Griego Hecht

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RustBeltBass
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Griego Hecht

Post by RustBeltBass »

As I start to see people selling them on the Facebook trombone equipment group I am wondering whether people here tried them and have feedback on these mouthpieces.

Seems they offer quite a variety of sizes on these models.
Indiebass1993
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Re: Griego Hecht

Post by Indiebass1993 »

I have a Hecht 1-R. I'd say it's a solid mouthpiece. I'm still playing it and comparing it to my other bass pieces (Pickett 1.5, Griego GP). One thing I wish they did was have a piece in between the "1" and "0" models. Rim diameter goes from 27.94mm (1) to 29.46mm (0), which seems like a large jump. That being said, the 1-R is still a solid piece
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Re: Griego Hecht

Post by Burgerbob »

Indiebass1993 wrote: Wed Jun 09, 2021 8:19 pm I have a Hecht 1-R. I'd say it's a solid mouthpiece. I'm still playing it and comparing it to my other bass pieces (Pickett 1.5, Griego GP). One thing I wish they did was have a piece in between the "1" and "0" models. Rim diameter goes from 27.94mm (1) to 29.46mm (0), which seems like a large jump. That being said, the 1-R is still a solid piece
Yeah, that's strange. Brian played a GB 1G in various forms (alongside his 0Gs) which are 29mm pieces. Not sure why they are just left out.
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Re: Griego Hecht

Post by trombonedemon »

Anyone do a review because besides the backbone the measurements are almost the same as the Nor Easter
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Re: Griego Hecht

Post by RustBeltBass »

I’d be interested to read a through review. One of the op players in the world, giving lots of thought into developing a whole line of mouthpieces....sounds very interesting. I’d love to know what he found in them that he didn’t find as much in GB.
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Re: Griego Hecht

Post by harrisonreed »

LoL the "audition" series. :idk:

Talk about unabashedly sticking it to college kids.

I'm all about selling stuff that is good to people who need it. It's probably great. But what happens when you lose your audition on the audition mouthpiece.....

Orchestra edition: Sound like Brian Hecht!
Recital edition: get colors that Brian Hecht couldn't even get otherwise
Audition edition: jkjklol you don't actually want to sound like that to actually win
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Re: Griego Hecht

Post by Burgerbob »

RustBeltBass wrote: Thu Jun 10, 2021 11:32 am I’d love to know what he found in them that he didn’t find as much in GB.
Responses to emails, probably.
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Re: Griego Hecht

Post by mrdeacon »

Burgerbob wrote: Wed Jun 09, 2021 8:31 pm
Indiebass1993 wrote: Wed Jun 09, 2021 8:19 pm I have a Hecht 1-R. I'd say it's a solid mouthpiece. I'm still playing it and comparing it to my other bass pieces (Pickett 1.5, Griego GP). One thing I wish they did was have a piece in between the "1" and "0" models. Rim diameter goes from 27.94mm (1) to 29.46mm (0), which seems like a large jump. That being said, the 1-R is still a solid piece
Yeah, that's strange. Brian played a GB 1G in various forms (alongside his 0Gs) which are 29mm pieces. Not sure why they are just left out.
Part of me is curious if that's just a Griego thing. Most of their bass pieces have that jump in size. Took them years but they eventually came out with the GP7 because people wanted that in between Schilke 60 size.
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Re: Griego Hecht

Post by RustBeltBass »

Burgerbob wrote: Thu Jun 10, 2021 5:17 pm
RustBeltBass wrote: Thu Jun 10, 2021 11:32 am I’d love to know what he found in them that he didn’t find as much in GB.
Responses to emails, probably.

I heard of that problem before. But from my limited experiences with the GB company, I have nothing bad to report, nothing. When no weekend is in between, the most I had to wait for a response has been 2 days. :idk:
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Re: Griego Hecht

Post by RustBeltBass »

harrisonreed wrote: Thu Jun 10, 2021 5:03 pm LoL the "audition" series. :idk:

Talk about unabashedly sticking it to college kids.

