• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Website of Steve Neff

  • BLOG
  • SHOP
  • MEMBER’S AREA
    • JOIN
    • FAQ
    • MEMBER LOGIN
    • Member Monthly Lessons
    • Member VIP Area
    • Member-Practicing with Neff
    • Member-Brecker Alternate Fingering Lessons
    • Member-Killin’ Altissimo Lick Lessons
    • Member-Monster Lick of the Day
  • RAVES
  • CONTACT
  • SUPPORT
You are here: Home / Reviews / Mouthpiece Reviews / Alto Mouthpiece Reviews / Alto Medium Baffle Reviews / Ken Okutsu Traditional Alto Saxophone Mouthpiece Review

Ken Okutsu Traditional Alto Saxophone Mouthpiece Review

July 31, 2015 by Steve 3 Comments

Today, I am reviewing my first hard rubber alto saxophone mouthpiece from Ken Okutsu in Japan. It is the Traditional model and has a 6 tip opening which is .075.   I already reviewed four Okutsu tenor mouthpieces which were all excellent so I have been very curious to review these alto mouthpieces also.

Four New Ken Okutsu Traditional Alto Sax Mouthpieces

Here is the description and features of the Traditional alto mouthpiece from the Okutsu website:

Features

  • Medium rollover baffle and medium chamber
  • The beautiful vintage sound.
  • All mouthpieces are crafted by CNC machinery for incredible accuracy and finished by hand carefully.
  • Concave table. It makes the tone full and rich. The practical life span of reeds is lengthened.
  • Material is the highest quality ebonite (hard rubber).

Ken Okutsu Traditional Alto Sax Mouthpiece

The Okutsu mouthpieces are hard rubber and come in a protective plastic case.  Within the case they are wrapped in a black velvet bag.  I received four alto saxophone mouthpieces from Mr. Okutsu.  The alto mouthpieces are the Traditional model, the Traditional II model, the Focus Core model and the High Baffle model (listed in order from darkest to brightest).  I kind of like how simplistic and straight forward the model names are.   The Traditional model looks to be the darkest of the four, then the Traditional II looks to have a slightly higher rollover baffle.  The Focus Core has an even higher baffle and the chamber is much smaller. Finally, the High Baffle model has the highest baffle as the name implies although the chamber is bigger than the Focus Core model.

The mouthpieces looks great upon first inspection.  The hard rubber is shiny and without any imperfections. The gold engraving is neat and clean.  The rails, tip rail, table and baffle look very well crafted and even.

Ken Okutsu Traditional Alto Sax Mouthpiece

The Traditional  model was very reed friendly for me.  I had no trouble trying different reeds on it and all the reeds passed the suction test when first put on and then later after playing a while.  The Okutsu mouthpieces have a concave table which many player’s and mouthpiece manufactures have preferred over the years.  In recent years,  it seems like I am getting a lot of mouthpiece with flat tables instead of concave.  Now that I’writing this review, I am curious  as to what the differences are  between the two table in regard to playability, response and sound……….In the Okutsu bullet points above, the concave table is listed as making the tone full and rich and increasing the life of reeds which I think is interesting…………..

The roll-over baffle on the Traditional model is small.  I would say it is a good half inch in length before it starts to descend smoothly into the medium chamber.  Just from viewing the baffle by eye, I would say that this Traditional model would have some brightness and punch to the sound if I had to guess.

 

Ken Okutsu Traditional Alto Sax Mouthpiece

I thought the Ken Okutsu Traditional alto sax mouthpiece played great with a Rigotti Gold 3 Light reed. Although it is the darkest of the four Okutsu mouthpieces I received, I would not label it as dark at all. It has a bright crisp sound to it and can get some nice volume when pushed. Although it leans to the brighter side, it still has a nice round, full sound to the tone that is very nice……….

The intonation was very good and it’s tone was very even and smooth throughout the range of the horn.

Ken Okutsu Traditional Alto Sax Mouthpiece

The Ken Okutsu Traditional Alto Saxophone Mouthpiece was great to play.  This is another great mouthpiece for players who want the best of both worlds……..a sound that can be used for a brighter traditional jazz and bebop sound or even a bit brighter for lead alto or funk music.

