blasticore

1. Tell us how you would improve a trumpet with a new feature or design.

I marched in a senior corps for a while and fell in love with a feature on the soprano bugles in G we played. If you'll notice on Kanstul bugles, the thumb ring is located on a slide that isn't on the path of a single valve, but a spring loaded slide on the main artery of the horn, leading into the 3rd valve casing. It allows you to adjust pitch without having to take the horn off your face and mess around with your tuning slide. This thing saved my rear quite a few times on the field, and I'd like it to do the same for me on stage. For this purpose though, the slide would be better placed in a spot coming out of the 1st valve casing, leading to the bell. The horn could look much like the existing Equinox, and take advantage of the irregular tuning slide position by placing the thumb ring on it, adding a main tuning slide in the bell crook as in the conventional Eclipse trumpets if this were the case.

2. Give us a theme for a trumpet!

Uh...How about ice? You don't see that used too often, and I personally think a well done blue horn would rock. There can be icicle-like bracing. As for the name.... ARCTIC!

3. (back to school time!) Write a short story using each of the following at least once.

A. A TYPE OF MUSICAL INSTRUMENT
B. A COUNTRY OR CITY
C. A FORM OF TRANSPORT
D. AN ITEM OF CLOTHING
E. A FOOD


A bit out of the above order...
I hopped in my car one day to drive to a gig I was called to sub for in Tampa. Me being the forgetful person I am, I got so caught up in admiring my new ARCTIC, I left the case, and my pants back at my house. I figured I should probably show up to the gig wearing pants, so I swung by the mall to buy a pair. Because I didn't have the key for my trunk (also left at home), I couldn't leave the horn in my car. It'd surely get stolen. No matter though. There's no shame in walking around with it in my hands.
So walk into the store I did. I quickly found a pair of pants in my size, and rushed to the counter. Upon reaching the front of the line, the young woman behind the register started to stare at the horn.
She asked, "that horn looks mighty intereting. Did you happen to win that Eclipse Trumpets contest?"
"Why, yes I did as a matter of fact. It's quite the beauty of a horn, as far as both looks and playability go." I replied.
"That's quite the thing to be carrying around though. Why are you doing that again?"
"Um...uh, long story, short on time."
"Oh, no problem. With tax, your pair of pants comes to $23.54."
I promptly paid the cashier and started walking back to my car. I paused for a moment though. I realized I was still hungry. I turned around to see the young woman still staring in my direction, and by chance, holding an apple turnover. I walked briskly back to her, took the turnover clean out of her hand, and continued on my way.
I got to the gig just fine, played great, and got complimented yet more on the horn. As a whole, the eving went wonderfully, and I couldn't have been happier. I owe it all to that great horn I won in that Eclipse contest.
*wink wink*

4. And last but not least!

Apart from your brilliant answers to the above, please tell us just why you feel that you should win this contest.

On a more serious note (not an asinine one, as in the short story), this coming fall, I'm going to be majoring in music performance. I've been trying to better my skills and optimize my equipment as best I can for a while now, and the horn would only help in my educational and musical endevours. I played a bunch of Eclipse horns at the Orlando trumpetfest a while back and really enjoyed the feel and sound of them, especially the Equinox. There was something about how the horn spoke that spoke to me as I played it, and it was a thoroughly enjoyable experience. ...Aside from this, I'm relying on student loans and financial aid to pay for college, so a break on buying a horn would probably be the best thing to come my way during this time, as cheap as I sound saying that.

