@ButchA
I guarantee they'd never make it here, Butch. Canadians love their rum...especially those custom duty officers. 
BTW, I had a boring sober Christmas day with my 86 year old sister who doesn't drink. But she loves to hear me play the trumpet so I played a few songs she likes and that helped liven things up a bit...especially Jingle Bell Rock... ha ha !
@barliman2001
Now that was one really interesting situation. Playing in the cold is definitely no fun. But I'm sure you did well, sir.
@tmd
I agree, Mike, but Anka seemed to be like a dog with a bone. No one was even disagreeing with him. In fact they all looked scared as hell. Anka just seemed relentless in browbeating his musicians, to the point that maybe he was enjoying their fear.
@administrator said in Longineu Parsons II:
There never seems to be a shortage of talent. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for gainful employment!
There are about a dozen musicians in my band that could easily be considered professional just from their talent and abilities. But they'd starve to death if they were trying to make a living with their instruments.
@adc
Shucks, the link didn't work for me. What did you buy ?
Hey, Butch, I totally agree with Rowuk. You really have to play a mouth piece for a few months to find out if it is really the one. In my case the Bach 10.5C, was my main mouthpiece for 12 years in my younger days ( 1953 to 1965 when I stopped playing). Fifty + years later ( 2016 ) I made a comeback and found the smaller piece did not work for me. After trying several different makes and sizes I settled for a Bach 3C for the first year, a Bach 5C the second year, and a Wedge 65MD for the past year or so. I liked them all, but each of the first two caused me some minor problems ( primarily with endurance and pressure ) that disappeared entirely when I started playing the Wedge. I would not be playing in the band I am with today if I wasn't playing the Wedge.
In my opinion the Bach 10.75CW seemed to be the easiest of the three for you to play the 2 octave scale. Why not give IT a really good tryout for a few months and then see how things are going.
@Kehaulani
Geez, and I always thought Paul Anka was a nice Canadian boy. Seems I was wrong...he is nothing but a Canadian jerk.
Anyway, best holiday wishes to everyone at TB from a nice old Canadian man.
I don't doubt for a minute that you can get a good sound with a small mouthpiece. I played a Bach 10.5C exclusively between 1953 and 1965 and was told quite often that I had a good tone. The Wedge I play now is a bit larger than the Bach 3C, and its cup shape is somewhere between a C and V shape. This has really opened up sound for me with little effort. I only use the smaller 10.5C to extend my endurance when I do a lot above the staff, but I know I could get a pretty nice warm sound from it if, as Franklin said, I put time and effort into it. I think that would happen for Butch, too if he really likes the mouthpiece.
Yeah I love the 5A, but as you said, a bit heavy and the valves are a bit bouncy. But man, what sound.
As for the 10.5C, I used it as my main mouthpiece for 12 years in the 50s and 60s. Just didn't work for me when I started playing again in 2016 after a 50 year hiatus. But it has been a help when for some of the tougher band gigs where there is a lot of above the staff stuff.
@Kehaulani said in Not really a "mouthpiece safari" but the need for a "saving grace" type of mouthpiece...:
Just as an observation, and not addressing in any other parameters but sound, I think your sound on the 10 3/4 is tinnier
I too noticed a difference between it and the 3C he played first. I find my sound is tinnier, too when I switch from my Wedge 65MD ( a bit larger than the Bach 3C ) to either of my Bach 10C mouthpieces. I attribute that to the smaller size cups.
@ButchA
Hey, buddy, good to see you found a possible solution. I still use my old 1953 gold rim Bach 10.5C now and then, and I have a Bach 10.5CW, the W is for wide and it has that great cushion rim like the larger one you now have. I used to use mine for band work until I found the Wedge, which also has an amazingly comfortable rim.
@Bob-Pixley
Though I have not had to resort to using it yet, I still have my 1953 Bach 10.5C mp just in case I need it to help me survive a performance .
That picture and a cozy fire go great together, Doc. Wayne is really something with a brush.
@BigDub
Great, Wayne. I just made it my pc wallpaper. Merry Christmas to you and yours.
George
I am 83 and playing first trumpet with one the best local bands and everything that report says is dead on. I played trumpet in the early 50s and 60s but stopped for career and family reasons. Fifty years later, after three terrible years grieving over my wife's death, I started playing again ( almost 4 years ago now ) and playing music became my salvation mentally, and in many ways, physically.
@ButchA said in Not really a "mouthpiece safari" but the need for a "saving grace" type of mouthpiece...:
Wow... Sticker shock isn't the word!!! The Harrelson mouthpiece kits are incredible, but cost almost about the same as a common "school band" trumpet!
Hey, Butch, you may want to look into the Wedge. With my comeback for the first two years, using first a Bach 3C, and later a 5C, I just couldn't get past a 60 minute endurance period. I had a serious injury last fall and after a month long break from playing, came back using a Wedge. Nothing magic, but it seemed right for my chops ( upper denture ) and within a few months I was playing 90 minute practice sessions with a tough new band. Today I can go beyond 90 minutes if a can get a break or two. Check out wedgemouthpiece.com. Dr. Dave is great to work with and the price is half that of the Harrelson. I use a Wedge MD65 with an ID just a slightly larger than my Bach 3C. He also makes a 65 Cornet Wedge mp ( nore of a deeper V cup ) that I use on my cornets.
Oh, yes, one other thing: he offers a 90 day trial period, after which, you can get a full refund if the Wedge doesn't work for you.
@Dr-Mark
YAY ! Dr-Mark's alive and well !!!!!