A meeting between Charlie Parker and Ted Klum

Imagine a unique encounter between Ted Klum and Charlie Parker. "Hi Ted, this is Charlie.... Charlie, meet Ted."

Ted Klum, a skilled craftsman with a deep understanding of the secrets of saxophone mouthpieces, currently resides in Little Falls, New Jersey. From there, he makes mouthpieces for top saxophonists around the globe.

Charles Christopher Parker, known as Charlie Parker, forged his career as an alto saxophonist in New York during the 1940s and 1950s. Along with Thelonious Monk and Dizzy Gillespie, he was the father of be-bop, a style that shaped the direction of jazz. He inspired many, including Clint Eastwood in the movie "Bird" and the writer Julio Cortázar in his short story "El perseguidor". Two highly recommended examples.

Among contemporary artists, it is easier to develop team projects, as Ted Klum does with the mouthpieces of Mark Turner, Jesse Davis, Seamus Blake, or Will Vinson, some of today's most acclaimed saxophonists.

However, the real difficulty arises when you've been trying for over 40 years to recreate a mouthpiece or a sonority that marked an entire era thanks to the legacy of Charlie Parker, so influential on most later saxophonists and who lived 50 years before you. In Ted's words:

"Developing this mouthpiece has been the biggest challenge in my entire professional career. For over 40 years, I have been pursuing different aspects of Charlie Parker's signature sound, or rather my own assimilation of it. It is extremely difficult to put into words how musically fundamental Bird is to me, but as he said in a television appearance: 'Music speaks louder than words.

The starting point for this project was the London Selmer mouthpiece that Charlie Parker played from late 1949 until his death in 1955. This mouthpiece encompasses all the characteristics that many of our customers dream of when looking for a change of mouthpiece: power, projection, warmth and that dark fullness.

It is known as the "Selmer London ff, although it is necessary to clarify that Selmer Paris had nothing to do with this bronze mouthpiece. A third English maker took care of it and it was later stamped with the logo of Selmer's English division. What is called a "stencil" in the musical instrument and accessory manufacturing industry.

We take this opportunity to remember one of Jesse Davis' visits to show you how this Ted Klum mouthpiece sounds with a Rampone & Cazzani DUE VOCCI alto saxophone, spectacular! See video here.

The Holy Grail we want to reach with this post is none other than the version so close to that Bird mouthpiece that Ted Klum has made, but at a cost that allows many of us to dream of being much closer to Charlie Parker. This is Ted Klum's Yardbird version in ebonite (premium German rubber) and hand-finished. This design starts from the same core as the brass Yardbird version, but with that extra warmth and reed flexibility that is enjoyed with ebonite. It has the same power and "pop" as the brass, but a little more "reed friendly", fitting into a standard paste alto saxophone clamp (included with the mouthpiece).

In conclusion, Ted Klum's tireless quest to capture the unique essence of Charlie Parker has resulted in the Yardbird, a mouthpiece that brings us closer to the legendary sound of the saxophone genius. This handcrafted masterpiece allows musicians from around the world to experience Parker's magic a little closer.

Don't miss the chance to get closer to your own Yardbird sound and let your music speak louder than words!