This is a Theo Wanne hard rubber Amma alto saxophone mouthpiece. Theo was kind enough to send me a big box of mouthpieces to try out and I spent all morning playing and recording them. This Amma is an .080 tip opening and is made out of hard rubber. The Amma has a slightly higher and longer roll over baffle than the Gaia mouthpiece I reviewed earlier. The longer and higher baffle will tend to give a mouthpiece a brighter, more powerful and more focused sound. If you compare this clip to the Gaia clip, you should be able to hear a difference in the sound from the Gaia. Later I will put up clips of a few Kali and Durga mouthpieces that have even higher baffles in them.
Theo Wanne HR Amma Alto Saxophone Mouthpiece
- Appearance:
As usual, this mouthpiece is perfect. Theo does a great job with the presentation of his mouthpieces. From the box to the ligature and leather bag everything looks perfect. The tip and rails are thin and even looking. I love the look of the gold engraved band as well as the gold Enlightened ligature. This mouthpiece has the usual large chamber in it that Theo Wanne’s mouthpiece are known for. One thing that is not included with Theo’s mouthpieces is a mouthpiece cap that goes over the reed and ligature. There is a cap that you can put on after you take off the reed to protect the mouthpiece but no cap to put on while the reed is on it. Your on your own as far as finding one that fits. I’m not sure why they don’t make one as every working musician needs a cap to protect the mouthpiece and reed while on a gig……….I hope they do make a nice one someday.
- Tone:
You can listen to the clip to get a sense of the tone. To me it has more brightness and punch than the Gaia. You can hear it when you listen to the clip. Just a little more air and the notes just pop out with not much effort. You could do a jazz gig on this but I could also imagine playing it on a Top 40 type gig. It has enough brightness and edge to perform nicely in that type of setting I think. The high notes had a nice singing quality to them that I loved. Not harsh or thin at all.
- Intonation:
Intonation was great with this mouthpiece and within normal limits.
- Control:
This was a very easy mouthpiece to play and control. It is very even sounding up and down the horn. The tone of the mouthpiece really makes it easy to play fast. It’s almost like the notes just blend together on those fast runs. Large intervals were easy to play also.
- Volume:
Volume was no problem on this mouthpiece at all. It has more punch and power than the Gaia. I really liked this one a lot. This would also be a great lead alto mouthpiece in my opinion. Lots of power to lead a section……………
This is another great mouthpiece by Theo Wanne. For more information on the Amma mouthpiece visit www.theowanne.com .
About Steve
compare with the wood mpc,which one is more free blowing?
I thought the HR was a little more free blowing for me.
thanks for your review Steve.
i just received my Amma HR 9 and after playing it i can see every point in your review is well tested and well described- “The high notes had a nice singing quality to them that I loved.” me too!
i will use it as lead alto in our BigBand!
I love the sub tones on the lower end, so buttery… Want to buy one…