Posts made by Dr GO

@Trumpetb said in Trumpet Toolkit for Teaching and Learning :

@barliman2001 Wise words

I am put in mind of a trumpet player who travelled to an Islamic country where music was banned and the immigration staff wanted to confiscate his trumpet on entry, but when the player played for them to demonstrate just how quiet he played they quickly realized they were quite wrong and then allowed the player in with his instrument without any issues, they just asked him to be respectful.

I purchased a really inexpensive pocket trumpet for a business trip I was to take to Saudi Arabia, with the anticipation that it may be confiscated. And so it was. Three times. Each time the individual taking the horn took it to their supervisor and each time the supervisor asked me kindly my intent in bringing the horn. I would then show the supervisor my Yamaha silent mute, then explained, my intent was only to practice the horn in my hotel room with the silencer intact so no one would be able to hear me. The supervisor for each occasion appreciated my discussion and in each case, returned the horn to me.

It is however a sad state of affairs when a restrictive government to many liberties such as Saudi Arabia will yield to reasoning, but Disney will not.

@Trumpetb said in Trumpet Toolkit for Teaching and Learning :

@Dr-GO

But we are where we are and if you found a way to bring a mouthpiece onboard a Disney cruise Disney will find a way to ban it and punish you for doing it.

I have been on, I am guessing now, 6 Disney Cruises and have taken my mouthpiece onboard all of those occasions only to practice it daily on the veranda into a towel so both said towel and ocean waves drown out the sound. And to date have been successful in not having them take my mouthpiece from me. With that said, I always take my least favorite mouthpiece with me just in case.

@Healthy-Smile said in Trumpet Toolkit for Teaching and Learning :

@Dr-GO The whole idea of a virtual trumpet with a USB port for a real mouthpiece sounds pretty cool! Just so you know, the app doesn't have that feature right now. But diving deeper into it could be interesting - it seems like a unique concept that needs a bit of checking out.

Again, can we get this feature by September?

The BEST trigger option is no trigger: My Martin Committee has the slide eliminated as it is not needed as intonation is pitch perfect without it.

Then next easiest feature is then the Olds trigger slide concept. So easy to use, and so ergonomically friendly.

To Healthy Smile:

Virtual Trumpet. This could be an intriguing feature. Does this enable you to plug in an actual mouthpiece through a USB port and then play a trumpet feature on your site?

Going on a Disney Cruise in September and they do not allow musical instruments on the ship. They do allow lap tops. So if you have this feature, man am I sold. If you don't have this feature, could it possible be created... by September?

Interesting read, as my '53 LA Recording and '67 Fullerton Recording play the same. I love both and play on them equally.

What ever method decided, I cannot expand any higher on my transposition training I received from Mick Dennisen when he was teaching me at the University of Cincinnati College Conservatory of Music. At the time he had me run through many, many months of mental torture (like learning a new language with EVERY key change), it has paid in spades many many years later. Whether playing off the piano score in small group ensembles or going though various versions of Organ Music in so many keys for non-Bb instruments, it has been a real career enhancer to go into to any new performance rehearsal and playing off a score with my Bb trumpet in hand, and play any original keyed arrangement with minimal effort.

I played a Christmas Concert at a local club 2 nights ago where one of my big bands performs every 3rd Thursday evening. This is a picture of the band:

And this is the picture looking in the other direction at the crowd (dancers). The place was packed and full of Christmas Cheer (in part due to the fact that the venue has a very full service bar). One of the patrons actually gifted me with a "Bee's Knees" during the break!

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

Congratulations Dale!

I am playing the Christmas Eve service with the Lutheran Church in my city. It is just me and the organist (an amazing 4 keyboard instrument with a very big sound). These our the songs we will be playing:

In Dulci Jubilo
I Am So Glad Each Christmas Eve (Jeg er så glad hver julekveld)
Angels We Have Heard On High (Descant Trumpet)
Angels, from the Realms of Glory (Descant Trumpet)
What Child is This? (Communion Hymn with Harmon Mute)
Joy To The World (Descant Trumpet)
For Unto Us a Child Is Born G.F. Handel (Descant Trumpet - which has the last 3 measures toggling around the E above staff - a rather vociferous send off!

