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You are here: Home / Archives for Reviews / Mouthpiece Reviews / Tenor Mouthpiece Reviews

Tenor Mouthpiece Reviews

Otto Link Tone Edge Early Babbitt Connoisseur Series Tenor Saxophone Mouthpiece Review

July 30, 2022 by Steve 36 Comments

Today, I am reviewing the new Otto Link Early Babbitt remake connoisseur series tenor saxophone mouthpiece made by JJ Babbitt.  The Connoisseur EB (Early Babbitt) tenor saxophone mouthpieces are advertised as being from the same molds as the original hard rubber Otto Link Early Babbitt tenor sax mouthpieces as described in this quote from the […]

Filed Under: Mouthpiece Reviews, Tenor Medium Baffle Reviews, Tenor Mouthpiece Reviews Tagged With: Connoisseur Series, early babbitt, EB, JJ Babbitt, mouthpiece, otto link, review, tenor saxophone, Tone Edge

Theo Wanne Gaia 4 Gold Tenor Saxophone Mouthpiece Review

June 23, 2022 by Steve 19 Comments

Today, I am reviewing the new Gaia 4 gold tenor saxophone mouthpiece made by Theo Wanne.  I have reviewed the original Gaia model many years ago and the hard rubber Gaia 3 and gold Gaia 3 in 2019.  I even posted a comparison review between the the hard rubber and gold Gaia 3 models as […]

Filed Under: Mouthpiece Reviews, Tenor Medium Baffle Reviews, Tenor Mouthpiece Reviews Tagged With: Gaia 4, gold, review, sax mouthpiece, tenor saxophone, Theo Wanne

Boston Sax Shop R-Series 7* Tenor Saxophone Mouthpiece Review

June 15, 2022 by Steve 3 Comments

Today, I am excited to be reviewing the new BSS (Boston Sax Shop) R-Series 7* tenor saxophone mouthpiece released by Jack Tyler at the Boston Sax Shop. Jack Tyler is the owner of Boston Sax Shop and has been my saxophone repairman for the last eight to nine years. I usually head down to Boston […]

Filed Under: Mouthpiece Reviews, Tenor Low Baffle Reviews, Tenor Mouthpiece Reviews Tagged With: Boston Sax Shop, BSS, BSS reeds, R-Series, review, sax mouthpiece, superlative ligature, tenor saxophone

Avel Sound Concept ASC Foehn Tenor Saxophone Mouthpiece Review

June 14, 2022 by Steve 13 Comments

Today, I am reviewing the Avel Sound Concept (ASC) Foehn model tenor saxophone mouthpiece made by Max at Avel Sound Concept Mouthpieces.  These are really reasonable priced, quality hard rubber tenor saxophone mouthpieces that, as you will soon hear, play incredibly well…..  The hard rubber ASC Foehn tenor sax mouthpiece I am reviewing today has […]

Filed Under: Mouthpiece Reviews, Tenor Medium Baffle Reviews, Tenor Mouthpiece Reviews Tagged With: ASC, Avel Sound Concept, Foehn, review, sax mouthpiece, tenor saxophone

Theo Wanne Lakshmi Gold Tenor Saxophone Mouthpiece Review

June 3, 2022 by Steve 44 Comments

Today, I am excited to be reviewing a brand new “top secret” tenor saxophone mouthpiece by Theo Wanne called the Lakshmi. This Lakshmi gold tenor saxophone mouthpiece has a 7*  tip opening and is being released here (Lakshmi page) by Theo Wanne at the same time as I am posting this review today.  I have […]

Filed Under: Mouthpiece Reviews, Tenor Medium Baffle Reviews, Tenor Mouthpiece Reviews Tagged With: gold, Lakshmi, review, sax mouthpiece, tenor saxophone, Theo Wanne

The SYOS Originals Smoky, Steady and Spark Model Tenor Saxophone Mouthpiece Review

March 11, 2022 by Steve 9 Comments

Today, I am reviewing and comparing three new SYOS Originals series tenor saxophone mouthpieces.  SYOS mouthpieces has released this new Originals SYOS line of tenor, alto and soprano saxophone mouthpieces to give saxophone players a simpler way to order a quality saxophone mouthpiece at a more affordable price point.  I have already reviewed the SYOS […]

