Posts made by grune

The brightest horn I have played was an Olds Mendez, made ca 1970, using a stock Olds mouthpiece (rather shallow).

@mafields627 said in Student trumpets:

@grune said in Student trumpets:

@mafields627
Good choices. We all have our preferences and reasons. Have you compared such horns against the Carol Brass models? You might be surprised.

I haven't simply because we don't have access to them locally; however, if Trent Austin recommends them I'll take his word on it.

This thread has got me thinking about what will happen if either of my sons wants to play trumpet. A Strad or Xeno will probably $3000+ at that point. Do I give up my Strad or my Teatro (a Getzen/Kanstul frankenhorn assembled by Eclipse)? What will be the affordable, high quality brands in a decade?

A number of competent players have commented very favourably on the CG line of horns. We may be in a golden era for trumpets, with so many brands producing quality horns. I should think, as time goes by, many quality instruments will be available on the used market for good prices.

@mafields627
Good choices. We all have our preferences and reasons. Have you compared such horns against the Carol Brass models? You might be surprised.

@Dr-GO
Agree, the Olds Ambassador was a very good horn - at the student level. It has the attributes you note. It is medium bore, good for a student, but it is easy to overblow as the student develops power. The tone can be very good for a maturing student using a 3C mp or such, and has focus, but it can never approach the sound of say a Bach Strad. It slots well. The intonation within the staff is very good, but the horn has poorer intonation for lower and higher. The 3rd slide helps with low register: but the the 1st valve has no slide and cannot be modified to have a ring - a real pity. The valves on mine were excellent. The coating was natural lacquer and wore quickly, causing the brass to corrode at the valve casings - a pity. Overall, the Ambassador can serve as a benchmark to compare other horns, and it can develop a student to a rather high level. I regret selling mine so long ago.

@Shifty
Lindermann gives a well-reasoned explanation. But, I happen to disagree with his premise; "the name of the game is efficiency and flexibility". To me, the name of the game is "sound": tone and dynamics. The choice of a mouthpiece should be based upon the desired sound. If you want the orchestral sound, you have no choice other than a larger mouthpiece: the issue is simple physics. If such sound is not the priority, then other factors take priority, in which case the norm is to use a smaller mouthpiece. The basic compromise is sound versus all other aspects: eg. if a small m/p is chosen for ease of range, the teutonic sound will be compromised.

I agree with his point; too many people are using too large a mouthpiece when they have not the chops for the large size; yet resulting in a lack of sound. So, these people sacrifice all aspects, and would be best advised to down-size in favour of improved technique.

@administrator said in pet peeves:

"Lay" is a verb indicating a certain position our body is in. "Lie" is either a verb or noun that describes telling something that is not completely true.

"Who" is used as subject, "whom" is used as object. I didn't even have to search those things!

correct for who and whom.

@Newell-Post said in pet peeves:

Unnhhh... According to the "Manual of Style" on my bookshelf....

• Lay (verb) means "to put in place." It must have an object. (Example: "The contractor promised to lay the sod before the rains began.")
• Lie (verb) means "to rest or recline." It cannot have an object. (Example: "The main plant entrance lies south of the personnel building.")
• Lie (verb) second meaning: "to utter a falsehood."
• Lie (noun) means: "a knowingly false statement."

Or, as I learned it many years ago in school: "You should lay the baby down for a while. If he can lie still for a few minutes, he might feel better."

Excellent lesson.

https://www.trumpetboards.com/topic/128/copper-is-cool/16?page=1

uh, maybe you could advise Osren at the link above?

@J-Jericho said in pet peeves:

"Daily" is correct. "On a daily basis" is superfluous.

Correct! But not because it is superfluous: much can be superfluous and still be grammatically correct.

Specifically, English grammar, inter alia, has nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, and structure. Adjectives "modify" nouns and are placed before the noun. Adverbs modify verbs and are placed after the verb.

"Basis" is a noun. "Daily" is an adverb. Thus, the phrase "on a daily basis" uses an adverb to modify a noun and the adverb is placed before the noun. Such destruction of language stems from ignorance and confused thinking.

Sadly, this is but an iota of the proverbial iceberg tip. The worst offenders, imho, are lawyers. You will find thousands of "agreements" labelled as "non-circumvention non-disclosure". In fact, the prefix "non" is now so pervasive, people cannot comprehend any other meaning. If 2 parties agree not to disclose information to 3rd parties, the meaning of this is "confidentiality".

