This is the “Doc” Tenney Jazzmaster 7* tenor saxophone mouthpiece. A friend of mine on the internet was kind enough to send it to me so I could put a clip up of it. Mr. Tenney has quite the reputation for his mouthpiece work. I’ve had a few students that have played his pieces over the years and when I think of each one of them I think about how good their tone was. This mouthpiece takes some getting use to as most mouthpiece do . The baffle area is very low and straight down into the chamber. It looks like it continues right through the chamber right up until where the bore starts. There seems to be a very slight rollover right at the tip. I really like the low baffle. It seems to let you shape the sound to your choosing and I noticed that when I varied reeds on this mouthpiece it had a huge impact on the tone.
The reed I chose for this clip gave it a bit of a brighter sound but is still nice and rich sounding. I like a richer tone on the tenor saxophone. In general, when I played a 2 1/2 Java it was much brighter and when I played a 3 Java it was a bit darker and richer sounding. I preferred the 3’s. I will say that this piece does require a bit more air and support to fill up the horn. Some other piece I have played I just slapped on and played. When I put this one on I couldn’t get a lot of volume out of it but as I got used to it and blew more air through it it really started to open up and get some volume. I would love to take this mouthpiece on a jazz gig. Let me know what you think of the clip. Enjoy!
About Steve
I’m not playing as many fast things on this clip because I’ve been having a hard time with my right arm. It’s tendonitis or something like that. I’m trying to rest it more and not go nuts.
Steve…you sound great on everything, but the Tenney Hr pieces always sound really plasticy to me, and when I’ve heard people play them, it always sounds like they are struggling to get something out of the piece. Your sound on the metal links and the RPC for R&B is my favorite.
Personally, loved the sound. It was almost close to what I look for when playing.
Very nice clip!
Wow! What a sound! The only thing I would like better is if there was a little more power to it. The tone is simply amazing and the core is nice and thick. But again, it feels a little constricted. It sounds like a Slant Link with core instead of power.
i switched to a Tenney Jazzmaster about a year and a half ago after playing metal Links for nearly 50 years. I feel that the mpieces characteristic to allow the player to manipulate the tonal pallette is it’s strongest and most desirable trait. I like a 3.5 reed(Superial) on mine. A controlled mature airstream and flexible embouchure is necessary to use the TJ to it’s full potential. As always Steve you sound great and you sound great on this piece as well and thanks for providing all the clips. It’s a great service to the sax community.
I’ve been on the jazzmaster for eight months.
It is the best and most flexible mpc that I have played.
I like how it responds when pushed, full everywhere with substantial power.
The palm keys sing, from my VII,III to a The Martin Tenor and King Zephyr.
3-3.5 reeds.
Thomas nailed it when he said on his Tenney jazzmaster thread on sotw, that it teaches you how to blow to get the best out of it, even if you don’t stay with it… but I have and am very satisfied.
It is a jazz mpc but I love it for r&b.
I thought I needed a substantial baffle to get a good sound but the Jazzmaster proved me wrong.
It really delivers with a well developed airstream, as Thomas has stated.
Where can I find one of these mouthpieces for sale?
Matt, They aren’t made anymore because Doc Tenney passed away. Once in a while you will see them for sale on Ebay or SOTW. Benjamin Allen studies with Doc Tenney so I think he would be your best bet to get a mouthpiece like this. You could contact him on his site and ask him which of his models are closest to the Jazzmaster? http://www.allenmouthpieces.com/ He does great work! I have a 10E and a couple TD models that are fabulous!! Good Luck………
Thanks for the quick response! I’ve heard amazing things about his work and it’s a real shame to loose someone as talented as him. I guess I’ll keep checking eBay in the meantime for one of his pieces… Thanks for the info Steve!