I'm all about selling stuff that is good to people who need it. It's probably great. But what happens when you lose your audition on the audition mouthpiece.....

Orchestra edition: Sound like Brian Hecht!
Recital edition: get colors that Brian Hecht couldn't even get otherwise
Audition edition: jkjklol you don't actually want to sound like that to actually win



Whoa, pretty harsh words towards a master player and a product that has been just around for a few weeks. But I think I see where you are coming from.
Personally, I can not yet imagine a mouthpiece that has been specifically drafted for audition purposes and what would be so different about it from its orchestral twin. But again, I have not tried it. And I can not shake the feeling that most now well established innovations for our our instruments were initially met with ridicule...like, ”what a funny looking valve” hahahah.

But it is interesting to note that he is now the second high profile bass trombonist who produced a signature series with very different mouthpieces for his different needs. Ultimate with the Curran models being the other one.

Maybe that is a trend ?
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Re: Griego Hecht

Post by BenjaminStrickland »

Burgerbob wrote: Thu Jun 10, 2021 5:17 pm
RustBeltBass wrote: Thu Jun 10, 2021 11:32 am I’d love to know what he found in them that he didn’t find as much in GB.
Responses to emails, probably.
Hi Aidan

Sorry you feel we have not responded to your emails. Looking through our records you have not sent one since I have been on board. Feel free to reach out if you need anything, [email protected]. Our turnaround for emails is currently 24 hours as we are closed on Sundays.

Thanks, Ben
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Re: Griego Hecht

Post by harrisonreed »

RustBeltBass wrote: Thu Jun 10, 2021 7:07 pm
harrisonreed wrote: Thu Jun 10, 2021 5:03 pm LoL the "audition" series. :idk:

Talk about unabashedly sticking it to college kids.

I'm all about selling stuff that is good to people who need it. It's probably great. But what happens when you lose your audition on the audition mouthpiece.....

Orchestra edition: Sound like Brian Hecht!
Recital edition: get colors that Brian Hecht couldn't even get otherwise
Audition edition: jkjklol you don't actually want to sound like that to actually win
Whoa, pretty harsh words towards a master player and a product that has been just around for a few weeks. But I think I see where you are coming from.
Personally, I can not yet imagine a mouthpiece that has been specifically drafted for audition purposes and what would be so different about it from its orchestral twin. But again, I have not tried it. And I can not shake the feeling that most now well established innovations for our our instruments were initially met with ridicule...like, ”what a funny looking valve” hahahah.

But it is interesting to note that he is now the second high profile bass trombonist who produced a signature series with very different mouthpieces for his different needs. Ultimate with the Curran models being the other one.

Maybe that is a trend ?
Sorry, I think labeling a mouthpiece as "use this for your audition only (and implying that that is not what you want for an actual live performance)" is pretty crazy.


I am all about the Alessi A/B/C series. I bet the mouthpiece is great, but that advertising is ... Questionable at least. Who takes the most auditions?

Maybe brand it as a compromise between improved clarity of sound plus endurance, with a reduction of malleability and color. I don't know.
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Re: Griego Hecht

Post by Burgerbob »

BenjaminStrickland wrote: Thu Jun 10, 2021 7:09 pm
Burgerbob wrote: Thu Jun 10, 2021 5:17 pm

Responses to emails, probably.
Hi Aidan

Sorry you feel we have not responded to your emails. Looking through our records you have not sent one since I have been on board. Feel free to reach out if you need anything, [email protected]. Our turnaround for emails is currently 24 hours as we are closed on Sundays.

Thanks, Ben
That was mostly tongue-in-cheek, Ben, based on previous experience with Greg. I know things are different now! I may be making an order soon, actually.
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Re: Griego Hecht

Post by paulyg »

BenjaminStrickland wrote: Thu Jun 10, 2021 7:09 pm
Burgerbob wrote: Thu Jun 10, 2021 5:17 pm

Responses to emails, probably.
Hi Aidan

Sorry you feel we have not responded to your emails. Looking through our records you have not sent one since I have been on board. Feel free to reach out if you need anything, [email protected]. Our turnaround for emails is currently 24 hours as we are closed on Sundays.

