Rousseau® Mouthpieces - A Legend Reborn
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Upon acquiring the Rousseau mouthpiece company in January of this year, Jody Espina declared that his three main goals were “to produce the mouthpieces in the same manner and specifications that Dr. Rousseau intended, to be of service to Dr. Rousseau's students and the community at large with the same dedication as the Rousseau family and, lastly, to perpetuate and foster the story and
legacy of this great man of the saxophone, Dr. Eugene Rousseau." And then very suddenly we found ourselves in the midst of an unprecedented global pandemic, the likes of which the world had never seen before. Though the rate at which we could set about accomplishing those goals might have been slowed somewhat due to the pandemic, we’re very proud now to formally announce the relaunch of the Rousseau mouthpiece range.
We believe Rousseau Saxophone Mouthpieces are the finest Classical and Jazz mouthpieces available anywhere. The key is the ingenious designs created by world-renowned Concert Saxophonist and Legendary Professor Dr. Eugene Rousseau. Through his playing, teaching, mouthpiece design, and contemporary saxophone design with Yamaha, Dr. Rousseau is considered by many to have had more influence
on the saxophone than any living person. Now combined with old-world hand craftsmanship and strict quality control, there are simply no better mouthpieces for sound, control and performance on the planet.
We have made a lot of investments to reinvigorate the line including quality improvements, new logos and new packaging. You will see an all new sleeker look to the mouthpieces, more contemporary packaging and far greater consistency overall in the mouthpieces themselves. All
Rousseau mouthpieces are now hand-finished, gauged and play tested at the JodyJazz Factory and held to the highest quality standards.
What is different about Rousseau Mouthpieces under JodyJazz ownership?
– A message from Jody:
“Great design and consistency have been my obsession since I started making mouthpieces in the year 2000 under the mentorship of Santy Runyon. At that time, the lack of consistency in mouthpieces drove me crazy! So I’ve dedicated the past 20 years of my life to not only making mouthpiece designs that play beautifully, but to ensuring that in production they all play nearly
identically, and always with the highest standards of craftsmanship. The Rousseau mouthpieces have timeless, amazing designs that help saxophonists express whatever they are hearing. It’s my honor and privilege to bring a new consistency to everyone that buys a Rousseau mouthpiece. We expertly hand-finish, measure, gauge and play-test every single Rousseau mouthpiece at the JodyJazz Factory.”
We are very excited also to announce the launch of the all new Rousseau website. We are honored to bring you a website that celebrates Dr. Rousseau and his teachings which are in full display in the lessons section of the website. Here you will
find a wealth of University level instructional material, all written and performed by Eugene Rousseau himself, indispensable to all serious students of the saxophone. In addition, the Rousseau Artists, almost all of whom have studied with Dr. Rousseau, are among the top players and University Educators in the World. We have presented them here with many videos. Just by perusing the Artists pages you will find even more educational material of the highest
caliber.
New HR* CUSTOM DARK Alto Models
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Following the tremendous success of the HR* CUSTOM DARK Tenor model launched at the 2020 NAMM show, we quickly set about the development of the Alto model. During the slow down due to the pandemic, we were able to accelerate many R&D projects which were already in progress and bring forward the
introduction of several new mouthpieces including the HR* CUSTOM DARK Alto.
The HR* CUSTOM DARK series is JodyJazz’s line of premium hard rubber mouthpieces. The new HR* CUSTOM DARK Alto offers the same beautiful, warm, dark, traditional, vintage-sound characteristic of the HR* CUSTOM DARK series. We consider these to be the most beautiful sounding and
playing mouthpieces we've ever made.
The HR* CUSTOM DARK Alto is made using the company's proprietary 'CHR' Chedeville Hard Rubber. This exclusive special hard rubber formula, which was developed for the company's Chedeville brand of Classical mouthpieces, imparts more warmth and beauty in the sound due
to its purity and density. As with the Chedeville mouthpieces, the new HR* CUSTOM DARK Alto bears the ‘CHR’ mark to identify its construction from this special hard rubber.
“Alto sax players often find with many mouthpieces that there are a lot of unpleasant highs in the sound, especially on the higher notes,” says Jody. “With the new HR* CUSTOM DARK Alto, we retained the fun of playing a
great Alto mouthpiece while taking all the unpleasant highs off. We achieved this by shaping a beautiful rollover baffle which gives it the pop and feedback that Alto players are used to, and then making a big large chamber and bore to give it this mellow, warm, pretty sound.”
Here is our newest Ad featuring the HR* CUSTOM DARK Alto which recently appears on the back cover of Downbeat.
