Walter Grabner 991 Wildwood Lane Highland Park, IL 60035 847-266-8644 World Class Clarinet Mouthpieces I am back from a refreshing vacation in sunny Italy! All mouthpiece orders will be processed promptly! Please remember: When you order my mouthpieces, you are getting a high-quality hand-crafted mouthpiece. Creating a great mouthpiece takes time and care. Every mouthpiece is individually hand-crafted and extensively play tested. It is not unusual for me to test a mouthpiece – one mouthpiece – for over an hour before shipping it to a customer. My mouthpieces have become very popular. In recent months I have received many more orders than I have been able to fill immediately. Please expect at least one week between the time you order and the time of shipment. I will try to do better than that, but I need your patience as I juggle my playing, teaching, and mouthpiece-making schedule to satisfy as many people as I can! I am trying very hard to keep my mouthpieces affordable. If you “comparison shop” you will see that most of my competitors change more than I do. I know that many of my customers are students on limited budgets or live in countries where the cost of a hand crafted mouthpiece is prohibitive. To keep prices down, I have had to change my trial policies. Please read the new Mouthpiece Trials section.

Bb/A Clarinet Mouthpieces: Kaspar-Style Mouthpieces Personal Series Mouthpieces CHICAGO Style Mouthpieces Jazz/Klezmer Mouthpiece NEW - Student Mouthpieces Other Clarinet Mouthpieces: C clarinet mouthpieces Eb Clarinet Mouthpieces Alto Clarinet Mouthpiece Basset Horn Mouthpiece Bass Clarinet Mouthpieces EB Contra Alto Mouthpiece BBb Contra Bass Mouthpiece Serial Number Policy Mouthpiece Trials Mouthpiece "Optimization" Mouthpiece Re-facing Customer Comments Home Page Clarinet Mouthpiece Facings Explained Soprano Clarinet Mouthpiece Comparison Chart New Kaspar-Style Mouthpiece – CXZ_K11* New Kaspar-Style Mouthpiece – CXZ_K13* The CXZ_K2e is back!

Clarinet Mouthpieces

If you have a question about any of my mouthpieces, please contact me. I am ALWAYS interested and available to answer your questions. I am most easily contacted by e-mail and try to answer all inquires. To contact me, click here.

Now in my eleventh year of business, I have been fortunate to enjoy considerable success with my mouthpieces.

Since 1998, I have hand crafted over six thousand five hundred mouthpieces!

I have shipped mouthpieces to clarinetists in professional orchestras and bands and at leading music schools around the world, including the following countries:

· United States · Australia · Austria · Argentina · Belgium · Bolivia · Brazil · Bulgaria · Canada · China · Croatia · Denmark · England · Finland · France · Germany · Iceland · Ireland · Israel · Italy · Japan	· Kazakhstan · Republic of Korea · Latvia · Malta · Mexico · The Netherlands · New Zealand · Norway · The Philippines · Poland · Romania · Russia · Scotland · Singapore · Slovakia · Spain · Sweden · Switzerland · Taiwan · Thailand · Uruguay

A collection of Grabner mouthpieces.

I perform extensively in orchestras, in recital, and as a soloist, and I am proud to say I play exclusively on my own mouthpieces.

I am one of the very few mouthpiece craftsmen who make mouthpieces for all clarinets:

· Eb Soprano · C Clarinet · Bb and A Clarinet · Alto Clarinet

· Basset Horn · Bass Clarinet · Eb Contra Alto Clarinet · BBb Contra Bass Clarinet

My hand-crafted mouthpieces have been “sighted” in the following professional groups:

In the United States:

