Description
I first met K.O. briefly many years ago when he was working with Bob Reeves. Years later, we met again through a mutual friend. This time, though, we had a chance to talk trumpet, and it became apparent that KO was very knowledgeable on the subject. We discussed horns and mouthpieces, and K.O. mentioned that he made a special version of Maynard’s tiny v-cup from the 50s similar to what I was already playing. K.O. made a couple of these for me, and I found them to be excellent, with a better balanced sound than what I was currently playing.
For years, I’ve been discussing the perfect mouthpiece with my dear friend/student Dave Kness. Said piece would have the rim of Maynard’s v-cup from the 50s and a shallow version of Chase’s cup from the 70s. It would provide a little more room for the chops than Maynard’s tiny v-cup, but play in a similar way. More players would be able to play it as their primary piece, but it would also sound very much like the v-cup. It would be the best of both worlds. Coincidentally, around the time of this second meeting with K.O., Dave had this much-discussed piece custom made. It turned out to be the loudest piece I had ever played, and that’s saying a lot, but it still wasn’t perfect. One thing led to another, and pretty soon K.O. and I were developing an advanced version of this custom piece, soon to be called the Lynn Flex.
Working with K.O. is a pleasure. He watches and listens carefully to the way I play, and modifies the piece accordingly. He does not function from a place of ego/voodoo, but instead from a good balance of science and intuition. He is eager to try new iterations that incorporate new ideas, even if said ideas are not conventional. We have both learned a lot, and many times, thanks to open minds, our conclusions are different or even opposed to what was originally thought. As a consequence, the Lynn Flex has evolved quickly/effectively as the loudest, best sounding, and easiest mouthpiece I’ve ever played.
Briefly, the Lynn Flex is the same short length as my original Maynard v-cup from the 50s. K.O. has come up with an explosive C4 back bore that is absolutely amazing! In my opinion, this is the fast spreading back bore that Maynard always wanted. Wish he was here to try it. It is very open and perfect for high notes. The Lynn Flex gets a brilliant sound, while having substantial under tones. If you are a relaxed player, it soars easily with very little effort, taking your air efficiently, while providing unlimited range/endurance potential. What more can I say? The Lynn Flex is an extraordinary piece for commercial players interested in achieving the highest levels of performance, and K.O. has done a wonderful job of making it a reality…
Lynn Nicholson
LynnFlex Development – K.O.
I met Lynn many years ago when he was playing in Las Vegas. I sat in the loft of a few of the shows and heard Lynn and John Madrid play the most amazing lead trumpet I’d ever heard in my life. I was flattered that, many years later, Lynn asked me if I would work with him on developing a mouthpiece suited to his style of playing.
We started with some pieces I had already developed for other players and moved on from there. Lynn puts a lot of energy into his set-up and it was a challenge to come up with a balance between a wide open system that gave Lynn the “feel” he desires and is still efficient enough to support the registers that he plays in.
Lynn is very analytical and extremely open minded. This allowed me the flexibility to make some mouthpieces that, although similar to what he had prior success on, were also quite a departure from the normal “lead mouthpiece.”
Thanks Lynn for a great ride!
K.O. Skinsnes
Doug Leavy –
The Lynn Flex 2.0 is a brilliantly made mouthpiece. It fits comfortably on the lips and allows me to play big and full from low F all the way to my double C above the staff. I would highly recommend this for anyone playing lead, marching or even a symphony setting. Thank you Stomvi!