Filed Under: Mouthpiece Reviews, Tenor High Baffle Reviews, Tenor Low Baffle Reviews, Tenor Medium Baffle Reviews, Tenor Mouthpiece Reviews Tagged With: comparison, model, Originals, review, sax mouthpiece, smoky, spark, steady, SYOS, tenor saxophone

Johannes Gerber Vintage Slant 7* Tenor Saxophone Mouthpiece 2022 Review

February 26, 2022 by Steve 15 Comments

Today, I am reviewing a Johannes Gerber Vintage Slant 7* tenor saxophone mouthpiece made by Johannes Gerber mouthpieces.  I first reviewed a Johannes Gerber Vintage Slant tenor mouthpiece here over 12 years ago.  I was incredibly impressed with Johannes Gerber’s craftsmanship 12 years ago when I first played the Gerber Vintage Slant tenor saxophone mouthpiece […]

Filed Under: Mouthpiece Reviews, Tenor Low Baffle Reviews, Tenor Mouthpiece Reviews Tagged With: Johannes Gerber, otto link, review, sax mouthpiece, slant signature, tenor saxophone, Vintage slant

Theo Wanne Durga 5 Gold Tenor Saxophone Mouthpiece Review

February 25, 2022 by Steve 21 Comments

Today, I am reviewing the Durga 5 gold tenor saxophone mouthpiece made by Theo Wanne.  Last year, I reviewed Theo Wanne’s darkest tenor saxophone mouthpiece which is the Ambika 3 (Ambika 3 Review), as well as Theo Wanne’s brightest tenor saxophone mouthpiece called the Shiva 3 (Shiva 3 Review). The Durga 5 is ranked second […]

Filed Under: Mouthpiece Reviews, Tenor High Baffle Reviews, Tenor Mouthpiece Reviews Tagged With: Durga 5, gold, review, sax mouthpiece, tenor saxophone, Theo Wanne

Alexander Superial I Jazz 7* Tenor Saxophone Mouthpiece Review

February 18, 2022 by Steve 13 Comments

Today, I am reviewing an Alexander Superial I Jazz 7* tenor saxophone mouthpiece made by Tom Alexander at Alexander Reeds Intl..  Tom Alexander reached out to me on January 24th of 2020 asking if I would be interested in reviewing his new Superial I Jazz tenor saxophone mouthpiece.  He was very excited about the Superial […]

Filed Under: Mouthpiece Reviews, Tenor Medium Baffle Reviews, Tenor Mouthpiece Reviews Tagged With: Alexander, jazz, marble, review, saxophone, Superial, tenor mouthpiece

Drake FG (Freddie Gregory) Model Tenor Saxophone Mouthpiece Review

February 16, 2022 by Steve 49 Comments

Today, I am reviewing a Drake FG (Freddie Gregory) model 8 tenor saxophone mouthpiece made by Aaron Drake at Drake mouthpieces.  This Drake FG model tenor saxophone mouthpiece was inspired by a Freddie Gregory  hard rubber tenor sax mouthpiece that Jeff Coffin plays and that Aaron Drake did some work on. Aaron told me that […]

Filed Under: Mouthpiece Reviews, Tenor High Baffle Reviews, Tenor Mouthpiece Reviews Tagged With: aaron drake, FG model, freddie gregory, jazz sax, Jeff Coffin, Mark IV, mouthpiece, review, tenor sax, tenor saxophone

Theo Wanne Shiva 3 Gold Tenor Saxophone Mouthpiece Review

October 15, 2021 by Steve 9 Comments

Today, I am reviewing the Shiva 3 gold tenor saxophone mouthpiece made by Theo Wanne.  I just reviewed Theo Wanne’s darkest tenor sax mouthpiece which is the Ambika 3 (Ambika 3 Review), so today, I thought I would jump to the complete opposite end of the saxophone tone spectrum and review Theo Wanne’s brightest tenor […]

Filed Under: Mouthpiece Reviews, Tenor High Baffle Reviews, Tenor Mouthpiece Reviews Tagged With: gold, review, sax mouthpiece, Shiva 3, tenor saxophone, Theo Wanne