Whoever wins though, I think we'd all love to see the pictures of the finished product., and even the work in progress, so be sure to let all us losers in on it. :)

TheGlue

1) Tell us how you would improve a trumpet with a new feature or design.
I propose moving the valve block closer to the beginning of the leadpipe to allow a smoother valve feel, similar to the way valves respond on a flugelhorn. The purpose of this modification is to create a trumpet that has the rich, true trumpet sound, yet the lightning fast valve feel of a flugelhorn. Since the leadpipe will be shorter than traditional leadpipes before it enters the cylindrical valve block, the tapers of the leadpipe will need to continue to some degree on the other side of the valve block. The tapers of the leadpipe and the bell should be as similar to a trumpet as possible, allowing for superior flexibility, intonation and response. I will leave the exact tapers to the professionals at Eclipse to figure out as well as the placement of bracing. To take advantage of existing valve blocks, I have found a fun and unique configuration for the trumpet. Here are a couple of pictures of the design I have in mind (Not necessarily to scale) :




2) Give us a theme for a trumpet!
The theme for this trumpet is the Upside Down trumpet ! :!: While this trumpet may look a little wacky, it will truly sound great. I expect that fast runs on this trumpet will sound great because of the innovative leadpipe/valve design. The trumpet should be brushed gold with shiny gold trim. I’d also like my initials, EAA, engraved on the leadpipe.

3) Write a short story
Alan was driving his new Dodge pickup truck to Shady Pete’s nightclub in San Antonio, Texas. It’s been only 5 months since graduation and Alan has already been laid off from his first job.
“Buying this truck was a huge mistake!” thought Alan, but if the music career would just take off, he could somehow manage the significant monthly payments that seemed like such a great deal just two months ago. The stress of the payments wasn’t quite enough to completely overwhelm the joy of driving his new truck. Alan’s dad often mentioned how he had never owned a new vehicle in his life, and already Alan had his first!

As he drove to the nightclub, Alan listened to the practice CD of songs that he was playing tonight for the first time with Tex and the Horny Tones. He’d been sitting in with the band for 3 weeks now and had learned most of the parts to the tunes, but was still shaky on a few of them. He had on his bright red shirt with the black shorts to match the tenor and baritone sax players that made up the Horny Tones, but his black cowboy hat was a cheaper version of the nice hats the other guys were wearing. Hopefully nobody would notice.

Alan arrived half an hour before the sound check, before the sun had even gone down and set up his student model Yamaha trumpet with the old bell mike, held together with duct tape. He had just enough time to order Shady Pete’s famous lava buffalo wings and a Bass ale, which incidentally are quite hard to find in this town!

An hour and a half later, Alan found himself on the stage getting ready to play the opener, a cover of the Tower of Power tune “Attitude Dance”. He started out playing quietly, but drew strength from the crowd of folks already starting to make their way to the dance floor. As his solo approached he started to feel at home and was quite pleased with the way he sounded.

As the song wound down, Alan looked out and saw Terence Blanchard out in the crowd.

“Oh no, what if I miss some notes and blow my entrances!” thought Alan as they started the next tune. As predicted, Alan missed his first entrance and overshot the next few notes. His solo came along seemingly too soon and he found himself unable to play anything but the canned licks he always has up his sleeve. Halfway through his panicked solo, Alan looked up and saw an encouraging smile and nod from Terence and WHAM, his confidence was back and his playing once again regained its usual creativity. Although his solo started rough, its ending was sublime. One of his best!

After the first set is over, Tex, the drummer, gives Alan the thumbs up for his first set with the band. Alan can’t wait to go meet one of his jazz heroes, Terence Blanchard! He heads over to where Terence is sitting, sticks out his hand and says

“Hi, I’m Alan Brennan.”

He is answered with a very strong Texas drawl that says
“Howdy, I’m Joe Simpson!”

Somehow with the stage lights in his face and all the excitement, Alan mistook this stranger for someone else and all the excitement and drama was for nothing!

4) And last but not least! Apart from your brilliant answers to the above, please tell us just why you feel that you should win this contest.
I should win this contest because this is a creative and truly innovative idea for a new trumpet. Although there are lots of great entries, I think that this trumpet would be fun and challenging to build as well as very rewarding and versatile to play. I have always been fascinated with trumpets and would love the chance to push the envelope and have an absolutely unique trumpet that I helped to design.

trumpet

Cool site guys. This contest seems too good to be true!

Sorry if I don't follow the format as well but it is always good to be original.

1. Tell us how you would improve a trumpet with a new feature or design.
and 2. Give us a theme for a trumpet!
For example "THE SPIDERMAN" maybe we would then cut out braces in the shape of cobwebs? and spray the horn red and black?