Other errors are the use of "that", "not", and hundreds of other constructs.

@moshe said in pet peeves:

Dictionary says that "judgment" is the correct spelling,
although 50 years ago "judgement" would have been the correct spelling.

We "must" drop that "e" before the "-ment".

But for "management" we are "required" to keep that "e" before the "-ment".

And for "encouragement" we are "required" to keep that "e" before the "-ment".

Why the change for "judgement" / "judgment"?
If enough stupid people spell a word incorrectly for a long enough period of time,
then the publishers of the dictionaries finally give in and change the official spelling "due to evolution of the spelling by the general population".

That is also how "bad" came to mean "good" in American urban slang 50 years ago.

Society is going to heck in a hand-basket.

Now I just have 9,999 other pet peeves to post...

Such as countless people on TV who say, "He talked to you and I".
They apparently did not have to graduate from 3rd grade to become a TV writer or TV host or TV reporter.

moshe

Specifically, in proper English, the e is retained in judgement.

Americans have prided themselves over the past 100 years to modify true English into something else. In some cases, such as the writings of Mark Twain, the modifications were deliberate and the result of a sharp intellect. But what has passed since for good language has been the result of ignorance and poor, average education.

You will be very hard pressed today to find people who know the difference between lay and lie, or who and whom.

You will hear, every day, every where, the phrase "on a daily basis". I wager, perhaps only 2 people on this site will know this is the poorest form of grammar and why.

Confused language stems from confused thinking, or no thinking at all. Nothing displays poor education and low intelligence more sharply than poor language ability. This bodes ill for the future of any country.

@Kehaulani said in pet peeves:

English is an inconsistent language, just ask a non-English speaker, trying the learn it. Getting frustrated over it is a waste of time.

Disagree. English is not inconsistent. Now, to say this properly, English is consistent. Any language must be consistent, lest no two people could communicate at any time. I surmise you mean to say English is irregular, which is true.

I will not go so far to say Bach is the greatest. But I will say they were designed for orchestral and ensemble performances, and for this the Bach excels; and over time has become the benchmark to compare all other horns. I cannot determine if changes have occurred, but I think I hear a tonal difference between vintage Bach, pre 1975, and newer, post 2000. For vintage (ie older, say 40 years), per my experience, no 2 Bachs played or sounded exactly alike. My Bach Bb 37 Silver model was made in 1972, with the unusual feature of a 3rd slide trigger, and I have owned since new. This horn sounds like no other I have compared: the timbre is unique. With a B1.5C, the tone is very full and blends perfectly for orchestra: with a B1.5D [yes, it is rare] the tone has an edge and is a tad brighter to produce what is today described as "lead". It has been a world traveller, and has impressed all who hear it, and nobody yet can surmise why the sound is so perfect. The trigger mounts onto the lead pipe, so perhaps this has some positive effect on the tone. I think I may be typical for former pros: we tend to hold our trusty friend until death do us part.

I am against all counterfeit.

A very cursory online search should reveal to anyone having a pulse that a genuine Bach sells for very much more. If the buyer persists to buy, then other factors are present.

One consequence I have found with fakes is the stigma. Once other students know and see a student playing a faked brand, the status issue arises, with rather detrimental effects on the youngster's psyche usually. I think this is worse than any stigma associated with a no-name or generic brand.

But I am not against playable instruments selling for low prices, if the brand is not counterfeited. For beginners, the key issue is to have a horn and mouthpiece that are "playable": weight, grip, valves, intonation, medium bore, m/p of right size, etc. "Sound" of the horn is dead last on priorities: a decent, playable horn these days will always have a decent sound at the student level.

I tell parents some simple facts:
/1/ the trumpet is a very difficult instrument, and at least a year is needed to see if the youngster has any aptitude;
/2/ development requires diligence and the reinforcement of weekly lessons at minimum;
/3/ a playable horn will help greatly to ensure the development, the music, the band, the kid's self-esteem are positive;
/4/ the cost of lessons far far exceeds the cost of a decent instrument, to the point the horn cost is immaterial, so why scrimp on the horn cost?
/5/ the "investment" is not into the instrument; it is into the kid's overall development into an outstanding person.