Macsax Jalapeño ATX Gold Tenor Saxophone Mouthpiece Review

October 14, 2021 by Steve 3 Comments

Today, I am reviewing a beautifully crafted Macsax Jalapeño 8* tenor saxophone mouthpiece.  I was contacted by Jeff Gjertsen at Macsax earlier this year and asked if I would be willing to review the brand new Macsax Jalapeño tenor saxophone mouthpiece.  Of course, I was super excited to try this beautiful tenor sax mouthpiece as […]

Filed Under: Mouthpiece Reviews, Tenor High Baffle Reviews, Tenor Mouthpiece Reviews Tagged With: gold, Jalapeno, MacSax, mouthpiece, review, sax, tenor saxophone

Theo Wanne Ambika 3 Gold Tenor Saxophone Mouthpiece Review

October 12, 2021 by Steve 12 Comments

Today, I am reviewing the Ambika 3 7* gold tenor saxophone mouthpiece made by Theo Wanne.  I reviewed the first version of the hard rubber Theo Wanne Ambika tenor saxophone mouthpiece over ten years ago when it first came out and am excited to be able to now review this new third version of the […]

Filed Under: Mouthpiece Reviews, Tenor Low Baffle Reviews, Tenor Mouthpiece Reviews Tagged With: Ambika 3, gold, review, sax mouthpiece, tenor saxophone, Theo Wanne

Revisiting a Lamberson J7 Tenor Saxophone Mouthpiece Review

October 5, 2021 by Steve 19 Comments

Today, I am again reviewing one of my favorite tenor saxophone mouthpieces, my beloved Lamberson J7 hard rubber tenor saxophone mouthpiece that I have had for about 14+ years.  I reviewed the Lamberson J7 many years ago here on the site but the original Lamberson J7 review is pretty lame compared to my standards for […]

Filed Under: Mouthpiece Reviews, Tenor Low Baffle Reviews, Tenor Mouthpiece Reviews Tagged With: Fred, hard rubber, J7, Lamberson, review, saxophone mouthpiece, tenor sax

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Your material is great! I got your New Altissimo Lesson 6 months ago and I have learned more from that than in all my 44 years of playing! I appreciate your down to earth teaching method and I really appreciate the heart that you teach with. I have been a subscriber to your lessons for the past 6 months and I have learned a great deal. Over that period of time I have had some questions and you have never failed to respond. Thanks! I have already recommended your lessons to a number of players in… Read more

Michael Byington
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

Love your lessons!  I have been using your lesson packages for many months now, and am learning a lot.  It is so perfect for me with a very busy adult schedule and difficulty in taking jazz/improv music lessons from reputable instructors who live and hour or more away from me.

Lenore
I can see from your instructional videos that you are a fantastic teacher – one that can truly relate to all ages – humble yet very positive in approach – never coming across as superior and yet so totally capable of demonstrating the principles and techniques that you seek to impart to the students. I have gained so much confidence in my playing from “pouring over” time and again these invaluable lessons. Invaluable not only in musical content, but also in human interaction content. I am absolu… Read more
Ron
First, I’m really excited about your materials! This site is a vast resource for any aspiring (and maybe already inspired) jazz musicians. I’m not a sax player, I play mandolin and fiddle, but have been learning jazz and playing weekly with a quintet for the past 6 months and have been struggling with all of the issues you get into in your lessons. I bought several books and lessons and plan to continue with some others as soon as I organize my practice routine. Thanks again for a great site … Read more
Tony Galfano
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 have been a member of Neffmusic for more than a year now and have enjoyed every minute of it! I have not only been going thru the Dominant Bebop Scale lessons and book (OUTSTANDING!) but the mouthpiece reviews, solo clips and transcriptions are very interesting. Steve approach to beginning and intermediate improv have given me many new pathways to teach my high school jazz ensemble students. Congratulations Steve, great product!
Craig
Hey Steve, My name is Jason Freese and I play keyboards and sax in the band Green Day.  I grew up taking sax lessons from Eric Marienthal when I was a kid and got out of it for a long time. I ran into you on youtube while searching for sax stuff. I bought a whole bunch of your lessons and have been loving it! Thanks! Here is my wikipedia so you can see the albums I’ve played on….Thanks again. It’s sparked my interest in practicing again.   Jason
Jason Freese (sax player for Green Day)

Steve, just a note to say thanks.

I’ve been playing a long time, but your material, laid out in such a thoughtful way, helps me to understand concepts in a new and deeper way.

