By the way, playing your trumpet as much as possible is advised. Playing will increase positive end expiration pressure (PEEP), which will open more airways helping to ease the breathlessness feeling.
When I was hospitalized a few years back, I had my pocket trumpet with me and while playing, my pulse ox readings increased by 6%. So playing the trumpet 
is essential to a more speedy recovery.
A few thoughts. The pleural effusion may still be present. It can take 3 to 6 months for this to resolve. The fluid will restrict lung volume with can make you feel short of breath. Alternatively it also takes 3 months for the airway inflammation to resolve. Bronchodilators really do not help much in either case.
I would recommend using the incentive spirometor that was introduced in a recent post. Also a 3 month course of an inhaled steroid may benefit. Also when sleeping at night, having a cool mist vaporizer may benefit in residual secretion clearance. We should never underestimate the healing power of water.
Getting a follow up chest x-ray in 4 to 6 weeks is advised.
Not sure if you had received the pneumovax series, but if not, I would advise getting this done to help prevent a future pneumonia.
Hope this advice helps 
. Wishing you a speedy recovery!
@bigdub said in Phony players:
@barliman2001 said in Phony players:
@Dale-Proctor said in Phony players:
@BigDub said in Phony players:
On the show, Hogan’s Heroes, Colonel Klink Would occasionally play the violin, much to the discomfort of those who happened to be in the same room.
He looked rather convincing, but if you looked closely, there weren’t even any strings on the instrument!Interesting factoid - Werner Klemperer’s father was Otto Klemperer, the famous orchestral conductor.
Even more interesting - quite a number of the actors in that show were either of Jewish descent or had lost family and friends due to Nazi terror.
Yes, I was aware of that as well. John ( Johann ) Banner, Sgt. Schultz, a Jew, was born in Prussia, now Austria, I believe, saw what was happening and came to the US. Joined the US army and served in World War II. Became a prolific actor even while in a Austria and later in the States. Early in his American acting experiences he had to learn his lines phonetically because he did not yet speak English.
I think he has to be my favorite of all of them.
Until you brought this fact to light, "I know nothing "!
@barliman2001 said in Free Brass Arrangement- National Anthem of the Ukraine:
@branson Nice idea; but under normal circumstances, we don't allow political posts here.
I don't think this is about politics but rather Nationalism, and that makes this thread so special. 
Yes?
@j-jericho said in Travel Trumpet:
@barliman2001 ...no matter how much the hose is cleaned, mold seems to love the environment...
Yeah, the ladies 
go for my hose as well! Cause I'm a fungi!
I got my Allora pocket trumpet for travel ease AND cost in case it was lost, or in my case, confiscated as I was taking it to Saudi Arabia at a time when music was outlawed. I was astonished how light it was! Made out of light weight black lacquered nickel. I still play it today as a novelty horn when backing up women singers as for some reason, the ladies really love it.
So George, I do more believe the effects you feel with metoprolol are more related with the cardiovascular effects of dilating arteries, lowering blood pressure (and yes, heart rate which is why this is a good drug in controlling a-fib), which can decrease overall stamina (but not effecting lung dynamics). I do believe rather a weight lifting program focused on chest wall and abdominal respiratory muscles may be in your best interest.
.... AND you are in luck, as I am running a special for a limited time where you can purchase the workout manual "Better Trumpet Playing Through the Bowflex System" in just 14 easy lessons for the special, low low price offer of $9.95. What a value considering the regular purchase price of $59.58 at local Planet Fitness stores! A collection compiled by Gary M. Onady MD, PhD, best selling trumpet fitness author and widely know for being the greatest individual in spewing a LOT of HOT AIR!
@georgeb said in Easy way to increase air supply for brass players:
I am wondering the same thing, Mike. I made a comeback in 2016 at the age of 79. This was after a 50 year hiatus from the horn and at 79 my breathing was pretty good. Last summer at the age of 84 I was diagnosed with atrial fibrillation and was prescribed a drug called Metoprolol that slows and regulates the heart beat.
Since I started taking that drug I have found in the past year that my breath control is not as good as it had been. I am thinking that this breathing measurement tool may help me improve that situation.
So far I haven't been able to find a Spirometer locally because it seems to be on back order everywhere.