Thanks, Ben
Hyperbole aside, I don't know if anyone needs a reminder of GB's reputation when it comes to customer service. I placed an order for a mouthpiece (through a dealer) that went unfulfilled for 18 months... by the time it was ready I A) did not recall placing the order and B) no longer needed the mouthpiece. I was disappointed, but not surprised- this experience seemed typical based on what I'd heard. I'm glad you guys are making an effort to improve customer service. You have a great product (and great talent) and the lack of responsiveness was holding you back.
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Re: Griego Hecht

Post by BenjaminStrickland »

paulyg wrote: Thu Jun 10, 2021 11:05 pm
BenjaminStrickland wrote: Thu Jun 10, 2021 7:09 pm

Hi Aidan

Sorry you feel we have not responded to your emails. Looking through our records you have not sent one since I have been on board. Feel free to reach out if you need anything, [email protected]. Our turnaround for emails is currently 24 hours as we are closed on Sundays.

Thanks, Ben
Hyperbole aside, I don't know if anyone needs a reminder of GB's reputation when it comes to customer service. I placed an order for a mouthpiece (through a dealer) that went unfulfilled for 18 months... by the time it was ready I A) did not recall placing the order and B) no longer needed the mouthpiece. I was disappointed, but not surprised- this experience seemed typical based on what I'd heard. I'm glad you guys are making an effort to improve customer service. You have a great product (and great talent) and the lack of responsiveness was holding you back.
I’m sorry to hear about your experience, please send us an email if there’s anything we can do to make it up.

It is very hard to undo the past, but moving forward we are committed to giving people the top-notch service that they deserve.

We have completely revamped the structure of the business and now Greg’s main focus is making these incredible handmade mouthpieces and working with individual customers on their specific needs.

Our current turnaround for stock mouthpieces is 2 to 3 weeks after the order is placed if it is not in stock. Custom orders do take longer depending on the complexity of the request but we communicate the process every step of the way so the customer is not left wanting.

The attention to detail that goes in to these unparalleled mouthpieces is great and I am amazed that in the past Greg was able to do everything that goes in to running a small business and hand make every piece on his own in the past.

I know this message does not make up for your past experience, however if you give us a chance to, I do not think you will be disappointed again.

Thanks, Ben
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Re: Griego Hecht

Post by WGWTR180 »

BenjaminStrickland wrote: Fri Jun 11, 2021 5:32 am
paulyg wrote: Thu Jun 10, 2021 11:05 pm

Hyperbole aside, I don't know if anyone needs a reminder of GB's reputation when it comes to customer service. I placed an order for a mouthpiece (through a dealer) that went unfulfilled for 18 months... by the time it was ready I A) did not recall placing the order and B) no longer needed the mouthpiece. I was disappointed, but not surprised- this experience seemed typical based on what I'd heard. I'm glad you guys are making an effort to improve customer service. You have a great product (and great talent) and the lack of responsiveness was holding you back.
I’m sorry to hear about your experience, please send us an email if there’s anything we can do to make it up.

It is very hard to undo the past, but moving forward we are committed to giving people the top-notch service that they deserve.

We have completely revamped the structure of the business and now Greg’s main focus is making these incredible handmade mouthpieces and working with individual customers on their specific needs.

Our current turnaround for stock mouthpieces is 2 to 3 weeks after the order is placed if it is not in stock. Custom orders do take longer depending on the complexity of the request but we communicate the process every step of the way so the customer is not left wanting.

The attention to detail that goes in to these unparalleled mouthpieces is great and I am amazed that in the past Greg was able to do everything that goes in to running a small business and hand make every piece on his own in the past.