The trumpet would be called Raging Bull, and as the title suggests, I would want the loudest horn possible. It needs to have a .470 bore and and 6.0 inch bell in diameter. That's right, 6.0 inches, but I don't want the tuning to be effected. It need's to be scratched gold. In addition, the valves can't be standard, they need to be cut down by 10-15% so that I can finger extremely fast passages. HERE IS THE KICKER, I need a slide on the leadpipe, like they had on the Holten Firebird Trumpet (This may mean that the valves might need to be closer to the trumpeter). This slide would be able to bend the pitch by up to 7 half steps instead of the Firebird's 4. This would be more like a trombone and offer more opportunitys for creativity. This slide needs a button so that it can lock the slide in a certain position, that means that it would be able to TRANSPOSE INTO DIFFERENT KEYS with no effort and sweat by the trumpet player (It will be cool to play A blues with the same fingerings as B-flat). This means that the bell of the trumpet will need to be like Dizzy's, pointed up to make room for the slide. It needs to weigh between 41 and 45 ounces for a perfect sound. The water keys can be standard, because they have given me less trouble in the past.



3. (back to school time!) Write a short story using each of the following at least once.

A. A TYPE OF MUSICAL INSTRUMENT
B. A COUNTRY OR CITY
C. A FORM OF TRANSPORT
D. AN ITEM OF CLOTHING
E. A FOOD

Story:
It was showtime, T.J. Remsberg and his band was about to go on stage to open for Maynard Ferguson. You would think he would be nervous playing in front of the boss, but he had the right equipment, the Raging Bull. The Raging Bull always gets the crowd cheering with its amazing ability to bend pitchs without a sweat and perform intense shakes. T.J. had his white shirt, red tie, and black slacks on and was ready to go. T.J. had just gotten off the plane 2 hours ago and barely made it to Birdland in New York on time. The performance was amazing, T.J. didn't have Maynard's range but he impressed everyone with his fast fingering (thanks to the Raging Bulls 10-15% shorter valves). While everyone was enjoying their steak and
the performane, T.J. saw out of the corner of his eye, Maynard on his stool backstage bopping around to my music. The Raging Bull created some great music that night, as it does every time T.J. brings it up to his lips, thanks to T.J.'s dream for a trumpet and Leigh's trumpetmaking skills.


Well, I am a horrible writer, but I guarentee that if I get this trumpet, I will have PLENTY of stories and I will share each and every one with my new family here.



4. And last but not least!

Apart from your brilliant answers to the above, please tell us just why you feel that you should win this contest.


Why should you pick me? Well, I believe that my design of Raging Bull will give you the most trouble because of it's slide and 6.0 inch (diameter) bell. Not that trouble is a bad thing, because it will be one of the most remarkable accomplishments in trumpet manufacturing ever.
In addition, I play in many community bands and at restaurants where the trumpet will get a lot of exposure.

Leigh, I feel that it is an honor just to have you read my entry, and I sincerely hope that you are up to the challenge of creating Raging Bull!!!


Thank you,
T.J. Remsberg

bigbrowncow

1. New feature or design
Build a trumpet based on the Eclipse with the following features
- Heavyweight leadpipe which would enhance the projection and core of the sound. The heavyweight section would only need to be as far as the first bend of the leadpipe, or maybe a little shorter.
- The weight would be balanced by moving the valve block away from the bell just fractionally – shortening the bell taper and lengthening the leadpipe.
- This may require a large-bore valve block as the valves are further down the taper of the entire instrument.

A heavyweight leapipe would enhance the projection and response of the trumpet even beyond that possible through the existing long leadpipe design. Changing the position of the valves would allow this without compromising the whole instrument with an extra heavy bell or sheet bracing.

Lengthening the leadpipe and shortening the bell taper would also have an interesting effect on response. I'm not really able to forecast this but it would be interesting to see where the nodal points would be and tune it for the theme described below.