If you like the sound of the clip below and the mouthpiece catches your interest then please contact Ken Okutsu and give it a try. You can contact Mr. Okutsu at his website at Okutsumouthpieces.com. Tell him Steve sent you………….Great work Mr. Okutsu!!

Let me know what you think in the comments below. Thanks, Steve

https://cdn.neffmusic.com/2015/July/KOTradAltoClip.mp3

 

Ken Okutsu Traditional Alto Sax Mouthpiece

Filed Under: Alto Medium Baffle Reviews Tagged With: Alto Saxophone, hard rubber, Ken Okutsu, review, sax mouthpiece

Steve

About Steve

Steve Neff has been playing and teaching saxophone and jazz improvisation around the New England area for over 30 years. He is the author of many best selling jazz improvisation methods as well as founding the popular jazz video lesson site Neffmusic.com.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. AvatarJohn Hicks says

    July 31, 2017 at 2:22 pm

    Hi Steve,
    I play lead alto in a (not professional but very active) Big Band. Recently, one week before we were to record a concert for a local TV show (I live in Germany), I broke my best mouthpiece… it was a “Gottsu HR”. Fortunately I did have a “Jody HR” that I use as a back up or when ever I have reed problems. Anyway, I have been listening to a lot of your mouthpiece reviews clips on the Net trying to find something I like. They all play well but with most of them I don’t care much for the sound. To me most are too bright.
    With the exception of the Philtone “Rift”.

    However I seem to have a completely different opinion from most people of what can be described as dark or bright. I have been playing alto for the past 10 years in the Big Band but am a retired classical orchestral clarinetist and teacher. Maybe that has something to do with it.

    Today I found your clips of the Ken Okutsu mouthpieces. I have never heard of them or seen one in any music store here in Germany. Perhaps I can find them in Holland.
    Anyway, I just wanted to say that of ALL the clips of yours I have ever listened to, I find these to have the sound that I like best. I would probably choose the Traditional, but the other ones sound great as well. I find them clear sounding with a ringing tone, but not too bright and very smooth sounding without any feeling of dullness. I have collected a lot of mouthpieces since playing in the band, but most of them are either too bright or too dull for my taste. I would now like to try the Okutsu in person if I can find some.

    Have you had anymore experience with these mouthpieces and do you think they would be good for lead alto in a Big Band?

    Have you ever reviewed the Gottsu mouthpieces. The one I had that got broken I liked because of the the sound, but it didn’t play as well as my son’s Aaron Drake NY Jazz. I could never get the top “F” and “G” which made several of my solos rather difficult. The Drake plays well for me, but is for my taste too bright. I think the Okutsu sounds better. I would be interested in you opinion about this if you have time to reply.

    Many thanks for your time and attention. Your sound clips are very informative and helpful for those looking for buy a new or better mouthpiece. Thanks !!

    John Hicks (nope… no relation to the pianist !!)

    Reply
  2. AvatarGiuseppe says

    June 24, 2018 at 12:01 pm

    What I think: It seems to me too “closed”, stifled, throat in the sound;  how to make the idea?, a bit too opaque and out of focus.
    It seems to me much better the traditional for tenor.

    Reply
  3. AvatarChristian Brewer says

    February 27, 2020 at 4:04 am

    They sound great from your sound clips.I can’t find anywhere to try them in London which is the problem. They seem to have a great blend of body and edge, which a lot of mouthpieces don’t have. Getting that blend right is hard as an alto player. So many pieces are too bright or dull.
    Let me know your thoughts, thanks Christian

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar

Cart

Subscribe to the Neffmusic Newsletter for the latest reviews and best deals delivered straight to your inbox every month. Join now and you will also receive my 40 Ultimate Michael Brecker Licks free!

Select list(s) to subscribe to


Thanks for joining!


