Posts made by tmd

I hope this post is in the right forum. To clarify, I'm not looking to bash this tech. I'm not looking to cry over spilled milk. And I'm not looking for advice on refurbishing a horn. I'm just trying to decide what would be a fair way to resolve this issue.

I recently refurbished my 1965 Strad. This included relacquering the horn. This past month, I had a tech work on a mechanical issue. This tech had the horn for several weeks, and the mechanical issue is better. But the horn has new scratches on it, mostly on the side along the bell bow. The lacquer is brand new, and was 100% before the work. There are now moderate depth scratches along this area.

I want to be fair. The damage is mostly cosmetic. But the horn was cosmetically perfect before this. I'm going to bring the horn back to him tomorrow. Would you just let it go? Would you insist he pay to strip the horn, buff out the scratches, and re-lacquer? Would you ask for something in between?

Thanks!
Mike

@Kehaulani said in Phaeton customer service sucks!!!:

Have you contacted them with the problem?

Sorry to hear about your horn. As Kehaulani asked, did you talk to Phaeton? Did they offer to evaluate and fix the damage?

Also, I may be missing something. But I'm not sure why would someone ship a horn back to the manufacturer to have the valve stems replaced. You risk shipping damage. You risk misunderstandings due to a lack of face-to-face contact. Again, I may be missing something, but valve stems are something I could easily change myself.

Mike

@ROWUK said in WHAT DOES IT TAKE TO BECOME AN EXPERT?:

To become an expert, you need exceptional talent first - talent to keep your eye on the ball, talent to hear differences, talent to understand the differences and above all talent to know what we don't know.

I know that 2000-10000 purposeful repetitions gives us a "professional" level of repeatability for a specific task. I am not sure that we can assign hours however.

Bingo!!

No amount of practicing, be it ten thousand or ten million hours, can make up for a lack of talent. Practicing is useful for acquiring and refining skills, but not for creating talent.

Of course, you need to practice to refine your talent. But I'm not a big fan of the 10,000 hour rule, because it assumes you can create talent, where talent does not exist.

Mike

@Dr-GO said in SEASON'S GREETINGS:

To All: It's 9:44 and my 20 lb Christmas Ham is entering it's 3rd hour of smoking over Apple Wood at 350 degrees and glazed with brown sugar in pineapple juice, that gets basted every half hour, with fresh Apple Wood added every half hour as well.

Merry Christmas Gary!

It's safe to assume that Paul Anka is a talented and motivated individual, and that he may have very different goals than those working with him. And like some uniquely talented and highly driven people, it looks like he can be harsh to those around him. But we don't know all of the circumstances behind this video, what other problems were going on, what led to this event, or what inspired someone to record this private moment. So while a picture is "worth a thousand words", a video is often "worth a thousand lies".

Mike

@djeffers78 said in Used prices?:

Over on the oTHer site there is a price question. Some have stated that just because some would pay a higher price for something that is a justified reason to raise the price.

If your product is tops and it’s affordable then why would you raise the price and make it less accessible? Other than greed?

If I can really do something for someone then why should I cash in? Seems if I can make a great horn or pass along a great horn then that is what I should do

Was it the post about Kessler's custom trumpets? If so, I think the poster was misunderstood. It was a compliment about the quality of these trumpets, by suggesting they are being sold for less than their actual value. I don't think it was motivated by greed or anything inappropriate.

Mike

@djeffers78 said in Used prices?:

I’m not complaining but why are they so high sometimes?

Short answer is "buyer beware". Both eBay and the TH Marketplace are flooded with overpriced horns.

For me, a used horn has 3 prices. The appraised price is inflated and unrealistic (just like the MSRP of a new horn). The sale price is what the market will bear. The actual price is what you can realistically sell a horn for, the day after you purchase it.

For me, assuming the horn is in excellent condition with original case, a realistic price is half the retail cost of the same horn if it was new. A notable exception are Strads and Xenos, where so many are available, a realistic price is about 1/3 the retail cost (about $1000-$1200).

In recent years, I've bought and sold many used horns. This includes a '71 Strad in excellent condition, a '65 Strad is very good condition, an '80 Strad in good condition, and a '47 Strad in very good condition. I paid about $750 to $950 for each of them.

Mike

@djeffers78 Congratulations on the new horn!

Mike

@barliman2001 said in More info about me:

As I am now in the grandiose position of Most High Executive Global Moderator of the TB Empire...

Congrats! It's good to be the king.

Mike

I might have started this tangent. My bad. It wasn't my intent. Suffice it to say that there are many ways to look at what makes someone a "professional", all of which are valid.

In my original post, I just wanted to emphasize that, although I get paid for the gigs I perform, I have never made a living through music.

Mike

@Dr-GO said in Professional musicians on this board question:

Interesting concept, but let me put this real time scenario to you. There has been a several of years where my income as a musician surpassed my clinical income as a physician. So in the years I earned more as a musician, I was a professional musician and as a physician I was a quack. And the years I made more as a physician, I was a doctor and as a musician I was a hack?