A big opportunity is to offer a custom mouthpiece fitting service with each trumpet. This would ensure the mouthpiece is the best possible fit to the player, and that the equipment is properly balanced across the cup/backbore/leadpipe/bell. Issues such as mouthpiece weight, backbore size, mouthpiece throat and gap could all be resolved for that particular individual, rather than trusting to luck or average measurements. (If all the expertise is not available in house, you would licence designs and fitting methodology.)

2. Give us a theme for a trumpet!
The Solstice. Using various tinted lacquers from earthy tones at the mouthpiece to bright and metallic colours at the bell to evoke the flowing waves of energy between the earth and sun; and to evoke the essential core and purpose of the trumpet; a strong heavy "earth" core flowing through to the the dazzling "sun" overtones and screaming high register.

3. Short story
4. Why I should win
We are entering the golden age of trumpet manufacture. For the first time, the technologies and knowledge to build wonderful instruments are available beyond the leading couple of manufacturers in the US and Europe.
The next step in the evolution of the industry is going to be the closer customization of instruments to player’s needs. By offering custom mouthpieces, your brand will be much more strongly recognized – every trumpet player likes to buy mouthpieces. The mouthpieces then can build the trust in your brand required for people to make an investment of thousands in the two or three instruments they should own.

The Solstice will be yet another benchmark horn that everyone will be talking about. And I promise to send all my friends straight to Dunstable to buy a new trumpet!

Steve

Zaphod

The Polar Light

1. Improvements:

a) Generations of trumpeters had to "lip up" the Ds, which are flat on almost every trumpet I’ve played so far. This trumpet should have an extended tube at the end of the first valve slide (just like on a third valve slide without water key), that can be pushed in over a small hook (or s.th. similar) by the left thumb. It should go back into place automatically, moved by a small spring.

b) I don’t know whether you already do so, and it is not my own invention, but the first and third valve should have little holes in them, so that the slides can be operated without pressing the valves down (and without that “plop” noise).


2. Theme: "Polar Light"

Polar lights are breath-taking beautiful, yet their performance is silent, making their image a perfect companion for a music instrument, paticularly a trumpet. It is versatile, of divine beauty and, as music, disappears physically after the performance (but remains in your heart!). My girlfriend lives in Finland (hi Noel!), and I remember how much inspiration I got from viewing "my first polar light" in Finland, and how it still affects my playing when I’m thinking of it. In addition, this theme is very suitable to be taken up into the design of e.g. the braces between bell and leadpipe, and it has many ornamental possibilities in itself.

This is how I would want the trumpet to look and sound like:
http://www.tboeckel.de/EFSF/efsf_ps/nord_2002/i28_c.jpg
http://www.tboeckel.de/EFSF/efsf_ps/nord_2002/i59_c.jpg
http://www.tboeckel.de/EFSF/efsf_ps/nord_2002/i20_c.jpg
http://www.tboeckel.de/EFSF/efsf_ps/nord_2002/i29_c.jpg
http://www.tboeckel.de/EFSF/efsf_ps/nord_2002/i39_c.jpg
http://www.tboeckel.de/EFSF/efsf_ps/nord_2002/i66_c.jpg

Furthermore, this phenomeneon comes directly from the sun, brought into the dark... very suitable for an “Eclipse” trumpet!


3. Short story

I wanted my girlfriend to participate in this, as she is somehow responsible for the theme I chose. So I asked her to write a short story about the trumpet/ trumpeters, and here it is: a story from the other point of view...