I am much grateful for the Dayton Musicians Union (AFM) that has contracted me with this performance now for the 6th consecutive year.

@acarcido said in Long ago Trumpet Master member from Southern California.:

@Dr-GO thanks man. It does feel much the same. Remember the horn porn pics. That was the best. Anything like that here?

Many horn posts of beautiful instrument, my favorite being copper horns: https://trumpetboards.com/topic/128/copper-is-cool?page=1

So great to have you back with much of the old gang. To me, it has the same feel a TM. Most friendly. I was only kicked off once. Still full of the same piss and vinegar as I have always been.

@ROWUK said in Mental health among professional musicians:
...The former probably would not take part in any "studies" and the latters response would depend if they had a reasonable paying job outside of music or not.

Yes and this is why isolated reports must be read with caution and questioning their reliability and internal bias. The systematic review I posted above is a larger study including many which brings us closer to the truth from the isolated studies I found based on small groups in a single location.

A final reflection: One day a situation developed within a medical residency training program I directed. I had a secretary state that she wanted to transfer from my office as she was uncomfortable working for an individual (me) that demanded such a high performance level out of her.

My chairman (my boss) became highly angered when that secretary contacted her that same day saying she wanted to resign her position. It only took 30 minutes for my chairman to come barreling into my office. Watching her approach my building and following her steps to my office actually reminded me of the scene in the Wizard of Oz when a ticked off wicked witch of the west was riding her bicycle in an angered mood.

Before she started yelling at me I first said: Dr. S, let me first say that I consider myself above anything else to be a musician first, and a physician second. As a musician, I prefer playing in a small jazz ensemble which is the way I run my program and my office. Why? Because I have more chance to interplay one on one with those in the ensemble, to solo off their lead and for them to solo off my lead. When a person in that ensemble finds they can no longer perform with the ensemble, they have the flexibility to leave. And you know, when I am playing in a jazz ensemble and the tension comes out of the horn, and the crowed hears that tension, it ends with applause and appreciation by the audience. not scolding or consternation as is more typical of a medical environment.

Now when I play in your ensemble, a large medical division, I see myself playing rather in orchestra with you as the director. In an orchestra, I regard my role as rather becoming your instrument, and as such I perform as you direct me to perform, and as a result of your excellent leadership as an orchestra director your department performs with excellence. I then stated let's respect that in a high function ensemble, small group versus a large orchestra, there are dynamic differences that are required to lead to the most successful performance possible. All I ask of you is you respect the differences between my small group ensemble and your orchestra.

My chairman immediately calmed down, stated "I see your point" got up and left my office without saying anything more. The next day I hired a new secretary that performed exceptionally well with my program and my chairman was even more happy with my new ensembles performance.

Yet another personal reflection of music impacting my own mental health. When I come home from a particularly stressful day at the office, I have the comfort of knowing I will be practicing my trumpet that evening, and taking the stress out on my horn. I find on the more stressful days that my performance is actually enhanced.

From a personal (non-evidence based) perspective, as a primary care physician that practices in a challenging environment with a paucity of mental health professionals I have a high volume of patients in my medical practice that I am the primary medical provider that manages their mental health. I would even venture to say, that about a third of my practice involves managing mental health diagnoses. So of my entire panel of patients I would say I manage the mental health in about 300 patients. Of all those patients, I know of only one musician that I manage with the diagnosis of bipolar disorder. So from my perspective, musicians are in a clear minority of the patients that I manage for mental heath diagnoses.

I believe the video is more reflective of stress in maintaining a viable career than it is in evaluating a mental health perspective.

When I searched the medical literature, there were articles all over the place regarding prevalence of mental health illness in musicians vs non-musicians. Of interest I found one article that showed professional musicians with no difference in mental health illness categories over other professions; however, amateur musicians had a more improved mental health spectrum over professional musicians and other professionals.

However the BEST article I could find was a systematic review that showed the following results:

In other words there is no difference in prevalence in musicians over other non-musician professionals:

Certainly not one of my choreographs but entertaining non the less:
https://www.facebook.com/watch?v=885113839922640