Samantha

Ok, I'm a sophmore in highschool and I play a BLessing Trumpet. It's silver on the outside and gold on the inside. I got this trumpet about three years ago and yeah..... When I graduate, should I get a new trumpet? My trumpet is my life, so I want to know if a Blessing will be a good trumpet for more proffessional things than highschool. I'm attached to it, so I'm going to keep it, but if I should get a new one, I should stat convincing my mom I need a new Trumpet more than an Alaskan Cruise.

jlentini

A few things you might want to think about is first off what kind of playing are you going to be doing? what is your budget? Right now start assessing your current horn, is there anything wrong with it. Unless a horn plays horribly out of tune or is been beaten to death, or perhaps doesn't have the "sound" you are looking for, it will probably be a great horn for now. Is your current horn a pro model? I would say seek the help of a live trumpet teacher, perhaps if you know what school you will attend get a relationship going with the trumpet instructor, talk to alot of people and start playing alot of different horns. You will find that there are many fantastic horns on the market and by playing those you will find out which is the best fit for YOUR needs as opposed to "I going to buy this horn because this guy plays it." so on so forth. what ever you do don't rush into it especially if your current equipment is working well for you. take your time and really research it! good luck!
Cheers,
Jim

stchasking

I would suggest playing it through your sophomore year in college.
If you have to play recitals in college you may want to get a new horn.

Work on you mother informing her that you will need a professional level horn your Junior year in college and that you will be trying lots of horns in the mean time.

I hope your college has a stable of horns for you to try. Most do. You should also start priming your mother to help you attend trumpet conferences. You can play all kinds of brands and tunings at major trumpet conferences.

See the ITG web site for conference schedules.

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"I was performing professionally at age 17 and have never had a real job." Allen Vizzutti

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rowuk

There are different models of Blessing trumpets. If you have a beginners horn, then something else is in order. If you have one of their top models, the advice that stchasking gave is very good. By the time you are a sophomore in college, you will know in what direction your playing will go and you will be able to pick a horn that is optimal for that purpose.

Which Blessing do you have?

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Whenever I feel blue, I start breathing again.

bigtiny

there are only two reasons to feel you HAVE to get a different or new horn:

1) the one you have is broken beyond (or beyond a point that fiscally feasible) repair

2) you cannot function with the instrument you have because its attributes do not match your physiology or idiomatic needs (meaning: the horn you have is just too big a bore for you, etc.)

There is no perfect horn or brand/model horn. These days especially, there are many horns that 20 years ago would not have been considered 'professional' quality that people play regularly. I have friends that WILL NOT buy new or expensive horns anymore. If they feel they need something else they start scouring the pawn shops and lawn sales until they find something that they like and that feels comfortable for them.

So, if your Blessing is inhibiiting your playing in some way, or falling apart on you, then by all means, look into a new horn. But don't feel like you HAVE to get a new horn if this is not the case.

rowuk

Bigtiny,
I hate to disagree. The search for the holy grail does not say that our present equipment is not suitable OR adequate, it just assumes that there is always something better! This urge is only significant to the player and their finances.

You may have friends that will not buy current horns, but they are missing out on a lot of developments, just as the brand blind miss out on color and variety.

There has always been a market for beginner, intermediate and pro horns as well as a much smaller group of players that buy "custom". The quality and consistency of each of those groups has gone up. Today we also have more trash than in previous generations, but that just feeds the greed of owning alot, instead of fewer, but higher quality things.

Sometimes a new or better horn lights the fire in us. I have seen awesome things happen with my students when something goes "click"!

I take strong measure against the attitude "good enough". I do support the attitude, the best I can afford. The bottom line is to run with what you have, tomorrow is too late!

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Whenever I feel blue, I start breathing again.

Vulgano Brother

Let's see, you've had the horn three years and graduate in two. A good instrument, well maintained will last a long, long time, and to be honest, if it is your destiny to be a great player, your horn won't hold you back at this point in your life, and you should grow musically and technically a lot in the next few years.

After graduation, you'll have access to some other teachers and other approaches to the trumpet and this might then be a good time to look for a trumpet.

Who knows, an Alaskan cruise might allow you to meet Mr. Right!

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Toobz

Or maybe you can score a gig with the onboard band !

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Conn 10B New Era trumpet
Martin Committee cornet
And lots of other old and smelly stuff !