Best posts made by Three Sevens

TrumpetBoards and a forum for Comeback Players, very timely!

When I packed my horns for long-term storage mid year 2000, I never planned to play again. A couple of weeks after my retirement in 2014, I got a call to play again from a fellow church member that I elected to accept. So many challenges right away, but now almost 5 years back, most have diminished greatly. Now at 68, with Alzheimer's in my family history, I find daily practice and regular public performances a great avenue to hopefully minimize that possibility. I have met many, many fellow musicians since I started playing again and I would count that as a very welcome development now that my working career has ended. Planning and executing a logical practice method is and has been a great physical and mental exercise as well! I'm working on a lot of fundamentals that I missed when I was younger and find that flexibility and endurance have improved greatly after practicing at least 1 1/2 hours everyday following a consistent 1/2 hour warm-up. As my playing ability steadily improves, I find my practice time growing continually benefiting from both aspects. I don't have any deadlines anymore, and that brings a certain "freedom" that now dominates my trumpet life! Very different from my previous trumpet experience and that is most welcome!

Glad to be here,

Mike

Luminox Navy Seals from Christmas of 1999! This has been my daily wear with rare exceptions ever since!

For the last 8 months or so I have been using the Bai Lin Lip Flexibilities as a part of my regular 1/2 hour warmup. I added the Tribute to William Adam book by Charles Davis and most recently downloaded the Scales Bootcamp by Josh Rogan and worked both into my technical practice. I volunteer at 2 local universities to fill the needs in a Symphony Orchestra and a Jazz Ensemble as well as weekly practice and performance with the Brass Ensemble at my church. I also perform with a Symphony Orchestra that plays 5 times a year around the state and perform regularly with the Metropolitan Chamber Orchestra in my home city. This all translates into much regular practice and performance kinda like a full time job! Good thing that I'm retired from my day gig!!

@Tobylou8

71 degrees, Sunny in this part of the South! This is my good day ride:

This thread put me on a search of my safe and this is what I found, my old Seiko from last century! As I remember, it has a motion powered generator on board that provides battery power. After a lot of shaking, It was back in service again. I guess I'm gonna put my Luminox on vacation for a while and start wearing this again.

Many hanks Tobylou8! Simple!

Mike

Thanks for sharing this! Sunday Morning has just become even richer listening to this wonderful example of musical execution and accuracy!

Mike

@Tobylou8 said in No real gains on anything more than 40-45 minutes of practice.:

When I First started back, my warm-up was my practice session!

Same here! I was forced to take the last 6 days off of daily practice and rehearsal by a very nasty virus. Today is my first day back and I spent it all on a carefully designed warm-up routine from the Bai Lin Lip Flexibilities book. No pain on purpose! I plan to add time and exercises into tomorrows session and continue ramping up due to a heavy schedule this coming week; 4 rehearsals and a performance next Friday. Similar schedule next week as well. To very loosely quote Dirty Harry "A man's got to know his limitations...(or his performance will definitely let him know!)"

Mike

Congratulations!

@trickg said in Hal Blaine, Legendary Wrecking Crew Drummer, Has Passed:

I know you can get it on DVD, but it's also usually available on one of the streaming services - it was on Netflix for a good bit and I watched twice when it was.

One of my favourites watched many times! All Musicians are Brothers and Sisters. The greats never go away and can be heard in the voices of many!

Great to see y'all here!
I perform often with statewide symphony orchestra that includes an 85 year old retired Air Force General, and he plays! He calls me a youngster, I'm 68! My Dad used to say that you can't kill a weed very easily and now I understand what he meant much more clearly!

Kindest regards,

Mike

Lots of work for our kind from 60s forward. Some of the names did not take horns on the road but elected to pick up players from localities where they had performances. I got to play with the Temptations back in the early 70s (!!!) and somehow got on the "Call List" ( many thanks to Harry Medema, other Mike and Jimi!) with The O'Jays many, many times from the early 80s thru the end of the 90s, including a really great "100 Black Men of America National Convention" show with so many well know personalities in attendence (my wife got to talk to several, including the late Don Cornelius!)... Again with The OJays on so many other very electric venues, once playing with them just a few days after the incredible TOP horns had played with them and most memorably, at the Krewe of Zulu Mardi Gras Ball in New Orleans! Another time with the OJays for a family day in the park with people as far as you could see enjoying the sounds (my then teen children and their friends won't ever forget this one... Kid In Play was featured as well!) sometime in the late 80s or early 90s. I got to perform with El Rey, the great Tito Puente at a very big National Latin Festival that left a permanent mark on my conscience. My regular weekend gig was with a very good, WORKING! Classic Rock and R&B cover band (during that entire period), working consistently thru the early 2000s. Those were the days! Youth was a nice ingredient that somehow seemed to slip away... but I got to live it and that's what being a trumpet player in that day was about! I got a taste, many had a feast! Before the digital age, horns got lots of work and with any luck will again! What goes around, comes around, or so I'm told!

Just a few thoughts from a while ago,
Mike

@Doodlin said in A great mix:

@oldpete said in A great mix:

Clarke Technical Studies

Thanks for getting this off the ground. I just ordered the 1st Getchell book.

Same here! Just needed a little push!

@trickg I really enjoy what I see going on here as well. I was not a heavy participant in TM but I was a regular at TH and recognize many from both. Either way, this board is a breath of fresh air from my point of view. Looking forward to a long, happy association!

Mike

@Tobylou8

Right On Brother!

@administrator

Yes, as cbtj51 (I wanted to change the name pretty much right away, but couldn't)! I still visit TH often, but read a post by tobylou8 and then LaTrompeta's original post, followed the lead, and glad I did!

Mike