A set of wine and water communion vessels (18th century, silver gilt) that were supposed to have been stolen by marauding Soviet troops but which I, during a job photographing the whole church inventory of a small parish church, re-discovered in a cardboard box behind the loo...
Our family teddy bear Wendelin who came into the family in the early 1890s... sitting in the rocking swan my grandfather made for me... I used to sit in there in a suit of plastic armor, listening to Lohengrin...
Our tortoise trying to escape during the construction of our house...
Well, the topic been abundantly discussed now, so I am closing this thread - to avoid pistols at dawn.
@barliman2001 
And that is how the orchestra looked like, in the Teatro Civico Salvatore Cicero in Cefalu... (here with Brahms' Double Concerto)
My wife in her role of the old b4st4ard in her solo programme "Für Dich, mein Schatz" (ssmith1226 was at the world premiere...) ... here's a few bits out of it... next performance on 3 August...
A viola player wants to escape his instrument and all its results, so he decides to learn some new instruments... goes into the music shop, looks around and says,
"I want that long harp, the red trumpet and the accordion." -
"You a viola player?" - "Yes, why?" -
"You can have the hatstand and the fire extinguisher, but the radiator stays!"
@JWM If ROWUK says so, it usually is true.
Just happened upon this Norman Rockwell painting... I am sure someone can identify the trumpet!
It's that special time of the year again, and I am heading north with a small party from Brass Band Vienna to join Coronation Brass for their umpteenth participation in the European Folklore Festival in Bitburg, Germany... four days with four gigs each, no music beforehand, it's sit down and play... sight-reading old favourites and the whole time-honoured cheeseboard, with a few older test pieces thrown in for good measure... this year, the line-up of participations has more brass-related interest: Several big bands, a New Orleans-style brass band, couple of oompah outfits and the local ruffians who have evolved into a large wind orchestra of some quality... Anyone in the area from 12 July onwards should head there and get their ears full of brass playing of all sorts... meet Coronation Brass and have a few free beers with them - Bitburg, after all, is a small town next to a big, big brewery... they say the brewery employs more people than are living in the town...
@Dr-GO They can't be found on the web - that is for certain.
@TrueToneGoldWash On my collection of Bueschers - a #12 with Bb to A rotor valve, a #9 and a 243 - that they work best with cheapo Arnold & Sons Bach clones if you shorten the shank by about 4 millimetres and take off the outside silver plate on the shank - or use an Arnold & Sons cornet mouthpiece with a suitably altered converter. And Arnold & Sons mouthpieces (sometimes marketed as Stoelzel) are reliable clones of good Bach mouthpieces, at ridiculously low prices...
Unaltered Arnold & Sons mouthpieces work very well wth all my other horns... Courtois Balanced, Olds Recording, Gaudet C, Courtois D...
So now we can close this ancient thread?
@administrator You can always find me in Vienna - quite near to Prague.
Still looking for a good new home...
Following an old tradition, scratch brass band CORONATION BRASS will be performing at the annual European Folklore Festival in the brewery town of Bitburg, Germany. It's a varied, four day festival with everything from Georgian youth dance groups to Dutch jazz bands, from the dance group of a Swedish old peoples' home (the youngest performer is 85!) to local oompah bands and the pipe band (German Dudelsackgruppe from a place fittingl called Dudeldorf)... A few TM and TB members have already played with Coronation Brass (ssmith1226 exclaimed that he would not take part the following year because his liver never recovered from the experience... well, it's a brewery town, isn't it?)
It's a sight reading event - no rehearsal, and you don't get the music beforehand, and have to fill at least three gigs per day with music - and of course, you are always very welcome to sit in with one of the other bands!
The dates: Festival kicks off on Friday, 12 July 2024, and ends with an open air night concert b Coronation Brass the following Monday.
Anyone wanting to know details, see the festival or even to join Coronation Brass (shepherd's crook cornets only!) should contact me IMMEDIATELY, as most seats are already filled...
Lots of free drinks and free meals!
@administrator Just sent you an e-mail.
A few years ago, I bought an AUSTIN CUSTOM BRASS Piccolo in A/Bb, just to have an A/Bb in my armoury in case of need. And then I had a bad retinal ablation and was prohibited from using high pressure. Thus, my new picc has lived in my trumpet cabinet unused since then, and I am very unlikely to need a picc in the foreseeable future (and if yes, I still have my Selmer G picc).
It's a nice instrument, with a light attack, good valves and a surprisingly nice tone - definitely a very good first picc for anyone starting out on that adventure, or as an upgrade from a beginner picc.
Yellow brass in matte brushed lacquer finish ("satin lacquer" at 100%), with both A and Bb leadpipes in trumpet size. Comes with original case, both leadpipes in original protective case. Total time played under ten hours.
Sells new at $ 875. Will take $ 500 ONO, buyer pays insured postage - $50 approx. from Europe).