I know this message does not make up for your past experience, however if you give us a chance to, I do not think you will be disappointed again.

Thanks, Ben
Nice to hear all of this. Too bad some just cannot let the past go. If you've moved on from Greg's mouthpieces then just drop it. It's not going to make or break your career, whatever that may be, it only makes one sound like a child.
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Re: Griego Hecht

Post by WGWTR180 »

Note back on topic. I do find it interesting that the mouthpieces in the Hecht line include something in the 1 and 1/2 range. Rim size aside the back bore is very large compared to any other modern 1 and 1/2 size piece. The larger stuff is too large for me to even try. Brian sounded great the last time I heard a recording of him-guessing he sounds the same on the new pieces!
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Re: Griego Hecht

Post by GabrielRice »

Ben, I'm thrilled to see that Greg has hired you to take care of communications and other logistics.

It's easy to get the idea on the internet that Greg Black is some kind of curmudgeon who doesn't want to be bothered by customers. Nothing could be further from the truth. Greg is an incredibly personable, friendly guy who loves helping brass players find their ideal sound and feel in a mouthpiece. Some people thought it was only the high profile players who would get good service, but that was also not true.

But for years he has run the shop completely by himself, sending out for plating and having some blanks made for him on CNC machines elsewhere but otherwise doing all the work on manual lathes with traditional tooling. It's a time-consuming process, and it was clear to me that there were times when he would need to simply turn off his phone and ignore email for days at a time in order to fill the orders. It's very difficult to keep track of everything that way.
----------------------------------------

But back to the original topic...

Brian was doing a similar type of mouthpiece grouping when he was working with Greg, and for a while he was trying that with different rim sizes and blank weights. As was mentioned, George Curran does something similar with Ultimate Brass. In the original version of his book, Ed Kleinhammer advised boring out the throat of a copy of your main mouthpiece for extreme loud playing and having a small E-flat tuba mouthpiece to play the pedal notes in Symphonie Fantastique. I tend to have better success with the Spear Motive on auditions playing a larger mouthpiece than I usual, and I use a couple of different Doug Elliott cups for particular purposes, though I do have a home base one I play nearly all the time.

I don't think calling one the Audition mouthpiece is any kind of marketing sleight of hand. I think it's an absolutely honest name that comes from what Brian designed it for. An audition is different from a recital is different from playing in a huge orchestra.
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Re: Griego Hecht

Post by slidenick »

I prefer to stay off forums and area's on FB dedicated to equipment because I feel it's a great place to hang out, and maybe not the place to advertise by posting. I will try to respond when there's questions etc.

Sizing, we can do an in-between size of 1.142" ( or whatever you're after) no problem. It would be custom. You would have to call and request it. Custom pieces we do at the end of our production runs. 262 725 6020, talk to Allison. If we get enough requests I would consider making a standard production Hecht piece...

The pieces are very specific to Brian's needs and the Audition piece gives him more stability and center for the audition process. Honestly this mouthpiece could be used for an individual who's instrument is not very centered and the partials are a little wide. It will firm up the instrument and stabilize the partial feel (compared to other two Hecht pieces).

When I started making mouthpieces I made the Deco blank for this purpose (and for axial flow instruments). I wanted more center in the sound and feel so I added the weight where it served this purpose.

If you have specific questions about the products we make at Griego Mouthpieces feel free to email me directly at [email protected] since it may take a while for someone to notify me that there's a subject on this forum that I should address. I've been working on development lately and trying to stay off the computer as much as possible.

Sorry if this comes off as an advert, not sorry if it sells more mouthpieces. Our employees like the paychecks, retirement, and health benefits.... Thanks for shopping small. I'm happy to see the arts coming back slowly from this past year.

Greg does make great mouthpieces imo, played them when I was in college. I just needed something different and started making my own to figure out what "it" was.