NEFFMUSIC PRINTED BOOKS

Testimonials

After reading your story I will never feel quite right about complaining about any of my MINOR health issues!!    God bless Steve and I really hope that your health doesn’t stop you from fulfilling your calling.    These books have been such a help to open up my jazz vocabulary…   Thanks so much for sharing your story and for providing these great teaching tools…   John Leclerc   Saxophonist / composer/ EWI player and professional working musician of 35 years….

John Leclerc
I just started looking at my lessons and I have to say, dude you are awesome.  I ABSOLUTELY will learn from you!  I started the tenor about 1 ½ yrs ago and have since picked up an alto, and more recently a soprano.  I spend most of the time on the tenor, followed by soprano, and have only gotten to the alto a few times.  I think I’ll be sticking with tenor.  I’m having a great time and hope one day to play well enough to get regular gigs.  I’ve been playing keys for about 35 years (… Read more
Wil
Hey Steve, I’m a 22-year-old from Australia. I thought it would be worth saying. You’re an absolute legend. I can’t thank you enough. You have helped me rekindle my love for the saxophone and music as a whole. All the best for the future, your work doesn’t go unnoticed. PS. I am loving your devastating minor lines pdf.
Sapph

Hello Steve, I’m getting so much out of your lessons and books, amazing how much one may think one knows, there is always a new frontier or new way to view something you think you had somewhat down. You have taken it all to a new level and am so grateful. Your lessons are so down to earth and understandable and clear!  Thanks so much Steve! Cheers, Eddie

Eddie Parente

Hi Steve,

First, I want to thank you for all of your great lessons. They are like a “For Dummies” version of all the books on my shelf. The lessons break things down into manageable pieces, and give me the confidence that I’m practicing the right pieces. I’m starting to make progress.   Thank You,   Kim

Kim
Just to say thanks for your advice and lessons.  I’ve just read your amazing story.  I really appreciate what you do in regards to teaching.  I have bought a couple of your lessons and frankly they’re undersold.   I’ve learned much more with these two lessons than with 2 years of sax teachers.   Thanks so much………..
Mike
Your lessons on playing the blues is so clear . I have been through many books on blues playing and not one of them explains as clear as your lessons . Most of them say “Play the same blues scale over all three chords of a 12 bar blues ” Its very misleading .     Thanks
Martin
I bought Steve’s dominant bebop book and took a couple of online lesson from him. I really appreciated Steve’s careful listening of what I wanted to get done in a lesson and his clear, concise ideas on next steps to improve my playing and musical interpretation.  His mastering  the Dominant Bebop Scale has lots of exercises to use a scale that addresses the largest percentage of chords I come across in pop/blues music. The dominant V7.  Needless say it has improved my playing.  I teach and a… Read more
Keith
I’ve been a member of Steve’s site for about six months now and the difference it has made to my playing is immeasurable. The (many) benefits of this membership are that you can have lessons at time convenient to you, they work out A LOT cheaper than face-to-face lessons with a teacher of the same calibre and you can replay them ad infinitum. I don’t know how many times have I had lessons in the past where I’ve ended up covering the same concepts when really a ‘replay’ of the last lesson would h… Read more
Nick
I have found your videos and publications inspiring and your contribution to the world of saxophone playing is immense. Paul
Paul

Featured Video Lessons

  • The Secret to Modern Outside Jazz Lines Lesson-Minor $9.99
  • Creating Modern II-V-I Lines with Simple Pentatonics Lesson
    Rated 5.00 out of 5
    $9.99
  • The Best Embouchure for Tone, Intonation and Endurance Lesson
    Rated 4.90 out of 5
    $9.99
  • The Secret to Altissimo (no one has ever told you about before) Lesson
    Rated 4.75 out of 5
    $9.99

Now over 600 video and audio lessons to choose from!
BECOME A MEMBER TODAY AND SAVE BIG ON EACH LESSON!

