Best posts made by barliman2001

My experiences with Bach instruments... somehow, fate was very unkind to me in that respect...
My first ever "proper" trumpet was a Bach Strad 239 C, with additional slides for Bb, which I - as a total beginner - used as my primary horn. The C configuration was something I never used, and was the downfall of this instrument. My teacher at the time was a rotaries-only player, and then had to jump in at some musical production requiring a piston C. So he asked if he could borrow it for one day. No problem, except...
the horn was stolen from his greenroom in the theatre.
He was admirably insured, and I received the value of both a Bb and a C. I had caught the rotary bug and got myself a Ganter G5 and a Bach rotary C. That was a wonderful instrument, but still a bit too "pro" for me at the time. But - I did use it for a time, usually for Mozart masses.
Until my house in Ireland was burgled and that rotary Bach C was stolen.
My next Bach was a 37. Had it for about three months, and then, it was stolen from me in a tram... I was sitting next to the exit, with the case right beside me, and at a stop, a guy exiting the tram just grabbed the case and jumped off.
And my last attempt at Bach was a high-F that I wanted just to have the alphabet complete. One of those whims one gets. Had it ordered specially, paid through the nose, waited an ungodly time for it - almost a year! - and then it ended up in a freight aircraft that crash-landed in Frankfurt and burst into flames. Got my money back after more than a year's haggling with insurance but I never even saw that horn.
Decided that Bach somehow was not for me. Never had another mishap with any of my other horns... All other horns of my collection were not taken in that Irish burglary... even though they were on display in an unlocked, glass-fronted cabinet... the Bach rotary was half-hidden in its case...

@sessionaire I believe strongly in energetic work and Ortho-Bionomy. This kind of gentle massage has proved itself time and time again, the latest incidence being my recent eye trouble. I had a total ablation of the retina, resulting in 100% blindness in my right eye. When diagnosed, several doctors told me the retina was not only lifted off, but in shreds, and that even extensive restoration surgery would only result in that eye being able to distinguish light and dark. I had the surgery done - two operations, one of 4 hours, the other of 6 hours duration, both very painful, because you cannot do them under full anesthesia - and when I had left hospital, my wife (a fully qualified ortho-bionomy therapist beside being an opera singer www.reginaschoerg.art) began a set of treatments. Only yesterday, I saw my ophthalmologist again, and the exam showed that the ablated and torn retina is now whole again and fitting in its proper place, resulting in a sight power of 40%, and rising. The ophthalmologist was flabbergasted - "I know of no case of such a thing happening" and has asked me to allow a group of students to see me. So now I am the wonder of the age, due to a relatively new treatment. Why not try it yourself?

@Kehaulani said in Acoustics... and a bit more:

@ barliman - I've read several of your posts where you write, "orchestra". In the U.S. that means a large ensemble with strings (ELO withstanding). When I worked in Germany, the term orchestra was used for any large instrumental group, with or without strings. Which do you mean? Thanks.

In this case, it was the Vienna Lakeside Symphony Orchestra. Eight first violins, six second violins, three violas, three cellos. Two flutes, two clarinets, one bassoon, one saxophone. Two trumpets, one trombone, one baritone horn, one tuba. Electric bass, drumset, piano.
I think you can call that an orchestra...
In earlier posts, I was referring to the Vienna Klezmer Orchestra which had a large string section as well, in addition to an unholy number of clarinets (nine!! including a bass clarinet), seven flutes including a bass flute, three recorders, a full brass section and four accordions...

There is a Heaven for old and decrepit dollar bills... When a one-dollar bill and a fiver came there, they were admitted instantly. Then, a 100 dollar bill arrived at the gate, the Guardian Angel told it, "You can't come in here - I never saw you in Church!"

I've found a few hints...

www.trumpetherald.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=1344869

www.brasshistory.net/Lockie History.pdf

www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/metro-lockie-music-exchange-trumpet-246893226

www.robbstewart.com/strucel-alto-trumpet

http://wwwtemp.rogerbobo.com/instruments/f_trumpet.shtml

It's a start, anyhow.

