Always enjoyed the joke thread on TM. Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, so let's see if I can successfully upload an image (if not, failure always has a funny angle...)
NoMoreBlues.jpg

A little (but maybe not so much?) off topic...

@Doodlin This video from Eric Bolvin is a great place to start. This is all about beginning improv - making up your own tune/licks/counter-melodies as you go. FWIW, until I started playing trumpet again ("comeback" still feels pretentious to me) about 7 years back, attempts at getting started with improv never took off. This video really opened my eyes and after first watching it, I spent 3 very happy hours noodling with what I'd learned in ten minutes.

Enjoy!

@BigDub the trombone guys are way ahead of us...

Am currently enjoying a course provide by Coursera and would like to recommend it to TBers with an interest in playing/learning to play jazz, blues or simply expanding you knowledge on harmonic structures (beyond that which many of us have/had as players of a single tone instrument).

https://www.coursera.org/learn/the-blues

I'd previously bypassed this course because the abbreviated title "learn the blues" implied, in my mind, a simplistic overview of the genre. Happily, I was way wrong. The Blues: Understanding and Performing an American Art Form ranges widely from the origin of and foundation to much of our current music that the blues has given. From a practical point of view, the lessons provide good theoretical depth on harmonic structures along with practical take-aways. The starting point may be simple 12-bar blues as played by every guitarist and their dog, but delves into complex extensions such as those from Charlie Parker.

There are some great suggestions for ear-training technique, voice-leading, building/improving improv techniques and of particular use for wannabe key-boardists like me, comping techniques.

I could waffle on, but best that you take a look and form your own opinions,

For anyone that battled through the Gary Burton improv course on Coursera, I can say that this one is way more digestible with a lot of small elements that can be taken on board straight away.

About Coursera - there are two mode of using Coursera material - you can take a course for free, or pay to have an assessment and certificate at the end of the course.

Would love to hear from anyone who has had a look at this course.

Doctor vs Lawyer

A doctor moved to a new town but couldn’t get a job in a hospital. Needing work, he opens a clinic and puts a sign outside that reads: "GET TREATMENT FOR $20 - IF NOT CURED GET BACK $100."
A lawyer thinks this is a great opportunity to earn $100 and goes to the clinic. Lawyer: "I have lost my sense of taste." Doctor: "Nurse, bring medicine from box No. 22 and put 3 drops in patient's mouth." Lawyer: "Ugh. this is kerosene." Doctor: "Congrats, your sense of taste is restored. Give me $20."
The annoyed lawyer goes back after a few days to recover his money. Lawyer: "I have lost my memory. I cannot remember anything." Doctor: "Nurse, bring medicine from box no. 22 and put 3 drops in his mouth." Lawyer (annoyed): "This is kerosene. You gave this to me last time for restoring my taste." Doctor: "Congrats. You got your memory back. Give me $20." The fuming lawyer pays him.
The lawyer then comes back a week later determined to get back $100. Lawyer: "My eyesight has become very weak I can't see at all Doctor: "Well, I don't have any medicine for that, so take this $100." Lawyer (staring at the note): "But this is $20, not $100!" Doctor: "Congrats, your eyesight is restored. Give me $20"

Took up trumpet as a child and went on to knock out quite a few decent tunes. Sadly he passed away at 91 after breaking his femur a few days ago.
This is a nice reading of my favourite Morricone number.

My favourite cornet today is this sweet old Martin Indiana which "saved my life".
My band had two slots -Sunday and Monday of a holiday weekend at a jazz festival an hour and a half drive from home. I normally stay for the whole weekend, but family matters prevented this. I arrived an hour before our slot, opened the hatch of my car to see no trumpet. Don't like leaving horns in a car.
Most of the bands with brass players had played on the previous days and had left town. Was walking from the car in my stupid purple suit when someone on the way to their gig said "great suit". I told him that I should've spent more time packing my instrument than dressing up. His keyboardist, a local, rocked up and said "I have an old trumpet upstairs". He returned with this baby.
It performed almost flawlessly. The first valve was sticking during a solo in Dm - fortunately you can hold down 1st and still make fair riff in Dm . No valve oil, so I had to make do with a bit of old school saliva on the valves

@administrator it’s a medium bore made in 1956. @Newell-Post the corks and felts are in good condition and appear to have been recently replaced. This was part of the pleasant surprise. I expected a horn of that age to be pretty worn or have come out of a closet with stuck slides, rotten corks etc. I’d even researched replacement lead pipes in case that was necessary, but the original is as clean as a whistle.
@Dr-GO yes 100%. I particularly love the tonal range that it provides.

I joined the Committee club during lockdown about a year back with this beauty. It was a roll-of-the-dice purchase. A couple of patches of missing lacquer made it look a bit suss. At the price - USD1600, I thought it might be worth throwing some money at it for repairs.
It arrived in its original case which is currently being restored. Turns out to be straight as a die, very little wear on the valves and fits me like a glove. It’s been my daily player since it arrived and has just come back from a chemical clean and valve alignment.
It was made in my year of birth which makes it even more special to me.

Nice. Thanks for posting. The band is not too shabby too.

I’m currently en route to Vegas (well ultimately to Flagstaff to watch a Bruce Hornsby concert) and am wondering if TBers can suggest any venues that might be worth visiting?

Thanks

Fortunately most of the drummers I’ve encountered in jazz bands have been pretty decent, but WTH…

@kehaulani agreed, it is a bit clunky and shows signs of age.

This tool was mentioned by US Army Band trumpet player Kevin Gebo on a recent episode of The Brass Junkies podcast. For context, you can listen to the episode here… link text

The tool is free, online and so accessible from your phone, pc, whatever. You simply start the app which plays random pairs of notes separated by random, different intervals. Just listen and play. Guaranteed to improve your playing by ear.

I’ve found that after using this tool for 5-10 minutes a day over the past few weeks, that I’m gradually getting better at picking the first note - almost always within a semitone. I don’t have “perfect pitch”. Am now managing to nail the intervals pretty consistently.

Playing along with random tunes has improved too.

Enjoy. https://www.iwasdoingallright.com/tools/ear_training/online/

@Kehaulani thanks for the post. It's a great reminder of the maxim "perfect is the enemy of good". Whilst I try to resist being a silly old fart handing out free advice to anyone learning an instrument, the most common gem (?? ) I offer is to make sure that they play daily, even if it's just ten minutes. Doesn't matter what you practice, just habitualise daily practice.
Budding virtuosos will already be way beyond that, and have practice routines sorted, but for mere mortals and easily distracted kids playing daily is a useful aim.
FWIW, it works for me. The great thing is that it's very rare to stop at ten minutes, but there's nothing wrong with setting the bar low!

Love this. Jazz is just wrong notes innit?