Old Guys (and gals) Club

@flugler Quoting us a price from Japan is very unrealistic as the market there is primarily for collectors - not players. Everywhere else in the world, people are looking for deals. 6 grand+ gets me a Monette or a Martin - both certainly in a different league than the Calicchio. Maybe I have not been paying attention here at TrumpetBoards, but I do not know of anyone here in that "more money than common sense" market.
The price is fine for Japan. That type of money here would be banking on the price going up. I do not see that happening. Calicchios reputation at the time was value for the price and Dominics service.

By the way, this is the wrong place for your post. It belongs in the classifieds section.

We have several concepts for pitch. They all need a certain degree of familiarity before we can be "successful".

Playing alone with or without a tuning device is dangerous as we do not play "well tempered". The tuning device is to get our concert Bb "in the ball park". If we play to all the other notes, they will never sound right.

Our performing pitch is always relevant to something else - it can be the last memory, or it can be another instrument or recording.

In addition, if we are playing with serious upper body tension, the pitch will sound sharp even although a tuning device would measure just fine. If we do not have enough tension, the sound is dull and it sounds flat although it may measure OK.

If you are not taking regular lessons, then just play along with recorded music. That can be a a CD with concert band music or marches. It can be church hymns or jazz standards. The important part is that you rediscover having your pitch relative to things around you (accompaniment) as well as playing enough to get a good resonant sound throughout the registers that CAN sound in tune.

Your actual problem is the ear/brain not talking to the body/lungs/embouchure, or the body/lungs/embouchure not reacting predictably to the signals coming from the brain. If you had these skills at one time in your life, then a lot of the work is already done. Simply play enough and those skills will move to the short term memory and become more automatic.

@Trumpetsplus I remember you bringing the ascending C when you visited. Wonderful horn!

I have an early generation ACB Doubler in rose brass. It's much like a Yamaha 631. I also have Dupuytren's contracture of my left pinky, which is now bent to 90°.

I had been holding the horn so that I could could use my pinky and ring finger together to work the 3rd valve slide. But it finally got to the point that it was painful for the pinky, and the ring finger alone couldn't work the trigger very well.

Changing the grip to use the middle finger with the index or ring fingers didn't work for me; either the trigger wasn't long enough or the fingers got tangled up. I'd long thought that a longer trigger might be a solution, but couldn't figure out how to mechanize it.

The other day, I cut off about 2 inches of half-inch copper pipe. It would fit over the existing trigger, but wobbled all over and wouldn't stay put. So I cut about 1 inch of a half-inch wooden dowel and sanded it down to the point where I could slide it up into the copper pipe from the bottom.

The result fits snugly with no wobble and yet it is removable for cleaning. I compared the result to the trigger on a Getzen 4985, and I think it's a reasonably good functional match. If I hold the horn with one finger over the exit pipe, I can curl the useless pinky out of the way and operate the trigger with the middle and ring fingers. My hands are small, but even so, I can both fully release the trigger and fully engage it.

Bonus points for the fact that, with a bit of polish, the copper pipe will nearly match the rose brass.

I'd share this on the oTHer site, but they're too judgemental.

@annapants Mike Thompson has very attractive conditions for selling used instruments. I know him and he is the real thing!

Thompson Music Co.
14220 Fort St. Ste. 103, Omaha, NE 68164 (402) 289-9699

When people that we love and admire die, it gives us the opportunity to figure out what they really meant to us. In many cases, towards the end, we see them less and do not "live" the deterioration. The lasting personal memory is of a person getting stuff done.

As we are the sum of all influences in life, we have a lot to be thankful for - but only limited means to "pay back" the debt. Honor the giants on whose shoulders you stand - each in her/his own way. We do not need huge public displays although if the opportunity arises, take it with humility and reverence.

I see death as the release from the earthly state, going to a place with no pain and no need to answer any more questions or solve problems. Our influence can (and should) long extend after death.

Very sad. Thanks for posting this.

Yeah, I would reach out to one of a few people. Also consider Michael Del Quadro of Del Quadro Trumpets.

4 valved trumpets are NOT an afterthought. The 4th valve is generally a purpose built device. It can be permanently attached to the valve block or integrated into the tuning slide.

We have 4th valves for playing ¼ tones - found in middle east and experimental music.

There are ½ tone valves for easily switching a Bb trumpet to A. These are found mostly on vintage instruments built between 1900 and 1920.

There are also whole tone 4th valves to extend the range of a modern orchestral C trumpet to low E which allows playing the handful of very low Bb parts.

Then there are 4th valves that lower the pitch by a 4th to extend the chromatic range to pedal C. These can often be found on high pitched trumpets like in high G, high A and high Bb. In this case, they extend the range to allow playing the lowest notes for typical baroque music.

One further use of a 4th valve is to allow switching between 2 bells (Bobby Shew Shew horn).

My thoughts are if you are not playing specialty music, the 4th valve is useless and can actually make the instrument harder to play.

@mediocreplayer The analysis of a sticky valve is to first check cleanliness (dirt/damage/distortion - thank you Ivan) and proper lubrication, then comes the interface finger position to valve stroke. Proper lubrication means BONE DRY VALVES AND CASINGS, then oil to create isolation between them. Oil floats on water so drying first is a real part of oiling.
Sometimes we can hone the valves (with a loss of compression) until they work or push the player to change hand position and play with the tips of their fingers.

I have only had issues with used instruments broken in by someone else.