Today, I am reviewing a mouthpiece made by the Absolute company. These are made in Italy and this model is called the “Soprano +”. (I call it a ST model in the recording but it is the + model) There is also a Soprano AL, Soprano ST and a Soprano R model on their website. You can also find all these models for Baritone, Alto and Tenor saxophones as well. The + is made of stainless steel.
Absolute “Soprano +” Saxophone ST Line
All of these models are priced pretty reasonably. This model is about 268 US dollars. (the exchange rate is always changing so this price will fluctuate somewhat)
The mouthpiece looks great. The tip rails look are very even and it has a straight baffle that leads down into a medium 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. I am very interested in playing this mouthpiece because I have never played this type of soprano mouthpiece before. It actually looks similar to a Guardala type baffle design as it would be applied to a soprano mouthpiece.
Absolute “Soprano +” Saxophone Mouthpiece
The tip opening on this mouthpiece is a 7 which seems to be very comfortable for me. A Vandoren Java 3 reed played perfectly on it for me. the Absolute + soprano 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 “Soprano +” Saxophone Ligature
The Absolute Soprano + has an almost duckbill type design to the beak although it is not as extreme as some duckbill beaked mouthpieces I have played. The soprano mouthpiece still feels very comfortable to me coming from a Theo Wanne Gaia mouthpiece.
Absolute “Soprano +” Saxophone Mouthpiece
The tone of the Absolute “Soprano +” is focused and brighter to me. To tell you the truth, something about it’s sound and tone reminds me a lot of Bill Evan’s tone on soprano. It has a smooth sound that is very even throughout the range of the horn. I wouldn’t classify it as a warm tone but it is has more of a focused compact concentrated brighter tone. It has a hallow quality to the sound that is really cool and can be haunting if used right. That’s the way it sounds to me anyways.
There was something about it’s tone and smoothness that made it very enjoyable to play. I played this mouthpiece for quite a long time after the recording had stopped………….
Absolute “Soprano +” Saxophone Mouthpiece
If you are interested in the Absolute “Soprano +” soprano saxophone mouthpiece contact Marco at Absolutesax.com. At 268 this is a great price for a nice playing soprano mouthpiece.
Let me know what you think in the comments below………….Thanks, Steve
Absolute “Soprano +” Saxophone Mouthpiece
Absolute “Soprano +” Saxophone Mouthpiece
Hi Steve,
thank You for another review! I’m very pleased and amazed concerning the much smoother and rounder sound (I’d think of it as still “balanced” while being a bright mouthpiece) than I’d expect from just looking at the baffle. I always loved Bill Evan’s outstanding soprano playing and sound, and You’re really in that category with this mp – in some “contemporary” electric musical context You’d well fit the bill! I’m thinking of trying one myself… Did You already compare the Soprano+ to the “ST”?
Hi Walter, I had a ST but the inner ring inside the shank was too small for my soprano cork. Marco fixed the ring issue on this one and it fit perfectly. Maybe he will send me an ST in the future to review. I’m looking forward to trying the tenor pieces also………..
Hi Steve,
ok thanxs I’ll have to check it out myself… There is a great sounding Clip with the Tenor ST on Marco’s website, so this should be really interesting.
Hi Steve,
got the Soprano ST 7 today – it’s outstanding! Very balanced, smooth with nice focus, even throughout the entire horn, and with spot-on intonation. At the moment like it clearly more than my (very good) TW Gaia.
Walter
Have you had the opportunity to test the brancher goldplated soprano (j17 0r j21) mouthpiece…if so what are your thoughts?
Alex, No, I haven’t tried that mouthpiece yet. Steve