Pictured below are three generations of Bernard Portnoy clarinet mouthpieces.
On the left is his first commercial model, made in the 1950s. It is very much in the traditional Chedeville/Lelandais style, with a closer facing, deep chamber and baffle.
The mouthpiece in the centre is the design from the 1960s that Leopold Stokowski famously endorsed. Portnoy introduced his open tip BP2 and BP3 facings with these models – they had much straighter baffles which complemented the open tip facings.
Portnoy was not himself a mouthpiece craftsman, and commissioned Miller in Milwaukee to do the work and finishing until the 1970s. Miller used Lelandais and Riffault blanks for these earlier pieces.
Pictured on the right is an example of the current Portnoy mouthpiece made by JJ Babbitt, in production since the 1970s. These are still manufactured in the standard Portnoy facings, BP1, 2 and 3.
Portnoy mouthpieces post 1960s sadly vary considerably and are often poorly finished and faced, however with work they can turn out wonderfully well, especially with open facings, as that is what the internals are geared for.
Many professional players in London and the UK are using Portnoy mouthpieces that I have refurbished. I work on all varieties and facing options – please contact me for more details.
Ramón Wodkowski 
Is your Neopolian M.P. on the market yet?
Hello, Ramon–
eI’ve acquired a Portnoy mouthpiece that has the ligature bands on it. I believe it is from the 60s. It looks like the middle Portnoy that you show at the top of this article. I cannot find any markings on the mouthpiece as to tip openings. I noticed that it says Portnoy below the ligature lines, but on the lower right side of the mouthpiece where you usually find a number there is no number. I thought it could possibly just be worn away, but it is not. Can you give me any information on this mouthpiece? I’ve been playing on a Chicago Casper with a 13 tip opening. This Portnoy feels and looks more open and blows more freely than my Casper. I would appreciate any information that you can offer on this mouthpiece. Thanks so much — Rich Chiaraluce
Thanks Rich – these are older Portnoys from the 1960s. Generally very well made, more open, longer facings which will make it more free in feel than your Kaspar, which although closer has a tighter facing overall.