George, the study on metoprolol has been done and in evidence based, randomized controlled studies (some of the highest caliber study designs), the effect of metoprolol is not likely due to lung dynamics:
However, for trumpet players it is more important to deliver the gas (oxygen) than to store it (increased inspiratory volume).
From Physiology, Residual Volume
John J. Lofrese; Connor Tupper; Deanna Denault; Sarah L. Lappin. October 20, 2021.Copyright 
2022, StatPearls Publishing LLC.
"Following maximal inspiration, the volume of air that leaves the lungs during a maximal force expiration is known as the vital capacity (VC). VC is composed of the tidal volume, expiratory reserve volume (ERV), and inspiratory reserve volume (IRV). The ERV is the volume of air that can be forcefully exhaled after a normal resting expiration, leaving only the RV in the lungs. Forcefully exhaling the ERV is an active process requiring the contraction of expiratory muscles in the chest and abdomen."
So the key to enhanced trumpet dynamics involving air flow when moving the air from the lungs to the mouth involves more the contraction of expiratory chest and abdominal muscle. This is why I would recommend more using a weight lifting routine focusing on building expiratory respiratory muscles of the chest and abdomen to enhance "air delivery" for brass players as opposed to "air supply".
I have developed a series of 9 sets of exercises that enhance chest muscle function and 6 exercises performing 15 reps of each set of exercises, that enhance abdominal muscle function on my Bowflex system. I do this 40 minute work out every morning and it has done wonders to increase my trumpet playing endurance.
In this study, this device if used daily, can increase inspiratory lung volume by 16% in 30 days.
https://www.cureus.com/articles/64625-efficacy-of-incentive-spirometer-in-increasing-maximum-inspiratory-volume-in-an-out-patient-setting
@newell-post said in Artist on BOARD:
@bigdub The water droplets are very good.
And I thought those were beads of sweat from his hard work at painting that wonderfully realistic view!
My Back-2-Life machine keeps things pretty much in line. In my case, the only painful stoop is the one holding the horn.
@vulgano-brother said in Artist on BOARD:
@dr-go Yes, let's have paintings for all the Superbowl losers over the years.
BigDub could then retire from his day gig if he gets commissioned.
Call me simple, and surely the cheapest (but not necessarily the best), I use the floor.
This answer was submitted to a bonus question at U of Arizona by a student on a mid-term Chemistry exam to the question:
Is Hell exothermic (gives off heat) or endothermic (absorbs heat)?
The student wrote: First we need to know how the mass of Hell is changing in time. So we need to know the rate at which souls are moving into Hell, and the rate at which they are leaving, which is unlikely. We can safely assume that once a soul gets to Hell, it will not leave. Therefore, no souls are leaving. As for how many souls are entering Hell, let's look at the different religions in the world today. Most of these religions state that if you are not a member of their religion you will go to Hell. Since there is more than one of these religions and since people do not belong to more than one religion, we can project that all souls go to Hell. With birth and death rates as they are, we can expect the number of souls in Hell to increase exponentially. Now, we look at the rate of change of the volume of Hell because Boyle's Law states that in order for the temperature and pressure in Hell to stay the same, the volume of Hell has to expand proportionally, as souls are added.
This gives two possibilities:
So which is it? If we accept the postulates given to me by Teresa during my Freshman year that, "It will be a cold day in Hell before I sleep with you", and take into account the fact that I slept with her last night, then number two must be true, and thus I am sure that Hell is exothermic and has already frozen over, it follows that it is not accepting any more souls and is therefore, extinct... leaving only Heaven, thereby proving existence of a divine being which explains why, last night, Teresa kept shouting "Oh my God!"
THE STUDENT WAS AWARDED AN A+ FOR THIS BONUS QUESTION.
Getting back to the house purchase... I'm in!
Horns through History with TOP:
By RICHARD FREEDMAN | Vallejo Times Herald
PUBLISHED: December 14, 2021 at 11:26 a.m. | UPDATED: December 14, 2021 at 1:45 p.m.
"Not only is TOP “just as good, we’re maybe a little better” than ever, Castillo believes, especially after “Iron” Mike Bogart re-joined the band on trumpet after a stint with the Navy and college."