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Re: Griego Hecht

Post by Matt K »

No problem Christian, that's great info!
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Re: Griego Hecht

Post by WGWTR180 »

Burgerbob wrote: Thu Jun 10, 2021 5:17 pm
RustBeltBass wrote: Thu Jun 10, 2021 11:32 am I’d love to know what he found in them that he didn’t find as much in GB.
Responses to emails, probably.
Asinine statement.
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Re: Griego Hecht

Post by Burgerbob »

WGWTR180 wrote: Fri Jun 11, 2021 2:28 pm
Burgerbob wrote: Thu Jun 10, 2021 5:17 pm

Responses to emails, probably.
Asinine statement.
Yup, and explained in my further post. I'm glad Greg is back on track!
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Re: Griego Hecht

Post by harrisonreed »

I'll reiterate that I'm sure the new Hecht mouthpieces are, all three versions, very good mouthpieces. Griego's front end staff is the best, and their mouthpieces certainly changed my playing. And you get a perfect mouthpiece within a week or two of ordering.

That nomenclature and description (audition) was jarring to me, but I am old school I guess, now. At 34, jeez... I thought I was progressive by being on board with the bleeding edge designs you guys make. But I remember when I used to argue with people on the old forum over the 5G being a pretty bad mouthpiece for most people, and that was progressive. There is room (lots) for my mind and perspective to grow.

Also thanks for the collapsible cleaning rod. I love that thing. I did try once to get a custom mouthpiece, but I guess I needed to be more convincing over the phone. Thanks for the very civil response to this topic. Keep doing great work, Team Griego.
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Re: Griego Hecht

Post by mbarbier »

I wonder if we'll actually start seeing more of it as auditions become increasingly specialized. There are obviously still people winning jobs who show up with one horn and mp. But a good number of brass players (mostly trp and tuba) that I know who are consistently winning/getting to the last few standing are be getting increasingly analytical towards auditions themselves and brining multiple (of the same) horns for different excerpts and switching mouthpieces/specific slide settings and all sorts of stuff that just seems wild to me (as a person who doesn't win them and rarely does gear tinkering). It seems totally nuts, but it also totally makes sense given how competitive it's getting and how dedicated to the audition process great players have to be to win them.
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Re: Griego Hecht

Post by BigBadandBass »

mbarbier wrote: Sat Jun 12, 2021 12:14 pm I wonder if we'll actually start seeing more of it as auditions become increasingly specialized. There are obviously still people winning jobs who show up with one horn and mp. But a good number of brass players (mostly trp and tuba) that I know who are consistently winning/getting to the last few standing are be getting increasingly analytical towards auditions themselves and brining multiple (of the same) horns for different excerpts and switching mouthpieces/specific slide settings and all sorts of stuff that just seems wild to me (as a person who doesn't win them and rarely does gear tinkering).
In one of my lesson undergraduate lessons my teacher said this to me "even in graduate school if you do not double, at least get another bass to compliment the B&S and Conn 71, you've got a good sound but auditions aren't looking for an individual sound anymore, they are looking for the sound." He still lurks on these forums I think so we'll see if he corrects me but my understanding of that statement that we've come so far in the lifespan of classical music that we are nearing the point for "individualistic" playing or someone playing something off kilt from the rest of the crowd (insert single valve bass or straight tenor here) or even worse yet, if someone is playing the wrong brand, then they are not winning the job.

That was a little off from the topic here but personally I find the idea of an audition mouthpiece somewhat interesting, especially since nearly anyone manufacturer could add into their lineup without so much a thought (not to bash on Christian and Brian, I am sure they did it with a purpose) or use it as another snake oil term to sell cheap mouthpieces or cheap instruments to unsuspecting buyers. Or maybe like in the case of the Griego model, we could see highly skilled musicians and makers design mouthpieces that they want to hear their students and peers audition with.
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Re: Griego Hecht

Post by BassBoneFL »

Several years ago, a very prominent player/teacher said something to the effect of -- Auditions are won by the person who is the least objectionable to the majority of the committee. -- I'm not sure if I agree with that or not but it does make you think.
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