@administrator It's relatively easy on a piston picc because you can use your left hand index finger for 4 (as Maurice André did). Difficult to do on early rotary piccs, but some now can be ordered with a left hand button or #4.
Or just change to a high-G and have done with it.
@Kehaulani said in WHAT DOES IT TAKE TO BECOME AN EXPERT?:
@Rapier232 said in WHAT DOES IT TAKE TO BECOME AN EXPERT?:
Well, for what it’s worth, I was a National Police Firearms Instructor for 20 years. I taught people with absolutely no experience whatsoever from basic level all the way to very advanced close protection and hostage rescue teams. I found some people, including me, were absolute naturals at all shooting disciplines. Others found the skills difficult and some found them impossible and failed to reach the necessary standards required. So I’d disagree, natural talent/ability does exist, and those with it will out perform those without.
That's funny. I recalled that, as an enlisted man who had never held a firearm in my life, I scored an A.F. Rifle Marksmanship Medal the first time out and, years later, after never having ever shot a handgun, I also earned a Side-Arm Marksmanship Medal. Likewise in your experience, while I was shooting there were others that just sucked at firearms no matter how hard and how often they tried.
I can only second that, as a qualified Shooting Instructor in sports. I've trained many a beginner, starting them off on small-bore pistol. Most of them became decent, if not remarkable, shooters. Safe to bring them on the range after a couple of months or so. A few became top shooters within weeks. I took a team of four of these rookies to our regional championships. First competition for every one of the four. And we took the cup by a wide margin. Second came a team of grizzled veterans who had been doing this sort of thing for decades.
And then there was one exceptional guy who took to shooting within half an hour. Never had any connection to firearms before. He had learned all the safety rules before (as every one has to have before they are first let loose on the range with a "hot" gun) and scored bull's eyes on the first go, with both eyes open. Later, we discovered that he was a natural two-handed shooter as well - able to hit two targets yards apart, with a gun in each hand, at the same time. In civilian life, he was a karate instructor and organist at the local church.
When we discovered about his ability with firearms, he founded a security business and now owns twenty-nine armoured vans for bank cash transfers, has 90+ employees and has been tasked with add-on Personal Protection duties for state visits. Proudest moment of his life was when the Secret Service approached him for assistance during President Obama's visit to Germany...
I hate breaking-in instruments. That's why I have said goodbye to even thinking about new instruments, and have concentrated on vintage hooters - which, to me at least, have more character anyway. They seem to have accumulated the wisdom and musical spirit of all the players before me.
For me, it's simply a joy to think about how long a pedigree a vintage instrument must have.
And - what's more - I've found that I much prefer the Balanced style of trumpet. Somehow, I feel more at home with them, and they seem to like me... so I now have only one "normal" trumpet left (amongst the Bbs, that is), my 1920s Buescher Aristocrat (oh, and one Conn-Amati thing that is remarkable only for the blue lacquer and the drunk vulture enamelled on the bell). Apart from that, there is two Courtois Balanced models (originally the same model; but one came to me in decrepit old age, and the geriatric department at Votruba's were afraid to restore it as it might dissolve into dust at anything beyond a gentle rub-over with a soft cloth. They recommended I should not even polish the silver plating, as the plating more or less kept the horn together... still a wonderful player, so when a friend mentioned he had a spare one - actually, his wife set him a limit in the number of horns he is allowed to have, so when he wants another one, one has to go, and he desperately wanted an Inderbinen - I secured that before it went elsewhere), and my Olds Recording.
@Dr-GO said in Christmas Services:
Finished my Christmas Performance at the Lutheran Church just a few hours ago, the last service ending about 12:15 AM! Two Services were played. One at 7 pm, the other started at 10:30 pm.
The organ/trumpet combo was just perfect. The organist arranged I play each hymn with the lyrical line the first verse, sit out the second verse (choir only sings) the descant vocal line for the third verse, and the trumpet descant part (the piccolo lines) for the forth verse. That REALLY was a nice way to present the parts as ending with the descant piccolo line really made the ending ring out in the church.
That's Christmas Service as it should be.
@ButchA said in SEASON'S GREETINGS:
I made my "toxic rum balls" if anyone wants one! LOL...
Edit:
<disclaimer>
I am not responsible for any DUI's or anything like that. Do not drive, do not operate machinery, after you have a few of these!!!
</disclaimer>
That sounds like the Scotsmans Breakfast. It consists of one large steak, a Border Collie and a bottle of whiskey.
The Collie gets the steak.
@Kehaulani It's a dance band in a big band formation.
@ssmith1226 Well, you know where to reach me if you need some contacts. Or just tell me whereabouts you are going. Or just contact Nick Jones of Coronation Brass - he knows all the Welsh bands.
Thomann are offering different sizes of waterkey corks as well as different thicknesses of cork sheet to cut your corks out of.
https://www.thomann.co.uk/search_dir.html?__cTr=7bedffb2-1e7f-45de-be1e-2790c2f1c4c7&shp=eyJjb3VudHJ5IjoiZ2IiLCJjdXJyZW5jeSI6NCwibGFuZ3VhZ2UiOjJ9&reload=1&sw=cork&smcs=a935ee_13621
@Bertie said in Christmas Services:
Oh, I wanted a week free, but I got last minute gig for New year's eve lutheran church service in Munich (3 trumpets + 3 trombones). And now I have to practice
. My son was born a week ago, so you know... not much sleep anyway
CONGRATULATIONS!
Well, there are still a few good personal touch music stores around in Europe. Vienna has Votruba's, which is an old-established family business; Salzburg has the "Brasswerkstatt". In Munich, age-old competitors Hieber and Lindberg amalgamated into a single company, but their services have improved. And smallish family stores are spreading all over, selling ecological and local produce. All is not lost.
@ssmith1226 Steve, there is an easy solution. In Scotland and Wales, there are brass bands aplenty. Just bring a cornet - not a pocket trumpet (they are not much smaller than a shepherd' crook cornet) - and ask whether you may sit in at rehearsals of the local bunch of roughs. If you need addresses for that, just give me your itinerary and I can have a play with my contacts there. Much better than sitting in your room annoying Barbara...
@Dr-GO Red wine cork for rose brass, white wine cork for silver plated instruments... chips of plastic champagne corks for Chinese-made TSOs... 
Seems Anita Kerr did lots of arranging and even composing, but for any recording she did, there are no names of other participants. It's always group names like "The Anita Kerr Singers" or "Anita Kerr Brass". Only thing I found out was that for a short time, Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass were "Anita Kerr Brass". Don't think you'll get much further than that.
@ssmith1226 If the Mendini gets stolen or lost, you can always give me a quick call and I'll arrange for my Arnold & Sons pocket trumpet to reach you within two or three days (I got it for free or rather for writing a review of it for a music magazine here in Austria)
@mediocreplayer I had a similar problem with the Stomvi Elite Piccolo... with the first valve sticking during slow play. All kinds of work on the valve did not help even though the instrument was returned for repair several times. Finally, the late Uli Pfreimbtner found that the valve block was ok, I just tended to grip the valve block in slower passages and thus pressed the valve casings too hard...
@Kehaulani Actually, the remark was that "the members of Tijuana Brass, including Herb Alpert, were Anita Kerr brass."
As this topic is slowly getting off the rails, and there have not been any inputs regarding rules for some time, I am locking this topic.