· “The President’s Own” Marine Corps Band

· Annapolis Symphony

· Ashville Symphony

· Beloit/Janesville Orchestra

· Broadway Show Orchestras

· Cedar Rapids Symphony

· Chicago Chamber Players

· Chicago Civic Symphony Orchestra

· Chicago Symphony Orchestra

· Cincinnati Symphony

· Columbus Symphony

· Eugene (Oregon) Symphony

· Evansville Symphony

· Galveston Symphony

· Golden State Pops Orchestra

· Grand Rapids Symphony

· Green Bay Symphony

· Hartford Symphony Orchestra

· Indianapolis Symphony

· Jacksonville Symphony

· Kansas City Civic Opera

· Kansas City Symphony

· Las Vegas Show Bands

· Los Angeles Philharmonic

· Madison (WI) Chamber Orchestra

· Maryland Symphony

· Naples (FL) Philharmonic

· New York City Ballet Orchestra

· Phoenix Symphony

· The Piedmont Symphony Orchestra

· Quad Cities Symphony

· Richmond Symphony

· Ridgefield (CT) Symphony

· Rockford (IL) Symphony

· South Carolina Philharmonic

· Southwest Michigan Symphony

· The Dayton Symphony

· The Detroit Symphony

· The New Haven Symphony

· The US Air Force Band

· The US Army Ground Forces Band

· The US Coast Guard Band

· Virginia Symphony

· Waterbury (CT) Symphony

· York (PA) Symphony Orchestra

International:

· Aargauer Symphony Orchestra (Switzerland)

· Australian Opera and Ballet Orchestra (Sydney Opera)

· Bilbao Symphony Orchestra

· CastleWard Opera Company (Ireland)

· City of Southhampton Orchestra (UK)

· Icelandic Opera Orchestra

· Icelandic Symphony Orchestra

· Israel Philharmonic

· Kirov Orchestra of the Mariinsky Theatre (Russia)

· Latvian National Symphony Orchestra

· Lugano (Italy) Wind Symphony

· Mexico City Philharmonic

· Nice Philharmonic Orchestra

· Orquesta a Base de Sopro - Brazil

· Orchestra del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino (Italy)

· Orquesta Sinfónica de la Universidad de Guanajuato

· Orquestra Sinfônica Estadual do Paraná

· Rome (Italy) Philharmonic

· Royal Australian Air Force Band

· Royal Scottish National Orchestra

· State Academic Symphony Orchestra of Kazakhstan

· Swedish Armed Forces Navy Band

· Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra

· Symphony New Brunswick, Canada

· Symphony Orchestra of Alicante (Spain)

· The Royal Danish Lifeguards Band

· Toronto Opera Orchestra

· Ulster (Northern Ireland) Symphony Orchestra

· West Australian Symphony Orchestra

· Young National Orchestra of Spain

To report a Grabner mouthpiece “sighting,” just click below and send me an e-mail.

Optimized – What does this mean?

Some might call it “reed friendly.” Since my earliest days as a mouthpiece maker, I have attempted to “optimize” or “fit” a given mouthpiece to a certain strength (and brand) of reed. Most of my mouthpieces are optimized for Vandoren V12 reeds and the most popular strengths, either #4 ½, #4, #3 ½, or #3 reeds. Of course, other brands of reeds work fine, such as Gonzales, Legere, Vandoren Rue Lepic, etc.

The concept is to make mouthpieces that fit reeds that are available, making reed selection easier and adjustment less arduous. Each mouthpiece is tested against several representative reeds fitting the description and style of the mouthpiece. How well I succeed can only be decided by your reactions and playing experiences. Any feedback you can give me is welcomed.

Trial and Return Policy

Please do not ask me to ship you mouthpieces without a deposit payment. Mouthpiece blanks are not free, and my time is not free. I have a liberal trial and return policy that should easily meet your needs.

Trial Rules:

You may order by using the shopping cart (PayPal), sending a check, or calling with a credit card number. All mouthpieces must be paid for in full before I can ship them. Refunds on returned mouthpieces are processed promptly.

Your invoice has two dates, the Invoice date (shipping date) and a Due Date. The trial period ends on Due Date (Set to three weeks after Invoice date, four weeks for international orders).

