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Metal Mouthpieces From Remle: The Bright Side Of SaxophonicsJazz saxophonists looking for a more contemporary popsound can turn to a couple of different metal mouthpiecelines from Remle Musical Products for some serioustone-enhancing options.The Beechler Bellite mouthpiece is cast from hardstainless steel that provides a quickened response timeand brings out the brilliance of naturally produced overtones.The alto and tenor models have a medium-highbaffle and an open chamber, which supports a bright,contemporary sound that’s especially useful when playingin bands with electric instruments or recording withMIDI tracks. The Bellite baritone and soprano models featurean open baffle and open chamber, allowing for morerounded, yet still edgy, tonal production.Remle’s ARB metal sax mouthpiece has a high baffleand a step-off chamber (on alto, tenor and bari) to allowfor a deep, versatile tone that transitions well fromextreme brightness to a dark, mellow timbre thatapproaches woodiness. (The ARB soprano has a mediumopen chamber and medium baffle, making it a littleeasier to control.) Modeled after the old Level-Air mouthpiecesdesigned by Arnold Brilhart, the ARB metal featuresa machined facing that combines geometric curvesand parabolas for consistent response throughout theentire range of the sax.I play-tested the Beechler Bellite tenor model in two different sizes(B82-6 and B82-7), filling the room with a pretty sound that required nopushing; when I applied a little muscle, the Bellite responded withenough grit to significanlty sharpen the tonal edge. My low end soundednoticeably fatter and freer-blowing on the size #7, and the upperregister felt a little more resistant on the #6.On bari, I tried an ARB metal (A83-6) and was immediatleyimpressed by the enhanced power and enormous sound it allowedme to produce up and down the horn. It played just like a BrilhartLevel-Air, only brighter, with a focused tone that projected like a rocket.The tenor ARB Custom metal (C13-6)—which has slightly moresophisticated internal contours than the regular ARB metal—was myfavorite of the tenor mouthpieces from Remle. It blew openly in all registersand had the best intonation of all the models I tried, plus a slightlydarker, more sophisticated tone. Like the Bellite, the ARB metalsounded great on ballads, repsonding sweetly with a minimum ofeffort and wind support.Remle’s metal sax mouthpieces have a streamlined exterior designand are great for players with smaller mouths. They also fit tightly onthe neck-cork compared to other mouthpiece lines. If you ever want totake a walk on the bright side of playing sax, check ’em out. They arealso reasonably priced, as most models reviewed here list in the$300–$400 range. —Ed Enright»Ordering info: beechler.comKurzweil PC3LE Series: High-Performance Keyboard ControllersKurzweil has introduced thePC3LE6, PC3LE7 and PC3LE8performance controller keyboards.The keyboards featureKurzweil’s PC3 with a newstreamlined, intelligent userinterface. The 61-, 76- and 88-note professional keyboardsprovide natural, semi-weightedactions with velocity- and aftertouch-sensitivekeys.The user interfaces of thePC3LE6, PC3LE7 and PC3LE8are designed for a quick learningcurve and ease of use. Move any knob, button or wheel and the LEwill display the name, value and parameter being controlled. Allchanges are tracked in real time, including changes to effects chains.Keyboard setup is fast and flexible. Setup mode enables the PC3LEs to act as MIDI controllers, with 16 independent, fully programmablearpeggiators that can be mapped to 16 zones and 16 simultaneousriffs.THe PC3LE series offers 64 voices of polyphony, all the DSP powerof the PC3 and up to 10 available insert effects. String sections, vintagekeys, virtual analog, B3 organs and pianos—as well as drums, basses,guitars, voices and horns—are all well represented in a sound set thatnumbers more than 1,050.—Ed Enright»Ordering info: kurzweil.comMay 2010 DOWNBEAT 111