On January 28th we put together a hang for Phoenix Area trumpet players, this is the 4th or 5th one in the last 6 months we have had.
During this get together Bruce Lee, from Facet Mutes, brought a selection of hand made exotic wood Facet Mutes for everyone to play.

We decided to record the same excerpt, with the same player, on the same trumpet & mouthpiece... so the only variable was the mute.

Facet Mutes Harmon Prototype, American Cedar

Technical Details Excerpt: Transcribed lick from a Ziggy Elman's solo on "And the Angels Sing." Oh, wait .... it might have been Ein Heldenleben Horn: Silver Claude Gordon Benge Mpc:Curry 70S cup and backbore with an old JetTone wide, flat rim, and a very lightweight blank. Recorder: Digital Yamaha W24 2-Microphone portable audio recorder, distance about 15 feet. Room: Large church meeting room... low drop ceiling, not aucoustically designed. Just a room.

Facet Wood Straight Mutes

Download	Name	Play	Size	Length
	african-rosewood-straight		0.1 MB	0:07 min
	cherry-straight		0.1 MB	0:08 min
	padauck-straight		0.1 MB	0:07 min
	purpleheart-yellowheart		0.1 MB	0:07 min
	sitka-spruce-straight		0.1 MB	0:07 min
	spanish-cedar-straight		0.1 MB	0:08 min
	walnut-ambrosia-straight		0.1 MB	0:07 min
	zebrawood-straight		0.1 MB	0:07 min
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Facet Mutes Harmon Prototype - American Cedar

Download	Name	Play	Size	Length
	american-cedar-harmon-prototype		0.1 MB	0:08 min
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For comparison, we also recorded the same clip with traditional mutes:

Traditional Metal Mutes -

Download	Name	Play	Size	Length
	joral-aluminum-harmon		0.1 MB	0:07 min
	joral-copper-harmon		0.1 MB	0:07 min
	tom-crown-copper-straight		0.1 MB	0:08 min
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Observations

It was really suprising how mush difference in sound ewach wood variety is. Bruce explained that each wood has different properties such as grain, hardness, density.. each wood responded to overtones differently and had a slightly different tonal color. My favorite was the Walnut-Ambrosia when I played it... but some guys preffered the Sitka Spruce. They ALL sounded great!

Bruce also brought a demo prototype of a Facet Mutes Harmon, made from American Spruce. It was probably just about 5" in diameter. Bruce commented that the next one would be a bit larger.

Let me say this... It is a gem! The projection & intonation of the sound was far better than a traditional harmon mute. You could really play softly but still get the sound to your audience without overblowing to project as is common with metal harmons. The sound was rich and full, and distinctive. I will own one of the first few that come off the line. (Bruce... there WILL BE a line, right!?)

If you want more information about Facet Mutes contact:

 

 

Hi Gang!

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