Posts made by Dale Proctor

@rleegabe said in Conn 22B Trumpet ?:

Looking at buying a Conn 22B Trumpet but having trouble telling what model it is. It reads 22B the serial number is 5 542159 can't tell if it's a Victor, New York Symphony, or other. Assuming there is a 5 and a long space to the rest of the serial number it's a later year. But would really like to know what model it is. Would anyone have that information?

The serial # isn’t a vintage Conn number. If the bell to leadpipe braces are slanted, it’s a recent student model Director, not a “real” Conn 22B. Also look for USA stamped near the bottom of the 2nd valve case - if it’s there, it’s a 22B Director, not a Victor or New York Symphony.

@rleegabe said in Conn Continental Clarion Silver Trumpet:

Yes it did, I was outbid and lost it, really had my heart set on this one.

Sorry you missed out on it. Keep your eyes open and something similar (or better) will come along.

Does it actually say Conn anywhere on it? I had a trumpet that looked almost exactly like that one, and it said Crusader on the bell. A lot of the features appear to be Conn-like, but it wasn’t a Conn and didn’t play well at all.

@Dr-GO said in Same high quality as Recording models:

@Dale-Proctor said in Same high quality as Recording models:

Yep, like I said, you can find a few pros in the past playing jazz on an Ambassador and they work pretty well in that genre. I played lead in a big band for a while on an L.A. Ambassador, and it was ok, but it sure wasn’t suited for “legit” music.

Dale, I agree with you entirely. I have never played my Ambassador for "legit" music as it just cannot live up to the quality of sound you get from more seasoned horns. I just love that the Ambassador when high quality musicians play it can show off it's jazz sound potential.

If I remember correctly, you have a really nice one! I eventually stripped all the spotty lacquer off my ‘52 model, had Amado water keys put on it, and removed the forward bell brace and lyre/finger ring holder. I played it most of the time with a Schilke 13A4a with a throat drilled to a 25.

@Dr-GO said in Same high quality as Recording models:

@Dale-Proctor said in Same high quality as Recording models:

An Ambassador isn’t a Recording. They share some basic parts, but Ambassadors are built to a price point and are well-built low tier instruments that play ok. I’ve owned 3 (two trumpets and one cornet) and that’s my assessment. They are not instruments that players would want to use in any professional-level genre of music, with the possible exception of jazz/ragtime.

Lee Morgan played this cut on an Ambassador. This is my favorite jazz song ever. I was mystified when I found out this was am Ambassador.

Yep, like I said, you can find a few pros in the past playing jazz on an Ambassador and they work pretty well in that genre. I played lead in a big band for a while on an L.A. Ambassador, and it was ok, but it sure wasn’t suited for “legit” music.

I should note that the cornet I had was a ‘49, the trumpet I played in big band was a ‘52, and the other Ambassador trumpet was from the late 1960s. Other than the lacquer, they all were in very good condition.

An Ambassador isn’t a Recording. They share some basic parts, but Ambassadors are built to a price point and are well-built low tier instruments that play ok. I’ve owned 3 (two trumpets and one cornet) and that’s my assessment. They are not instruments that players would want to use in any professional-level genre of music, with the possible exception of jazz/ragtime.

I have two right now - an Ed/D Ambassador trumpet and an L-12 flugelhorn. I’ve owned two Ambassador Bb trumpets and one Ambassador cornet in the past, and none of them really impressed me. The only reason I kept the Eb/D Ambassador and the L-12 flugelhorn is that although I rarely have the need for either, it’s nice to have them available when the opportunity arises that I do need one. I don’t have much money tied up in either one, so I’m happy to let them sit in the closet most of the time.

@flugelgirl

I came down with something the 2nd day after my marathon gig was over, and am still not well. I suppose I caught it being around all those people for 5 days in a row. Luckily, I don’t have anything to play for till after New Year’s Day. Hope you have a fast recovery!

@Dr-GO said in Another Christmas gig is in the books:

I played a Christmas Concert at a local club 2 nights ago where one of my big bands performs every 3rd Thursday evening…

In fact, here is a close up of me "light up" after returning from the break:

Here’s a dark photo of me (the guy with some hair…lol) playing at the tree last weekend.

I’d like to hear any recordings of either of the two gigs you mentioned if you get the chance. Your playing is always great!

I played in this production with about 150 singers and a 50 piece orchestra at our church. Dress rehearsal was a week ago Wednesday, one performance Thursday, one Friday, three on Saturday, a church service Sunday morning, and the last performance Sunday night. About 10,000 free tickets were distributed, and the sanctuary was packed at every performance. BTW, the orchestra played 3 pieces as the crowd was coming in that aren’t part of the recording.

https://vimeo.com/895431905?fbclid=IwAR0TaKir1JG4zMpTTOfm2gX-qggf2se1iLXkpox3wHMvuuoQC6xCXx2BGTQ

Just saw this post, so I’ll resurrect it for this cornet. 1962 Conn 9A Victor short cornet. Coprion bell and leadpipe, in really nice original condition.

@Dr-GO said in Future survival of this forum:

@tjcombo said in Future survival of this forum:

Of late, life has been getting in the way of browsing this and other social media (both good and not so good distractions). At 67y.o. I’m contemplating retirement from a rewarding job that I love, to do other things, musical and other, that I love a little more.

I contemplated retiring at 65. Did so, and within 2 months started a new career. I am now 68 and no where near planning on retiring.

I retired at 67 and never looked back…I’m 71 now and don’t miss working at all. I enjoyed the nuts and bolts of my work (I was engineering manager for a fire suppression contractor), but the decline of the quality of the construction industry and increasing governmental red tape every year made my job a daily headache. After retiring, I bought a sports car, we upsized to a nicer home, and now I’m trying to get back into good playing shape and making good progress.

@Paul-Cote
Some trumpets have it stamped on the valve block. If you can find the specs on your trumpet, the bore size is sometimes given in mm or inch measurements. If you have calipers, you can measure the inside diameter of the second valve slide tubing (not the slide receiver). How that measurement relates to a bore size designated by small, medium, medium large, large, or extra large depends on the measurement range the manufacturer chooses. For example, the same bore measurement on horns from two different makers may be called medium large by one and large by the other. There are no hard and fast rules on what’s what, just general ranges of what constitutes a bore designation.

@dr-go said in Future survival of this forum:

@dale-proctor said in Future survival of this forum:

I check this forum daily, but rarely see anything that interests me enough to reply. Most of my posts seem to interest very few people, and receive very few responses. Maybe it’s just me…lol

Dale I always love your posts and try to reply whenever I can, but you say it so well, sometimes I just cannot add to the quality you deliver.

I check this forum daily, but rarely see anything that interests me enough to reply. Most of my posts seem to interest very few people, and receive very few responses. Maybe it’s just me…lol

@barliman2001

Sorry to hear that! Hope you have a full, speedy recovery!

I’d guess it means to play into a hat mute, but if you don’t have one, playing into the stand will do,

Here’s another…

About a week before Christmas one year, I got a frantic phone call from a large church in town to see if I could take a trumpet player’s spot in a big Christmas show (with 100 member choir and a full orchestra) that had just completed its 3rd performance out of six. The person on 2nd trumpet had become miffed about something and walked out, the next performance was in a couple hours, and it was slated to be recorded for TV.

I said yes, showed up and sight read the performance pretty well, because the music wasn’t as difficult as I had feared. I was hired for the rest of the performances and received the full stipend. I assume the awol trumpet player received nothing.