Today, I am reviewing a mouthpiece made by the Absolute company. These are made in Italy and this model is called the “Alto ST”. There is also an Alto AL, Alto + and a Alto R model on their website. You can also find all these models for Baritone, Soprano and Tenor saxophones as well. This ST is made of stainless steel. Below is a picture of many of the ST mouthpieces for all the saxophones.
Absolute Alto ST Saxophone Mouthpiece
All of these models are priced pretty reasonably. This model is about 282 US dollars. (the exchange rate is always changing so this price will fluctuate somewhat)
The mouthpiece looks great. The tip rails look very even and it has a smooth baffle that slopes down into a medium to large chamber. The transition from the baffle into the chamber has a Berg Larsen type scoop to it. The sidewalls are straight and even until they meet the circular medium chamber.
Absolute Alto ST Saxophone Mouthpiece
The tip opening on this mouthpiece is a 7* which is a .090 tip opening which surprised me because I have never been very comfortable with anything over .080 on alto yet I was very comfortable on this mouthpiece. A Vandoren Java 3 reed played perfectly on it for me. The Absolute ST alto mouthpiece comes with it’s own custom built ligature which is really nice. If you look at the picture below you will see that the ligature has 8 sides to it. These 8 sides match up perfectly with the 8 sides the mouthpiece has. It is next to impossible to have trouble with this ligature. You just slide it on in the position that fits the mouthpiece and then tighten. As you tighten the crew, the plates descend down onto the reed and clamp it to the table. It’s a very inventive and unique design in my opinion……….
Absolute Alto ST Saxophone Ligature
The Absolute Alto ST mouthpiece has an almost duckbill type design to the beak although it is not as extreme as some duckbill beaked mouthpieces I have played. It feels very comfortable to me.
Absolute Alto ST Saxophone Mouthpiece
The tone of the Absolute “Alto ST” is focused and brighter to me. It’s tone has a nice bright bebop sound to it that can also cover the louder R&B type alto genres.
There was something about it’s tone and smoothness that made it very enjoyable to play. in the clip below I am playing a solo by Phil Woods. He played this over “The Summer Knows”. I played this solo like crazy in high school and just found the transcription this week. I don’t think I have played it in about 30 years! (I played “The Summer Knows” in my senior concert in high school because I loved that rendition by Phil Woods so much. I think that is one of the greatest sax solos ever!!! Check it out! It’s on the Musique Du Bois CD………..) Anyways, back to the mouthpiece………
Absolute Alto ST Saxophone Mouthpiece
If you are interested in the Absolute “Alto ST” alto saxophone mouthpiece contact Marco at Absolutesax.com. This is a great alto mouthpiece for those of you looking for this type of sound!!.
Let me know what you think in the comments below………….Thanks, Steve
Absolute Alto ST Saxophone Mouthpiece
Absolute Alto ST Saxophone Mouthpiece
I agree; Phil’s solo on “The Summer Knows” is still one of my all-time favorites. Sounds great as always, Steve.
This mouthpiece has a very nice sound. It doesn’t seem too bright or edgy for a metal mouthpiece. A bit warmer sounding than many other mouthpieces, not quite sure how to describe it. This may be another mouthpiece for me to consider.
Pino Scuro
29. August 2020 19:58
Thank you for your excellent review of the two Mouthpieces for alto sax. I have listened to A+ and ST several times, I think ST has convinced me more, so I will soon buy it. Thanks again, I wish you good work
These seem to be some of the only stainless steel mouthpieces produced today (other than Lawton mouthpieces, but I’m not sure if they’re still in production) that are designed without a super high baffle, laser-focused sound design. Do you have any insights regarding other stainless steel mouthpieces that are designed to be more middle-of-the-road, flexible or darker mouthpieces?
No, sorry. I don’t think I have played any other stainless steel alto mouthpieces that I can remember. The Ponzol mouthpieces are stainless steel but I have only tried the tenor mouthpieces.