SKDS BANDS               Parents and Guardians               

The band instrument your student is using is probably a student model, or a beginner instrument.  These are quality instruments built to balance  durability, quality of product, and price.  Because of this, beginner instruments will never deliver the tone quality that intermediate or professional instruments will.  While many students play studnet instruments into high school with no problem, serious band students will find that they reach a point where they have outgrown their instrument.  There are several options available for these students.  Both music stores that SKDS deals with will drop off mouthpieces and instruments for our students to try out before purchasing.

• The first (and cheapest!) thing to do is a mouthpiece upgrade.  
•  For clarinet and saxophone players, using a quality mouthpiece (for around $100) can make as much of a difference as an instrument upgrade.  And if you do buy a new instrument,  you should still buy a quality mouthpiece to go with it.  Make sure to also purchase a quality ligature to go with the mouthpiece- otherwise many of the benefits of the better mouthpiece are lost.  Another important factor is the reeds.  While La Voz reeds are good, Vandoren reeds are better.  A student who uses a medium hard LaVoz reed would use a 2 1/2 VanDoren reed.  
• For brass players, the mouthpieces listed below may or may not be a "step up" in terms of your student's sound.  The idea is that a slightly bigger mouthpiece will equal a better sound.   There are many, many choices of mouthpieces out there for brass instruments, all with slightly different rims, cup sizes and shapes, etc.  It is a good idea for your advanced student to try another size for a few weeks, and see how it effects their tone quality and range.  

                Suggested brands: 

• Clarinets: Rovner or Bonade ligature, VanDoren B45 mouthpiece 
• Saxes: Rovner or Bonade ligature, Vandoren 5rv Lyre mouthpiece,  Yamaha 4C mouthpiece, Meyer 5 medium rubber mouthpiece, Selmer C* mouthpiece
• Trumpets: Bach 3C mouthpiece - 
• French Horns: Conn 11 or Giardanelli mouthpiece
• Trombones/Euphoniums: 6 ½ AL mouthpiece
  

• Intermediate Instruments
• Intermediate instruments are generally made out of  better materials than student models, can have more keys, a bigger bore (to give brass players a bigger sound), and be built with better quality control.  Sometimes what makes an instrument "intermediate" is more cosmetic than truly beneficial to the sound.  While some teachers believe that intermediate instruments are not as good a value as the professional level instruments, they can be a good option if the professional level of instruments is simply too expensive.  Some intermediate instruments will deliver a greatly improved sound; others may not.  Mrs. Battenberg, music store representatives, and the internet are great resources for finding out general information on these instruments.  Once you have done some basic information and have a few good options, your student should try out the instrument(s) he/she is considering.  Both Heid Music and Ward-Brodt will let your student try out an instrument first if you are interested in purchasing one.

• Professional Instruments
• If you have the means, a professional level instrument (with a great mouthpiece) will give your student the best raw material from which to make their music.   These instruments, if taken of care, will keep much of their value over the years and are a great investment in every way.  There are many choices for each instrument; check with Mrs. Battenberg, music stores, and the internet to find a few choices.  Your student should then test out several different models before making a decision of what to buy.   As all students are different, the best instrument for your student is a very personal choice and should be based on their experience (and not someone else's!).

• Resources
• The Woodwind and the Brasswind provides a great online resource for prices on everything from reeds to mouthpieces to instruments.
• Ward-Brodt and Heid Music both make deliveries to our school weekly, and will be happy to let your student try out some different models of mouthpieces or instruments.

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