Playing Like A Girl

A Former User

There still exists the idea that trumpet is strictly a male endevour. Many including myself know that this is patently wrong. Here's a study about female trumpet players I hope you like.

https://scholarworks.uni.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1041&context=hpt

GeorgeB

@Dr-Mark
Thanks I will read that later when I have time.

There were five girls out of twelve students ( including me ) who were enrolled in the trumpet program at the Maritime Conservatory of Music where I studied in 1953, yet in the 12 years I played between '53 and '65 coming across a female player was rare. But there were a couple I got to know through the musicians union that were helluva lot better players than me and a few others like me. But the thing was that these girls were members of an all girl band. Maybe they wanted to play in an all girl band, but there was definitely something wrong if that was the only way they got to play. I never thought much of it back then, but I certainly do now.

SSmith1226

This past weekend I had the opportunity to listen to, as well as play trumpet ensembles with a 16-year-old girl from Central Florida. She played circles around me and had a fantastic sound. Her sight reading was superb and her range was at least to G above high C. Trumpet playing is no longer just a boy’s sport.
Oh, I forgot to mention, the talented teenage trumpet player is Dr. Mark’s Daughter.

Dr GO

@SSmith1226 said in Playing Like A Girl:
...the talented teenage trumpet player is Dr. Mark’s Daughter.

OK, well we won't hold that against her!

GeorgeB

The 2nd trumpet players in our band are both ladies. One is 22 who has been playing since grade 4 and right now she is terrific. The other lady is in her 70s and still struggles, but she has only been playing for less than 2 years and she had the courage to join one of the best ( and toughest ) bands in the area. I support them and help them any way I can.

A Former User

@SSmith1226 said in Playing Like A Girl:

This past weekend I had the opportunity to listen to, as well as play trumpet ensembles with a 16-year-old girl from Central Florida. She played circles around me and had a fantastic sound. Her sight reading was superb and her range was at least to G above high C. Trumpet playing is no longer just a boy’s sport.
Oh, I forgot to mention, the talented teenage trumpet player is Dr. Mark’s Daughter.

Thank you so much for your kind words. Since that day, she's been a revitalized trumpet player and with that new energy, sight read the Libertango that Giuffredi does. She even surprised me!
Playing like a girl hits home for me. Unfortunately, when she tried out for the middle school band, she landed first chair which was shared by two boys that were older than her. They bullied her to the point that I had to intervene.
The school developed a "No Contact Contract" that they signed but it wasn't worth the paper it was written on. The bullying continued to the point that she quit the band and took another class. She's now in high school but isn't in the school band but occasionally plays in one of the many local youth symphonies. The first youth symphony she played in, she got first chair! A boy who use to occupy the spot tried to bully her but this time we did something a little different. Instead of going through a long discussion with administration and signing a No Contact Form, I told her, "The next time he pushes your music off the stand, punch him straight in the face, hard. No one will touch you and you have my permission" . Well, he pushed the music and she pushed his nose in. I told her, "Always stand up to bullies. Otherwise they'll just feed on you." Now here is where the story goes sideways.
My daughter said to me,
"Every since I punched him in the face, he follows me around, constantly tries to talk to me, asks if I want to practice together, stares at me, etc..
She then said, "Dad, I think I liked him better as a bully."

A Former User

@Dr-GO said in Playing Like A Girl:

OK, well we won't hold that against her!

She's a fine little trumpet player in spite of my dusty old suggestions.
On Ebay, I found expensive looking metal mouthpieces from China for about $12.00. I bought two of them figuring at around $24.00, if she never uses them, I'm not out of a lot. Come to find out, she carries the one that looks like my Harrelson mouthpiece in her pocket. When asked why she carries it, she said so she can buzz the mouthpiece at school. A teacher has already gotten on her for buzzing show tunes in the hallway.

Comeback

Seems you have raised a talented and spirited young lady, Dr. Mark. Congratulations, and best wishes for your daughter's musical journey.

A Former User

@Comeback said in Playing Like A Girl:

Seems you have raised a talented and spirited young lady, Dr. Mark. Congratulations, and best wishes for your daughter's musical journey.

Hi Comeback,
Thank you so much for the kind words. I'll try not to ruin her too badly with my dusty old trumpet suggestions.