You are a true gift to the jazz community.

60 lessons and going strong,

Kevin Ledbetter

Kevin Ledbetter

Steve,  Just want to say thanks for all you are doing for all of us. I’ve learned more from you than anyone else in my 40 years of playing.

If you can give some tips on One Note Samba, Ceora, and Wave… that would be cool.  I really like learning how you apply your concepts to actual songs!

Have a great year,

Kevin Ledbetter

I've learned more from you than anyone else in my 40 years of playing.
Hi Steve, I have been shedding your materials for quite a while now and I love them! They are extremely well organized and presented and there are tons of ’em! I really appreciate your methodical approach and find myself referring students to your resources often.  Thanks so much!  
Kenyon Carter

Hello Steve,

I have not received my alto yet but have already gone through 14 lessons. I love your approach, style, knowledge and competence. I now regret so much to have stayed away from playing the sax for the past 45-50 years…(I am 65).  But It is never too late to get back to your first love. After 23 years in compuer sciences and 22 years in finances…I am now back to music for the rest of my life.

Doing some research on the net, I found this:

http://forum.saxontheweb.net/showthread.php?1… Read more

Claude
I’m an experienced player in the pop/soul/funk areas of music and, previously, classical.  Over the decades I’ve been playing, I’ve always felt that I could do what I needed in those styles of music.  However, recently I began to feel limited by my use of the same old licks. When I discovered Steve Neff’s website, and heard the audio examples based on the exercises in his books, I realized they were what I needed.  I purchased all of them and have been working on them since.  It’s very hard work… Read more
Paul

Thank You Steve. I think that I will be busy for years. Thank You for your great contribution to jazz music. Your books, more than teaching “how to play jazz”, actually teach “how to speak jazz”. I wish I found your methods years ago.  

Jean-Eric

Mr. Neff,  I want to thank you for sharing your God-given talents through your on-line lessons.  My husband, Michael, is blind, but he is a great sax player and he has been enjoying your lessons for quite some time now.  It’s not unusual for me to hear “Hey, babe, listen to THIS!” – and he will cut loose on his sax, just thrilled at what he learned during his session with you.  His excitement warms my heart!  You have no idea how much you have poured into my husband.  You have opened musical … Read more

Carole B
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
I am a music book junkie and I have to say that your books are the most clear, user friendly, and helpful books I own.  They are my absolute favorites and I only wish I had them years ago.  I wouldn’t change a thing about the experience I had in acquiring my degree at Berklee, but my playing has perhaps grown more in the time I’ve spent buried in your books and lessons.  Keep up the great work!!! Thanks, John
John
I’ve been having ‘ online’  lessons with Steve for a few months now. Being a teacher myself I had had some reservations with the idea at first and the practicalities of it .  Let me just say that my playing has taken a huge leaps forward while studying with Steve and continues to do so.Steve studied with some renowned player/teachers such as Bergonzi and Garzone– this in itself is invaluable but Steve teaches from his own books, which cover a a vast amount of  jazz language. Steve h… Read more
David
Your major diatonic patterns book is great. I”m studying the first twenty patterns (first twenty pages) each day with different articulation each day and slowly increasing the tempo each week or so.  There is a noticeable improvement in finger coordination across all keys and its amazing how much more secure I feel on the difficult keys when attempting to play pieces with 5+ flats/sharps. I’m able to sort out the fingerings for these pieces now much more quickly than before, often in one or two … Read more
Geoff
Hi Steve, I can’t express just how much I appreciate your teaching. My playing has improved so much over the past year since I have been studying and practicing with your lessons. It is possible to teach an old dog new tricks, these lessons are proof! Thanks, Michael Byington
Michael Byington
Thanks so much for putting all this great learning material out there. I don’t often have the time to take a lesson with a teacher, so the ability to download lessons is really invaluable. My playing has improved enormously (I think :)) – and the lessons are so varied there’s always something to be inspired by. Incredible value too!
Roger

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
Steve- I joined your site this month and have downloaded 4 lessons and also purchased your new book and video on diatonic patterns. I just want to say I am very pleased with your approach and teaching techniques. I am getting back into playing after laying off for some time. The information you offer on your site is of great value and I am enjoying being a member. Thank you for what you are doing for the saxophone community.
Tony

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

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