The design of the Opuntia started with a question; Why is no one making a metal classical alto mouthpiece anymore? Many legendary classical saxophonists of yesteryear had used metal mouthpieces but you rarely see any modern classical players on a metal classical mouthpiece. With the Opuntia, we intended to change this and bring metal classical saxophone mouthpieces back!

When we originally conceptualized what this mouthpiece would be, we envisioned the person who played this mouthpiece was someone who regularly played accompanied by a band or orchestra and needed a traditional dark classical sound but with projection and presence that would help them stand out above the ensemble, even when the ensemble playing loud. Our final design wound up being so much more.

A popular misconception in mouthpieces is that brass is inherently a bright material which is perhaps why other mouthpiece companies shy away from it for a classical saxophone mouthpiece, but we know from experience that this is not the case. The Opuntia sound at its core is warm and dark but has a uniquely harmonically rich sound that is frequently described as bell like. The sound the Opuntia produces is something that you not only hear, but feel, as the extra heft of the metal gives the mouthpiece a resonance difficult to achieve with a traditional hard rubber only mouthpiece. At the same time, the warmth of the Opuntia can easily blend into any ensemble setting.

The Opuntia, like all our classical mouthpieces is free blowing and responsive with crisp articulation that makes performing even the most difficult passages a breeze. The Opuntia has a thin bite which makes efficient use of the players airstream requiring less effort to play long uninterrupted passages. The Opuntia makes accessing the altissimo almost effortless, producing a clear, unstrained tone.

One issue many saxophonists face with mouthpieces from many other mouthpiece brands is consistency and quality variations between mouthpieces. We regularly hear stories of saxophonists having to buy several mouthpieces to try to find one or two good mouthpieces, and even then the mouthpiece may still require professional refacing. At MACSAX we find this unacceptable. The Opuntia, like all MACSAX mouthpieces, are CNC machined for precision and consistency so you can buy one mouthpiece and be confident that it will perform exceptionally. The Opuntia is made from Rhodium plated brass with German hard rubber bite plate and spine insets.

Tip Opening: .062”

Facing: Medium-Short

Ligature Fit:

Rovner: 3ML

Silverstein: Size 02

Should fit many Link size metal ligatures.

Designed and Manufactured in Austin, Texas.

The Amaryllis Tenor Saxophone mouthpiece was developed in collaboration with Dr. James Bunte at the Cincinatti Conservatory of music. The design and playing characteristics were derived from the Lotus classical alto and scaled up to tenor.

Tip Opening: .070"

Ligature Fit:

Rovner: Size 2R

Silverstein: Size 09

The MACSAX QUESO Tenor was created to be a mouthpiece for the contemporary tenor player that provides a powerful and projecting sound. Unlike many contemporary mouthpieces the QUESO does not sacrifice a fat and luscious core for projection and higher overtones. This mouthpiece has a well defined center at all dynamic levels that makes it perfect for any musical situation but is particularly suited for rock and contemporary music. The result is a mouthpiece that is easy to play with enough projection to allow you to be heard in any situation.

Each MACSAX QUESO is made from a solid rod of brass with a red marbled hard rubber bite plate which is CNC milled for a very consistent and high quality mouthpiece.