GeorgeB

@Dr-Mark

I never had a daughter, we tried but stopped after 3 boys. Anyway, it upsets me to hear what your daughter is going through. Still I had to laugh at the fact that the bully she punched now wants to be her friend.

Kehaulani

There's still some resentment these days but not like it used to be.

I heard some snarky comments about Carole Dawn Reinhart (Vienna) by a rather visible and successful player in Germany that I wasn't sure was racist or sexist. Knowing the
German trumpet player, probably both. But my point is that, even in this day and even after reaching the heights of internationally known soloist as well as Professor at the University of Music in Vienna, she still gets sexist comments.

In the past, I remember in high school, one of the best trumpet players in the state was convinced by her trumpet teacher to switch in her senior year to Horn because she "didn't have any balls". Getting the last laugh, she went on to study at the Royal Academy of Music in London. Pure prejudice.

Professionally, I have worked with female brass players and, musically, I heard a variety of styles but never heard any general playing characteristics I could attribute to their being female.

A Former User

@Kehaulani said in Playing Like A Girl:

In the past, I remember in high school, one of the best trumpet players in the state was convinced by her trumpet teacher to switch in her senior year to Horn because she "didn't have any balls".

Hi Kehaulani,
That's why I had her to take and belt in ju-jitsu. I think all girls should be required to take some sort of self defense because;

Boys are generally bigger and stronger
Boys are usually faster
Boys can be jerks

ROWUK

Carol Dawn Reinhardt
Susan Slaughter
Ingrid Jensen
Gunhild Carling

Forget all the blonde beauties. Not my cup of tea.

Dr GO

@Dr-Mark said in Playing Like A Girl:

@Kehaulani said in Playing Like A Girl:

In the past, I remember in high school, one of the best trumpet players in the state was convinced by her trumpet teacher to switch in her senior year to Horn because she "didn't have any balls".

Hi Kehaulani,
That's why I had her to take and belt in ju-jitsu.

Boys are generally bigger and stronger

Boys are usually faster

Boys can be jerks

First 20 seconds of this video should be relevant.

Kehaulani

@Dr-Mark said in Playing Like A Girl:

Boys are generally bigger and stronger

Boys are usually faster

Boys can be jerks

Boys are generally bigger and stronger.
When I was in school, I was watching a girls' pick-up game of softball. I accidentally backed up into the catcher's books, kicking dust all over them. The catcher stopped the game immediately and came charging at me. She was a Samoan girl, bigger and tougher than I. She backed me up, flayling away at me the whole time. I was lucky to have escaped with my life, LOL!
Boys are usually faster.
When I was in Officers' Training School, we had to make a run every morning. I remember looking across in the darkness at a woman who was noticeably shorter than I was. And who was half a track's length ahead of me!

That's why I had her to take and belt in ju-jitsu.
Interesting. What style Dr. Mark?
I trained in Hakko Ryu Jujutsu in Japan. Good on her.

A Former User

@Kehaulani said in Playing Like A Girl:

Interesting. What style Dr. Mark?

Hi Dr-GO,
Gracie.

Kehaulani

Oh, grappling oriented. Gracie is tough. A lot of those techniques are used by contact sports.
My system is typically Japanese and relies a lot on pressure points.

If she sticks with it, it should give her a lot of confidence and the right kind. I never had a fight as an adult. A huge part of that is awareness of your surroundings and knowing when to avoid conflict in the first place. And, of course, having enough confidence in yourself that you don't have anything to prove in the first place.

A Former User

@Kehaulani said in Playing Like A Girl:

I never had a fight as an adult. A huge part of that is awareness of your surroundings and knowing when to avoid conflict in the first place.

Smartest words I've heard all day.

A Former User

Hi Dr-GO,
The roundhouse kick looked staged. Watch how the guy goes down.
However, The Nerd Fights Back ( More Videos) is Great! She wears these guys out. There's one particular foot sweep in that video that even made my head hurt.

administrator

My cousin is married to a man who is a gracie master. He teaches is at the local universities. I took Jiu-jitsu lessons from him for a couple of weeks, but it turns out that I'm not super into getting the crap beat out of me.