Returned mouthpieces must be postmarked by the Due Date indicated on the invoice.

Returned mouthpieces postmarked after “Due Date” are considered purchased and will be returned to purchaser. E-mail in advance if there is going to be an unavoidable delay.

Mouthpieces returned with non-removable tooth and/or ligature scratches will be considered purchased and returned.

Please use a box to mail returned mouthpieces. Padded envelopes do NOT work. click here to see an example.

If you are returning a mouthpiece, you are responsible for it until it arrives at my address, printed above. To be safe:

· Ship the item using an approved carrier.

· Save all tracking info or other proof of shipment.

I recommend USPS Priority Mail. Within the U.S. USPS Priority mail is very safe and reliable, but not infallible. To be completely safe, use Signature confirmation and/or insurance.

Serial Number Tracking

As a service to my mouthpiece customers, I put serial numbers on my mouthpieces. In my records, I keep serial #, facing info, internal and external dimensions, and type and origin of blank. Therefore, if YOUR mouthpiece is lost or broken, I can duplicate it for you.  This is important protection for your future playing security.

Soprano Mouthpiece Comparison Chart

Model/Links	Tip	Tip in mm	Curve	Pitch	Character	Reed
CXZ_AW_PERS	Medium Close	1.04 - 1.06	Medium	440	Warm/Dark/Lyric	3 ½
CXZ_C35	Very Close	0.95 - 0.98	Short	440	Projects/Warm	3 ½
CXZ_C35e	Very Close	0.95 - 0.98	Short	442	Projects/Warm	3 ½
CXZ_C40	Very Close	0.95 - 0.98	Medium	440	Projects/Dark/Precise	4
CXZ_C40e	Very Close	0.95 - 0.98	Medium	442	Projects/Dark/Precise	4
CXZ_K11	Close	1.01 - 1.03	Medium	440	Projects/Lively/Darkest	3 ½ to 4
CXZ_K11* (star)	Close	1.00 - 1.02	Medium - enhanced	440	Projects/Dark/Focused	4
CXZ_K11e	Close	1.01 - 1.03	Medium	442	Projects/Lively/Darkest	3 ½ to 4
CXZ_K13	Medium Close	1.04 - 1.06	Medium	440	Projects/Lively/Darker	3 ½
CXZ_K13* (star)	Medium Close	1.03 - 1.04	Medium - enhanced	440	Projects/Dark/Focused	3 ½
CXZ_K13e	Medium Close	1.04 - 1.06	Medium	442	Projects/Lively/Darker	3 ½
CXZ_K14	Medium	1.07 - 1.09	Medium	440	Projects/Lively/Free	3 to 3 ½
CXZ_K14e	Medium	1.07 - 1.09	Medium	442	Projects/Lively/Free	3 to 3 ½
CXZ_K2e	Medium Close	1.04 - 1.06	Medium	442	Projects/Darker	3 ½ to 4

I have a fetish about making the facing what I call a rational curve. Sure, it’s fine to "hit the numbers," but you can do that and still have a poor mouthpiece. In short, my technique ensures that "between the numbers" there is a smooth, even, logical progression to the curve. I engineer my facings to be as reed friendly as I possibly can. See “optimization.”

* Pitch – I offer mouthpieces at 440 and 442. Of course, I cannot guarantee the pitch of your clarinet by mouthpiece alone. There are too many other factors. What it does mean, is that the 440 mouthpieces will generally play at 440 with a standard 66 mm barrel. The 442 mouthpieces will play higher using that same barrel.

The 440 mouthpieces can play at 442 with a shorter barrel, usually 1 mm shorter.

Please click on the links above for information about my products and services. To contact me, click here.

Please don’t return your trial mouthpieces with packaging looking like this. There will be a $2 packaging replacement fee. This mouthpiece was returned to me using a padded soft-sided envelope. To return mouthpieces, use the box in which they were sent to you.

Copyright: Walter Grabner, 2004