DLP08

Hey everyone, I'll make this short and sweet. I had the pleasure of taking lessons from an amazing guy. This guy had me switch mouthpieces from my 14A4A to a 3C. He told me you can do anything with a deeper cup that you can with a shallower cup, it will just take more practice...but the end result will be favorable.

I play on a 3C and my range and flexibility are both decent. My range is low as a strong pedal B and a strong high F. After the F it gets weaker and I'm working on it, but I can get out a triple A a bit quieter and squeak a triple C occasionally , though I will never play one as of yet..it DOES sound pretty bad and I admit it, but I'm working.

Anyways, I'm beginning to drift off topic. I played on a 6A4A just for fun the other day and the sound that I got was the cutting sound that I had always dreamed of! Also, my flexibility increased by an extreme amount. I tried my luck at the lower range and while it was not as strong, I believe it will be easy to work on.

So my question is, what would be the pros and cons for and against a shallower mouthpiece? The basis of all my studying comes from the Vizzutti books, and he plays on a shallow mouthpiece, so how bad can it be?

I also hear of bottoming out and would like to hear exactly what this means. I know I have experienced it but I can't provide an explanation as to what it is or why it happens.

For the - Too Long Didn't Read Version -

1. My desired sound was accomplished through a shallower mouthpiece. What are the pros and cons of switching to a shallower mouthpiece?

2. What is bottoming out?

Thanks,

David