Quack vs hack ... your words, not mine. (Just kidding) I've been called worse.

You're absolutely correct, that there are different ways to look at it.

Let me know the next time you'll be in DC. Let's get together.

Mike

@Newell-Post said in Professional musicians on this board question:

@GeorgeB If you got paid, then you meet the traditional definition of a professional. You don't need to earn your full-time living doing it.

My definition is different ... You're a professional trumpet player, if playing the trumpet is how you make a living. Of course, it's okay to have different definitions. And I think GeorgeB's definition is very reasonable, too. And I think many would agree with him.

Mike

@Trumpetsplus said in Professional musicians on this board question:

Just because someone is an absolute expert player does not mean they will have an unchallengeable opinion about a practice routine for player X or equipment for player Y. Such a sticky might present that they do.

Agreed. Getting paid to play and speaking with authority don't always go hand-in-hand.

But it's interesting to see what others have done. Thanks to the OP for starting this thread. I also think it might be nice to have video section, where just for fun, we can post videos of our performances (paid or otherwise), or videos of what we've been learning.

To answer the OP, I'm a music school dropout, who changed college majors before graduating. I have never been a professional musician, in that I have never fully supported myself financially by playing the trumpet. I view myself as a "weekend warrior", in that I gig outside of my regular day job. I run a small jazz trio, with about 4 paid gigs a month. Most of my gigs are at restaurants, outdoor fairs, nursing homes, and private parties.

Mike

@Comeback said in Brick & Mortar Music Stores:

It is difficult for me to determine if life is better today than, say, in the late 1950s and early 1960s. Much has changed, some for the good and some not so much. The internet is certainly one of the most impactful changes that has occurred in the last 60 years, and some of its effects sadden me.

Back in the day, I would go to Mobile Music in Glen Rock, NJ, Sam Ash in Paramus, NJ, and Giardinelli in midtown Manhattan. I purchased my first 3 pro horns at Sam Ash in Paramus, 2 of which I still have ... my Bach 43* Trumpet and my Getzen Eterna Flugelhorn. And of these 3 stores, only Sam Ash is still around.

Today, I use Baltimore Brass and Chuck Levins, both located in Maryland. I share everyone's nostalgia for the way it was. It's different today. I agree that it's less personal. But with online retailers, we have more choices.

Mike

@administrator said in Anybody master the 1-3, 2-4 trill?:

Anybody master the 1-3, 2-4 trill on a piccolo trumpet? This seems like the ultimate fingering challenge, although a complete waste because there are easier & better-sounding alternatives!

Need two hands for this one.

... or maybe just use 1-3 to 1-2-3 instead?

Mike

@Bob-Pixley said in The One:

I have a 1976 Bach Strad, ML 43 that is a terrific trumpet. I've owned it since the early 1980s, and although I've bought (and sold) many other trumpets since then, the Bach has always been my "go to" trumpet. Great sound and intonation, even scale, plays easily.

I'm also partial to my 1974 Bach 43*, which I purchased back in the mid-70s.

When I started playing again (about 10 years ago after a 20-year layoff), I started looking for a new horn. My 43* took a lot of abuse over the years. I went on an extended safari for 2-3 years, looking for a new trumpet. In the end, there were none that I liked better than my 43*. So I sent it off to Kanstul to erase years of wear and rebuild the valves. There are many good horns out there, of course. But the 43* is the one I'm most used to playing, and thus, it's "the one" for me.

Mike

Good thread, and a good choice of words ... "balanced".

My last trumpet teacher, emphasized a daily routine balanced in two areas - the physical and the musical. I balance my routine in into three sections - chops (slip slurs, intervals, tonguing, lyrical studies), technique (scales, patterns, etc), and music. I spend about 20-30 minutes in each area.

Mike

@administrator said in Structure of the Trumpet by Yamaha:

Also, I can see the news headlines now...

Disturbing Yamaha Thread Brings TrumpetBoards to its Knees!

I hope not. Disagreements are human nature. What sets us apart is how we resolve them.

Mike

@Trumpetsplus said in Structure of the Trumpet by Yamaha:

@tmd Agreed!

You might find what Denis Wick said quite interesting
First of all, the teacher does what he does; he then tells the student what he thinks he does. The student then does what he thinks the teacher said.

Great quote.

Mike

I find this to be a very unfortunate thread. And to the moderators/administrator I ask ... Is this site is better off having this thread?

Much of what we do when playing the trumpet is indiscernible, and as such, is open to interpretation. And much of the physics and physiology we reference is often anecdotal and unscientific. Because of this, there's very little value when some posts a link and declares it to be dogma.

We all dig in our heels from time to time, as was very evident in this thread. This is human nature, and is understandable. But this site needs moderators who know how to respectfully put out these fires, and not fan the flames. In addition this site needs an administrator who knows when to delete self-destructive threads that may cause irreparable harm.

Mike