The new HR* CUSTOM DARK Alto also features a heavy stylized ring on the shank of the mouthpiece. The profile and heft of this ring was inspired by JodyJazz's popular POWER RING® ligature. With significantly more mass on the shank of the mouthpiece the HR* CUSTOM DARK Alto enjoys a boost of body
and increased harmonics.
Like all JodyJazz mouthpieces, the incredible free-blowing response of the HR* CUSTOM DARK Alto is due to a superior facing curve and expert hand finished tip rail, baffle and table and each mouthpiece is individually play tested to maintain the highest consistency and quality.
Available now, the new HR* CUSTOM DARK Altos have an MSRP of $350.00 and are available in 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 & 9 tip openings.
New DV BEATBoX 'Special Pack' - LIMITED TIME OFFER!
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JodyJazz has teamed up with BG France and Legere Reeds to give saxophonists the opportunity to get ‘Beatbox Sax’ pioneer Derek Brown’s complete mouthpiece set-up. This incredible ‘Special Pack’ offers Derek’s new DV BEATBoX Tenor mouthpiece packaged with his preferred BG France DUO Rose Gold Ligature and Légère Signature 2.50 Reed, all for the regular price of just the
mouthpiece!!
Yes, that’s right……the BG DUO Ligature and cap, and Légère Signature Reed are included at no extra charge!! A total $179 retail value absolutely FREE!
But this is a LIMITED TIME OFFER. The Special Pack is available only while supplies last! So get yours NOW!!
DV BEATBoX Tenor Mouthpiece
MSRP: $650
The new DV BEATBoX Tenor is a silver-plated customized DV mouthpiece in a #5 Tip Opening. Since Derek Brown first began inventing new extended techniques on the saxophone he's been doing it with the DV Tenor mouthpiece. We worked with Derek to perfect a new mouthpiece that allows him to perform his extraordinary 'Beatbox' techniques with less effort and just the right amount of response.
Available now to all saxophonists looking for the type of control it takes to do what Derek does.
BG France DUO Rose Gold Ligature & Cap
MSRP: $144.95
The rose gold “DUO” metal ligature is handcrafted in France. It provides a balanced/flexible tone for the saxophonist. This ligature offers reed contact/mouthpiece contact in only 4 places. The ligature enables the reed to have the maximum vibrations.
The Légère Signature Reed
MSRP: $33.99
The Legere Signature reed is bright, stable and colored with a full spectrum of overtones. The Signature is thinner and stiffer than a traditional cane reed, making it responsive and articulate in all registers and dynamics. The reed’s bright yet focused sound is why it’s the preferred reed of advanced and professional players in both jazz and classical settings.
Savannah-Safe Jazz Festival 2020
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At JodyJazz we have been long time supporters of the Savannah Jazz Festival. Jody served on the Board of Directors for many years and currently JodyJazz VP of Sales & Marketing Colin Schofield serves on the Board. The Savannah Jazz Festival takes place during the last week of September and is a free
festival that normally consists of a week long series of concerts and performances throughout the city of Savannah culminating in three nights outdoors in beautiful Forsyth Park. The festival historically attracts huge crowds to the city and the final three nights of concerts 'under the stars' would normally see crowds of 10-15 thousand people gathered in the park. Then COVID-19 arrived on these shores and like the entire music and entertainment industry, 'business as usual' was no longer an
option.
But rather than retreat, the organizers of the festival reimagined the event as an online experience, eventually delivering 16 live-streamed shows and a film, plus 10 Master Classes (streamed from the JodyJazz showroom) to local, regional, national and international viewers.
Temporarily renamed the "Savannah-Safe Jazz Festival" in alliance with the City's "Savannah Safe" pandemic containment initiative, the festival ultimately attracted 175,000 viewers worldwide with every continent reached other than Antarctica!
The festival featured over 60 performers including JodyJazz Artists Brian Miller and Jazmin Ghent and also Jody himself. His second appearance at the festival, Brian delivered a typically soul-drenched mixture of straight ahead Jazz with Gospel highlights and didn’t shy away from
showcasing his blazing chops. And oh “that sound”!! Though Jazmin might have been less well known to the Savannah Jazz audience before the festival, that was certainly not the case after her performance. Jazmin wowed the crowd in attendance and watching online with her vibrant playing, inspirational spirit and natural charisma. She ably led the world-class house rhythm section through an energetic set consisting of original tunes and her signature arrangements of some
classics.
Jody was a featured performer with acclaimed vocalist Stephanie Nakasian and the Savannah Jazz Orchestra All-Stars.
The safety of all the performers and attendees was of paramount importance. The festival performances were all streamed from Savannah's famous 'Ships of the Sea Museum' and the outdoors but covered venue provided the ideal environment to minimize any potential spread of the virus. The small audience consisting of sponsors, specially invited guests and some lucky sweepstakes winners was
restricted to no more than 50 people at all times.
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