I’d like to talk about this video today featuring musician Leo Dale, from Australia.
Leo is an accomplished saxophonist who regularly collaborates with artists across Australia and India. Under the name Mantra LIVE, he creates long-form, spiritual recordings made for relaxation, often alongside local musicians. He’s also part of Raga Saga, a project exploring improvisation between North Indian classical music and melodic jazz, and From Now OM, an immersive concert series with performances ranging from 45 minutes to 5 hours in festival settings.
I met Leo while in Australia this past March. He had already been playing a Syos tenor mouthpiece, and during our visit, he tried out a few soprano models and landed on the Dayna Stephens.
In the video, Leo plays a Yamaha 82Z with a Tivon Pennicott #7 Syos mouthpiece. He’s joined by Quinn Knight on drums and Moses Carr on keys. The track, How to Make Jam, is completely improvised. “We generally don’t do any preparation for these sessions,” Leo said. “For this one, I decided to play C harmonic minor all the way through and see how far we could stretch it by just listening closely.”
The trio regularly meets in Leo’s studio to write and jam. This session was recorded on January 4, 2025.
Leo first discovered Syos mouthpieces by their distinctive colour. “I was at a friend’s house and he was sounding great. When he offered me his mouthpiece to try, I jumped at the chance. I was impressed by how easily I could go from subtone to a cutting sound just by adjusting my air. I ordered the Tivon Pennicott 7 right there on my phone.”
You can hear that exact model in action here. The chemistry between the three musicians is undeniable. It’s hard to believe this was improvised. The jam starts to echo a house record at 4:30, finds its tone at 5:00, and climbs toward a melancholic climax around 8:30, with Quinn’s toms pushing it forward.
You can hear more of his work at http://hearisnow.com
And it isn’t just Leo who loves his Tivon Pennicott. Check the other reviews and grab yours today. <<
