The Pursuit of a Better Mouthpiece
Dave Monette started building his revolutionary trumpets in 1983, with the first Monette mouthpieces following in 1985. As a trumpet player himself, Dave grew up frustrated with how stuffy and out-of-tune conventional equipment played — especially in the upper register. Dave developed Monette mouthpieces to finally address out-of-tune, choked-out notes when musicians reach the current limit of their upper register. These issues are not the musician’s fault; the intonation issue was built into the antiquated design of conventional mouthpieces!
Tested and Proven by the World’s Best
The first Monette mouthpieces were made in the 1980s for Dave’s friends and early clients, including Wynton Marsalis, Charles Schlueter, Terence Blanchard, and Maynard Ferguson. Dave’s Constant Pitch Center designs immediately resolved the mouthpiece intonation problems that Dave and his clients had endured since their first days as brass players. Now, decades later, Monette mouthpieces play, sound, and feel even better than Dave ever thought possible back when he started his career. His latest, most innovative designs — used by top Monette clients worldwide — are the exact same models you can use to level up your own sound.
The Problem — Pitch Inconsistencies
In his youth, Dave was continually troubled by how every instrument and — especially — every mouthpiece he tried changed pitch, resistance, and timbre as he changed registers and dynamics. These complex inconsistencies require serious musicians to spend countless hours learning to play in tune through tedious, repetitive practice drills that offset the pitch inconsistencies inherent in their equipment by continually shifting the pitch center through conditioned body misalignments. These compensations create tension, inhibit free breathing, and possibly lead to painful postural problems. This is not the fault of the musicians; they are simply trying to play in tune using inherently out-of-tune equipment.
The Solution — Constant Pitch Center Design
The revolutionary acoustic property that defines Dave’s solution to these inconsistencies is called “Constant Pitch Center.” This simply means that Monette mouthpieces and instruments play consistently in tune at all dynamics and in all registers. This eliminates the need for the player to make painful — and, over time, even debilitating — physical compensations as they change registers and dynamics.
Crafted in Oregon
Monette mouthpieces are made at the Monette shop in Portland, Oregon, on precision computer numerically controlled (CNC) lathes. These high-tech machines allow a machining tolerance of one ten-thousandth of an inch (one-fifteenth the thickness of a human hair!). Every new Monette mouthpiece model is personally designed by Dave Monette. The first sample is then cut, meticulously play-tested by Dave and several co-workers, and the design is refined until Dave signs off on it as ready for delivery to clients.
A Never-ending Spirit of Innovation
For 40 years, Monette mouthpieces have been continuously evolving. Unity mouthpieces, the latest generation of Monette mouthpieces, are the culmination of four decades of Monette mouthpiece evolution. They can now be heard in concert halls, pit orchestras, leading jazz clubs, recording studios, and living rooms around the world.