About a year ago, I suffered a catastrophic retinal ablation during an orchestra rehearsal and had to have eye surgery, resulting in several operations and permanent damage to my right eye. Recently, I've found out that several of my trumpet friends have had similar experiences, and I've talked to my ophthalmic surgeon. He is one of the best ophthalmic surgeons world-wide, and a come-back trumpet player. He found that there might be a necessity to look at the combination of trumpet-induced enhanced eye pressure and eye damage, and that there has been no relevant research so far. He is quite interested in this problem now and would like to get in contact with trumpet players who have experienced similar problems. Anyone interested is asked to kindly provide some kind of address or contact so that they can be included in the research programme. This means ANY TRUMPET PLAYER with eye problems that were not there before taking up the instrument. I can assure you that this surgeon - Professor Thomas Neuhann MD, an ophthalmic surgeon in the seventh generation - and his team will explore all the information with utmost care to privacy and will in most cases be able to either eliminate or alleviate existing conditions.

@J-Jericho said in Acoustics... and a bit more:

IMO acoustics at a venue requires a balance of science, art, and experience to be successful. It's impractical to test-fill the space with the anticipated number of warm bodies prior to the performance and to replicate in advance air density, temperature, and humidity.

Well, in one orchestra we had a Red Cross worker, and at every dress rehearsal, the Red Cross provided up to seven hundred woollen blankets to simulate the audience... they usually declared this an "emergency exercise".

A Catholic priest, a Lutheran parson and a Rabbi were discussing how to handle the distribution of the collection between themselves and the Lord (as the priest put it). He said, "I always draw a circle around me, throw all the money in the air, and I keep what's outside the circle." - "Good method," says the Lutheran. "I use it myself. But I keep everything that's inside the circle." - "Why draw circles?", says the Rabbi. "The Good Lord is all-powerful, he does not need such puny devices. For me, it's quite simple. I throw all the money up to the Lord, and He returns to me whatever He deems appropriate for my needs."

Still in fairly common use in Austrian wind bands...

@mike-ansberry Actually, glaucoma is excessive pressure in the eyes, and it can be treated with special eye drops.

@georgeb With breaks, of course. Austrian weddings involve many speeches all over the day, and lots of pranks. In total, there's perhaps twelve ours playing time in 28 hours of attendance.

Well, I think a Festivus song would not be in the spirit of the festival... unless you take all your grievances and make them into one long rap. Or you could use this...

The first is a sturdily made beginners' instrument, the other one intended for accomplished players. No coordinated dimensions. Valves will NOT interchange. Don't even try - it's risky.

@dr-go Thank you very much, Doc.

@georgeb Weddings? Coming home at 2 am? That's a tame wedding... here in Austria, a wedding starts at 6am, with a rousing fanfare played in the street in front of the groom's house; then there's the morning snack and schnaps; then the registry office wedding, afterwards the church wedding, then the reception. After that, the dance band takes over from the oompah band until midnight, when the newlyweds retire; and the dance band continues, because next morning, the wedding guests have to wake up the honeymooners... so if you are lucky enough to be in the dance band and sub in the oompah outfitm you are getting up at four am, play for more or less 24 hours flat out, and are back at home around 10am... tired, not wired!

A couple were celebrating their Silver Wedding, and a friend asked them for their recipe for their married happiness.
"Oh, it's quite simple," the husband said. "Once a week, we have a romantic candlelight dinner, followed by a hot night in a luxury hotel."
"Sounds good, " the friend said. "And when do you find the time for that?" -
"Mine's every Thursday," the wife said, "and his every Sunday."

Well, the topic been abundantly discussed now, so I am closing this thread - to avoid pistols at dawn.

@administrator Thanks.
I've already conducted my first lesson in hospital - one of the nurses inherited a trumpet from an uncle (a rather decrepit but still functional Cerveny) and now wants to learn. Thanks to the good advice in Ivan Hunter's booklet Trumpeting 4 Fun (which, by the way, I am translating into German just now for publication sometime after Easter) she played her first note after only three minutes...

@tornado1957 If you don't play, why don't you start?

"Please, sir," an old lady asks of the Cemetery Official, "where can I find grave 458, row 19?" - "Strewth! Sneaking away like that and not finding home again!"