Where my band geeks at?

Post #439,947 by drook 9/22/21 2:26:27 PM 9/22/21 2:26:27 PM Reply	Where my band geeks at? My youngest just took her first trumpet lesson today. Which is why over the past week I bought a used horn from a pawn shop and cleaned it, thoroughly. I've never played a horn, but I spent enough time with them that I know the routine: strip it down, horn and slides go in a warm soapy bath, valves get brushed inside and out, etc. Then dry everything, slide grease, valve oil, and reassemble. What I didn't know is that the bottom of the valve bodies is sharp. I shoved my finger up there with a paper towel around it to dry them out and got a bastard of a cut on the side of my index finger. You wouldn't think you use that part of the finger very much, but you'd be wrong. I can't go an hour without bumping or rubbing it up against something. PS: My hands smelled like valve oil and old brass for the rest of the day. I'd forgotten that smell. -- Drew
Post #439,948 by pwhysall 9/22/21 3:16:20 PM 9/22/21 3:16:20 PM Reply	I dabbled in brass as a young 'un. They don't tell you, do they, just how disgusting brass instruments can be. Also, the euphonium is not a cool instrument. The experiment only lasted a few months.
Post #439,949 by crazy 9/22/21 4:17:49 PM 9/22/21 4:17:49 PM Reply	Trumpet and trombone. When I was in 3rd grade I had to walk to school. It was about half a mile. And three times a week I would be carrying a trombone in a case. And then my knee went bad and I had to get surgery and I spent about 6 months on crutches before and after the surgery. So I would crutch my way to school, clinging the handle of the trombone case and being pulled over since my balance was totally off. This thing was about my size. My father was at work an hour away and certainly could not drive me. I was incapable of riding a bike. My mother was sleeping off the nightly methamphetamine binge. Doctor prescribed of course. She did a lot of middle of the night vacuuming. And scaring the s* out of everybody.I did not dare wake her. I got some amazing upper body strength from those days. I crutched everywhere, quickly. I would jog down the school hallway, in a weird gallop, and then the swinging doors at the end would get kicked with both of my feet in the full force of my body behind it while I was balanced on the crutches. I was always excused from classes 5 minutes earlier than everybody else just to give me the time to make it to the next class without fighting people in the halls. I couldn't play it for s*. It was a total waste of time. I am not a musical person, at least I can't produce it myself as opposed to appreciate it when other people do. I did woodwinds, brass, violin, piano. I tried so hard and it didn't matter. Everybody else in my family is musical. Rob can play any instrument with about 5 minutes of futzing around with it.
Post #439,958 by malraux 9/22/21 8:37:54 PM 9/22/21 8:37:54 PM Reply	Trombone for 7 years, 3rd generation player First chair in high school then I basically never played it again, other than a single family picnic several years back. Playing Gershwin solos in marching band was a lot of fun. I still have my big Bach with the F valve, and my dad has his from high school as well, an Olds with an "octagon" slide - not really an octagon, too many sides, but also not a circle. My grandfather was good, like, really really good. He was invited to play in some big band back in the day, may have been with Tommy Dorsey, I don't recall. My grandmother put the kibosh on that and he went back to engineering. My nephew went to college for jazz trombone. Not a lot of work for jazz trombonists at the moment, though, and he's working at Chi-Chis and thinking about applying to one of the military bands. The closest Aidan ever got to a Sousa march was singing 76 Trombones in Music Man... Regards, -scott Welcome to Rivendell, Mr. Anderson.

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