a 1 or 1-1/4. They also have a high point closer to the outside of the rim, and so tend to feel bigger than a comparable piston mouthpiece. There are three lines: The “JK Exclusive,” which is their stock rotary-friendly line with an A2 backbore; there is the “JK Exclusive Classic,” which (to my knowledge) is identical with the exception of a 25 throat; and there is the “JK USA” line, which are copies of Mount Vernon mouthpieces that made their way into Germany over the years.
If the question is, if I want to try a JK on rotary, the answer is that most orchestral players who play something in the neighborhood of a 1-1/4C might start with a JK Exclusive 4D or 4D Classic. If you really like a deep mouthpiece or play principal trumpet, perhaps a 4C. If you play a 1-1/2 size, you might want to start with the 5 size in JK.
Personally, I prefer the sound and feel of the JK over any combination of Breslmair I have tried (which is a lot). I think that if you want to play a JK, it might take a little more upkeep on rotary (which I enjoy), but you will be rewarded with some lightning response and a vivid sound that will suit any repertoire.
For reference, I have tested these mouthpieces and others on a Scherzer, a Monke, Weimann Passion C, Oberrauch Venezia C, and a Schagerl Wien Heavy C, a Horsdorf Bb, a Horsdorf C, and Berlin Heavy Bb.