Posts made by J. Jericho

I think if Walter.SK would move the mouthpiece to the side of his head, he could play by ear!

I'm subscribed to this guy's channel, but let's say I wouldn't do some of the things he does the way he does them, and some things he does I wouldn't do at all. In this example, I'd have used more penetrating oil, and I'd have sprayed it into the leadpipe as well so that both ends of the tubing got soaked. I'd also have given it more time to penetrate, plus, as I was working the slide and when it started to move, I'd keep adding penetrating oil to make things as slippery as possible. I probably wouldn't have applied quite as much torque, either. I could just visualize the lower tuning slide pressing against the third valve.

Also, flugelgirl's point about not needing to unsolder the tubing is good. There are cases when it's necessary, and working the stuck area can be ugly and extreme when it is, but it's a last resort.

Lastly, penetrating oil and flame can combine in a colorful and illuminating event.

Spraying the the slides in penetrating oil overnight would be the obvious solution to me. If you want to use heat afterward, I'd leave the horn in the refrigerator (I understand that some European refrigerators are not large enough to do this.) for a half hour or so prior to using warm-to-hot water on the outer slides, giving the outers the chance to expand before the inners catch up. I'd also use a well-padded/rubber mallet judiciously, if necessary, to provide some motivation. If you're mechanically capable and sensitive, give it a try; it takes finesse, not brute force. Otherwise, taking it to a tech would be the answer, preferably before you attempt to move the slide, rather than after damaging the horn as a result of too much enthusiasm. Good luck, my friend.

@_mark_ What mouthpiece are you using?

@oldschooleuph Three things come to my somewhat cyber-challenged mind: Firefox, chat with administrator, and temperamental machine. I find all things electronic to be inconsistent and frustrating. I hope something works for you.

Instructions are on the plaque: "Do not touch."

@mike-ansberry I just had another thought: the tuning slide on my Special has a longer lower tube. If you had access to a Special, you could try its tuning slide in your Recording if the slide width is the same. I think an Ambassador slide fits my Studio, or maybe it was a Super, so there is the possibility of some interchangeability among Olds trumpets.

@mike-ansberry said in Olds Recording 1951 era plays flat.:
The lower tuning slide tube is shorter than the outer tube attached to the valve section. So there is a gap there.

Can you cut a piece of tubing to slide into the gap and see if this makes a difference, or is intonation strictly a matter of length, rather than volume? Occasionally I've noticed that when a using deeper mouthpiece I've had to move the tuning slide in slightly to compensate. I didn't notice whether the length of the mouthpiece was different than the shallower one, though, and I didn't measure mouthpiece gap at the time, either.

@mike-ansberry How close does the tuning slides come to bottoming out in the outer slides when the tuning slide is pushed all the way in? To put it another way, how much longer are the inside lengths of the outer slides, compared to the lengths of the inner slide legs of the tuning slide itself? What is the mouthpiece gap? Does the mouthpiece receiver have the correct taper? Does the horn play a different pitch with a different mouthpiece? It seems like a little adjustment in the right places should resolve the issue.

Is it possible that the trumpet got assembled with a longer bell stem? Could the bell stem not have been pushed all the way into the ferrule at the factory? They used to certify that the horn would play in tune with the tuning slide out a certain amount at a certain ambient temperature (5/8" at 70° F?), so I would think that this type of situation could be discovered.

@jessie You've found a community consisting of members willing and able to help. We are also members of the real world.

@mike-ansberry Did it ever play in tune, or is this a new development?

One of my previous dentists (also a trumpet player), long since retired, was enthused that he discovered Yoga as a means to relaxation and a sense of well-being, to which I responded: "That's what alcohol is for!"

@rowuk ... or he should use the Bach numbering system. You know... the number of high notes is stamped into the mouthpiece, along with which pitch the mouthpiece contains! For example, a 10-1/2 C enables you to play ten and one half octaves of the note "C", whereas a 2 only has two undetermined high notes available.

Here's a reasonable video about cleaning and lubricating your trumpet:

@georgeb said in Keying ~fingering:
... regardless of what the experts say, you have to use what works for you.

Agreed. The goals are to play efficiently and comfortably and to not wear out the horn in the process.

@curlydoc I was originally taught to place my right thumbnail against the first valve casing. It worked OK, except for some quick mute changes and especially when using a plunger mute. If there is a first valve trigger where the fulcrum is attached to the right side of the casing, as on Olds and Bach, for instance, this thumb placement will not work, as it conflicts with the lever/paddle.

My default position now is to rest my right thumb on the upper left first valve casing and rest my left thumb on the trigger button/paddle. On horns without a first valve trigger, my left thumb is in the first valve saddle/ring and wrapped around the first valve casing when there is no tuning aid there. This way I don't have to change a thing when using mutes. This may not work for people with fingers shorter than mine. The bottom line is that this enables me to comfortably press the valves down without side pressure.

FWIW - I avoid trumpets and cornets that have paddles where the fulcrum is placed in the middle of the valve casing. They're just too awkward for me. Oh, and mute changes are not an issue for the most part, since I usually change them with my right hand.

Curled fingers will place less side stress on the valves, reducing wear. Here's an example:

Yamaha.com

Bonus: Note posture, left hand placement, trumpet position, comments, and photo source.

@dr-go Lithping, are we?

TromboneChat.com

Music is a language. How long did it take for you to become fluent in speaking and reading your native tongue? How long does it take to learn a foreign language? How much concentration, dedication, repetition, and construction does it take to learn any language? These are the keys to learning to effectively and naturally sight read and play/sing music.