Martin Williams

Ive been told and from what ive been able to see the Yamaha 6310Z is more or less a copy of the Couesnon Flugelhorn

I was just wondering how similar are they really? What are the differences? Is the Couesnon replaceable with the Yamaha?

gchun

First off, I have owned both. I have sold the Cousnon and still have the Z.

The Z uses a standard shank mouthpiece. The Cousnon uses a straight shank, or French taper. I had trouble finding French taper mouthpieces for the Cousnon that worked, so that may have been part of the problem. The horn had a great sound, but the response was uneven (even with the one french taper mpc I had). Pitch was little off, but still very workable.

The Z has very even response. It played well from day one, and it plays even better once I stopped overblowing it. It doesn't need a lot of air to fill the horn. The horn projects well, and it still responds beautifully at soft volumes. Pitch is very good. One problem I have is with the valves. If I use it everyday, everything is fine. But, if I don't, the valves stick. It just takes a little time to get them going.

I've owned a bunch of flugels. The progression is

Yamaha 631 in lacquer
Cousnon in lacquer
Yamaha 635 in silver
Yamaha Z in lacquer

The 635 was close to the Cousnon. The Z is even closer to it. Much more responsive and plays with less effort.

The Z is a perfect fit for me. My point of reference for flugel sound is a very light, nimble sound, (ala Guido Basso, etc.) This horn is perfect for that. I don't care for the huge, tubby flugel sound.

Hope this helps,
Garry