Primarily being an Alto Player, my sound on Tenor Sax has been an issue. I’m always trying to figure out how I will sound best; which means I try not like an Alto Player playing Tenor and I’m searching for my “voice” on the instrument. I had been playing on a Meyer 7 Hard Rubber Mouthpiece, but felt like I had an “average Tenor Player” sound. So I was open to trying new stuff and to find something new. That’s how I discovered the Jody Jazz DV mouthpiece at the IAJE conference.

When Jody Espina created the DV mouthpiece, he was looking to create the most efficient mouthpiece. Using a new facing technology, he faces the curve so that there are no dead spots in the reed vibration. The DV is available for Tenor Saxophone in the following facings of 7, 7*, 8*. The price is $495.00 with a Rovner Ligature, Cap, Moutpiece Pouch and shipping included. The DC Mouthpiece is hand finished. It is now available for the alto as well.

At the IAJE Conference, Jody himself was there. I talked to him a bit, trying out different mouthpieces. Initially, we established that I wanted to sound “better” (I was not very specific) and what I was playing on (the Meyer). He had me try out a few of his mouthpieces, all great mouthpieces, but none of them were really what I was looking for.

Eventually, I got around to trying the NEW DV. When I first picked it up, I was surprised at the unique design. I tried it out and it was perfect – exactly what I was looking for. I was going for a more contemporary/pop/modern sound on Tenor, and I found it with the DV Mouthpiece. Additional benefits of the mouthpiece were that altissimo was really easy and it had a smooth sound with little resistance.

Jody Espina had me try both the 7 and 7* mouthpieces and I fell in love with the 7*. Playing the mouthpiece made me sound like “me” on tenor and not just another tenor player.

**Full disclosure: The tenor mouthpiece that I currently (2014) play is a Brancher. I have the DV mouthpiece but it is no longer what I use on a regular basis.

Get the Mouthpiece:
Jody Jazz DV Tenor Saxophone Mouthpiece DV 7 (.101)

Jody Jazz DV Tenor Saxophone Mouthpiece DV 7* (.108)

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Published by Shannon Kennedy

Shannon Kennedy is a vocalist and saxophonist living in Southern California. She is author of "The Album Checklist" and the founder of Teen Jazz. She has been contributing articles to music magaizines and websites since 2004.

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