Tom Scott and Kirk Whalum, two of the most influential and widely recorded saxophonists of all time, recently switched over to the new JodyJazz HR* CUSTOM DARK Soprano mouthpiece. The latest addition to JodyJazz’s extremely popular HR* CUSTOM DARK line of premium hard rubber mouthpieces, Tom and Kirk were enticed by their beautiful, vintage, dark and warm sound, characteristic of the whole series.
“I remember all of us sax players listening to Tom’s recordings with the LA Express when I was at Berklee College and Kirk Whalum is one of my favorite sax players of all time,” said Jody Espina, Founder & President of JodyJazz. “So it is an absolute thrill for me to have these two legends playing my mouthpieces. I felt sure we’d come up with something really special in a soprano mouthpiece with the HR* CUSTOM DARK model and having Tom and Kirk both switch to it so quickly totally validated this feeling.”
Tom Scott is a renowned saxophonist, composer, arranger, producer, music director and educator. His 33 solo recordings have earned him 13 Grammy nominations and 3 Grammy awards. In addition to his fabled LA Express Band, his career spans more than 2000 recordings with numerous credits including Barbra Streisand, Quincy Jones, The Blues Brothers, Frank Sinatra, Aretha Franklin, George Harrison, Aerosmith, Joni Mitchell, Steely Dan, Carole King, Paul McCartney, Rod Stewart, Blondie and Whitney Houston, plus countless movie soundtracks and TV scores.
Tom is playing the HR* CUSTOM DARK Soprano 7* model about which he said, “This HR* CUSTOM DARK Soprano mouthpiece produces a rich, mellow tone….I’ve been converted! No other mouthpiece can match it!”
Grammy Award-winning global recording Artist Kirk Whalum began his career as an in-demand session player with top Artists like Barbara Streisand, Al Jarreau, Luther Vandross, Larry Carlton, Quincy Jones and most notably Whitney Houston with whom he recorded the famous sax solo on the mega-hit, “I Will Always Love You.” A successful career as a solo Artist soon followed with numerous soul/jazz and gospel hit recordings. Kirk’s most recent release is the acclaimed Humanité project which is the result of his encounters with some of the finest recording artists from all over the world.
Kirk is playing the HR* CUSTOM DARK Soprano 8 model about which he said, “Achieving a rich sound on such a small instrument is its own enigma! But that richness isn’t a given. The mouthpiece is crucial to coaxing that richness out. The new HR* CUSTOM DARK Soprano does the job!”
Like all JodyJazz mouthpieces, the incredible free-blowing response of the HR* CUSTOM DARK Soprano 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.