Mastering the Dominant Bebop Scale-Book 2
Mastering the Dominant Bebop Scale-Book 2

Free Lessons

  • Free Lesson on The New Ultimate II-V-I Primer-Major Keys
  • Free Video Lesson on Mastering Altered Pentatonics
  • Free Video Lesson on Mastering the Blues Scale Volume 1 & 2
  • Free Video Lesson on Mastering the Dominant Bebop Scale and Language Book 1 & 2
  • Free Video Lesson on Approach Note Velocity Book

Recent reviews

  • Mastering Altered Pentatonics (Digital PDF Book)
    Rated 5 out of 5
    by Dino Govoni
  • Mastering the Bebop Scale Review-Blues in All Keys Lesson 1
    Rated 5 out of 5
    by Steve Nye
  • Devastating Minor Lines for Jazz and Funk Soloing (Digital PDF Book)
    Rated 5 out of 5
    by Mark White
  • Devastating Dominant Lines for Jazz and Funk Soloing (Digital PDF Book)
    Rated 5 out of 5
    by Mark White
  • The Best Embouchure for Tone, Intonation and Endurance Lesson
    Rated 5 out of 5
    by Christopher Lutyk

Jazz Improvisation Books

Mastering Altered Pentatonics
Mastering Altered Pentatonics
Devastating Dominant Lines for Jazz & Funk
Devastating Dominant Lines for Jazz & Funk
Mastering the Minor ii-7b5 V7b9 Bebop Scale
Mastering the Minor ii-7b5 V7b9 Bebop Scale
Dominant Bebop Scale Book
Mastering the Dominant Bebop Scale
Mastering the Dominant Bebop Scale-Book 2
Mastering the Dominant Bebop Scale-Book 2
The New Ultimate II-V-I Primer (Major)
The New Ultimate II-V-I Primer (Major)
Mastering Major Diatonic Patterns
Mastering Major Diatonic Patterns
Devastating Minor Lines for Jazz & Funk
Devastating Minor Lines for Jazz & Funk-Thirty 5 Star Reviews!!!
Mastering the Blues Scale Vol. 2-Dominant Chords
Mastering the Blues Scale Vol. 2-Dominant Chords
Best II-V-I Patterns Book
Best II-V-I Patterns
Approach Note Velocity Book
Approach Note Velocity
Mastering the Blues Scale Vol. 1-Minor Chords
Mastering the Blues Scale Vol. 1-Minor Chords
Major Bebop Scale Book
Mastering the Major Bebop Scale & Sound

Footer

Recent Comments

  • Steve on KPoudavoff Zimberoff Dukoff Hollywood 7* Copy Tenor Saxophone Mouthpiece Review
  • Dan Gutwein on KPoudavoff Zimberoff Dukoff Hollywood 7* Copy Tenor Saxophone Mouthpiece Review
  • Steve on KPoudavoff Zimberoff Dukoff Hollywood 7* Copy Tenor Saxophone Mouthpiece Review
  • Dan Gutwein on KPoudavoff Zimberoff Dukoff Hollywood 7* Copy Tenor Saxophone Mouthpiece Review
  • Steve on Hard Rubber Otto Link 7* Tenor Mouthpiece

Top rated products

  • Tune of the Week-Softly as a Morning Sunrise Lesson
    Rated 5.00 out of 5
    $9.99
  • One Bar Blues Licks and the 12 Bar Blues Lesson
    Rated 5.00 out of 5
    $9.99
  • Round Midnight Lesson
    Rated 5.00 out of 5
    $9.99
  • Sax Intonation Lesson
    Rated 5.00 out of 5
    $9.99
  • Beginner Jazz Improvisation Lesson 8B-Tenor Sax
    Rated 5.00 out of 5
    $9.99

Product tags

alto sax alto saxophone approach notes audio lesson bebop scale beginner beginner saxophone blues blues licks blues patterns blues scale blues scales diminished scale dominant chords ear training fundamentals II-V-I improvisation jazz improvisation jazz lines jazz patterns jazz sax jazz saxophone jazz standard jazz standards licks Mastering the Blues Scale Michael Brecker modern improv modern improvisation online lesson patterns playing outside practice habits reading music sax basics sax lessons saxophone scales smooth jazz steve neff tenor sax tenor saxophone video lesson video lessons
  • Instagram
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • SUPPORT

Neffmusic © 2023