"How is it to live with a trumpeter or in the world of trumpets without having any clue of these things? It can be exciting but only if you are curious and open-minded. Otherwise you will get bored very fast. Trumpeters are very unique persons and if you get to know one so think carefully before you get involved with him.
In case you really fall in love with a trumpeter your life will be full of wonderful music experiences. I remember many like big-band concerts and one concert in Düren (Germany) in which also Steven Mead (a great euphonium player from England) participated. It was a great experience to get to know him and his wonderful playing with my trumpeter. I still can remember the great atmosphere on that evening. How it was to hold my trumpeter´s hand and feel his excitement and how he was feeling mine while talking to Steven Mead. I´m so happy afterwards to have been with in this unforgettable concert together with my trumpeter. Such music experiences can be very special when you can share them with someone who loves music and for whom it has become an essential part of his life.
Well, there are some other sides, too, in living with a trumpeter. Unfortunately you need to be warned if you expect from your trumpeter that you are always the most important one in his life. It isn´t that way at all because there will always be this third one who you have to share your trumpeter with. Most of the day he only thinks about this third one. He spends e.g. plenty of time for getting to know new mouthpieces that he then gives his darling while you are knitting woolen socks for your trumpeter. When he tells you what a wonderful new mouthpiece he has found for his darling so don´t think that this new find would be the last one. There will also be the next time when he tells you the same thing. And you have to wonder again and again what is wrong with the mouthpiece he just bought.
A real trumpeter takes his instrument everywhere he goes. Even when he flies by the aeroplane to visit his girlfriend in another country like Finland. But if the girlfriend happens to have a sauna he will practice there during the visit. Well, if you´ve got used to these weird ideas you won´t be surprised even at the idea of practicing in the sauna. Maybe the trumpeters hit the highest sounds only in such weird places.
I love trumpeters. They can be a real adventure because of their lifestyle that is so much different to many ordinary people´s. Even their eating habits may be weird. But I´ve learnt to love bread with egg and ketchup."

This was in the email I got today, and I didn't change anything. (I hope that we don't get disqualified for working together, but I found no rule against working in a team.)


4. Why I should win?

The obvious reason: The "polar light" trumpet would be the most beautiful trumpet ever built! (I count on you, Leigh!)
Honestly, I fell so in love with this concept that I'll probably pay you to realize it (I'm a student, so it will take some years to get the money together...) It's up to you to decide wether this is an argument for or against me!

W Scott

Trumpet design/improvement

My idea for my trumpet is this---build a trumpet that has a built in mike system like that used for the 'silent brass' system. Take the 'mute' that normally stuffs into the end of the bell and instead form the bell around the mute. Make a plug in spot under the bell of the horn and run the cable to one of those nifty 'midi' type boxes, then on to the amplifiers.

The horn would, physically, play much like any other horn but with the midi box an almost infinite number of variables could be changed. If you're playing with an electrified group you'll be plugged into the same 'stacks' as they are. If you are playing solo, you can change the instruments sound and projection to match the venue you are playing in--and do so without wearing yourself out. Plus, you don't have the problem of 'how do I get the &^% mic to stay on the horn!'.

Want a bright sounding horn with lazer like tones? Dial in a number on the midi box and whatever you play comes out with that sound. Need to change keys? Dial it in. Need to change the sound to a flugelhorn? Dial it in and that seductive flugelhorn sound will come pouring out. Best of all, the MIDI can correct for imperfections in pitch and tone---meaning that you will have 'spot on' slotting and intonation. If you want to sound bluesy--dial down the correction so that you can bend the notes. If you want legit, dial up the correction. Bad acoustics with lots of sound absorbing material around? With an electric horn and a MIDI/Amplified system you can tweak the sound to overcome that problem and you've got enough amplified power to blow the walls of Jericho down!

Similar types of MIDI boxes are available for guitars---so why not use the same technology and plug it into a trumpet?


Theme---
I'd call the horn 'Elektra', and the color would be a pale, shimmering blue.


Short story---

I couldn't believe what I was holding in my hands! It was an honest to goodness 'electric' horn.

My mind went back to the horn show in Las Vegas several months ago that I had gone too. I live in Tahoe and play with a band in the Carson City area, so Las Vegas is only a short flight away. I decided to attend the show so I hoped a commuter flight out of Reno down to Las Vegas. I played most the horns at the show on that 'tryout' day--just like everybody else.

That evening, I'm sitting in the conference centers' little 'choke and puke' wolfing down chili dogs and sauerkraut when I see Leigh from Eclipse trumpets with a plate of food looking for a place to sit. The place was packed but I had a spot at my table so I waved him over even though I really don't know him.

Anyway, we got to talking about horns and playing. Leigh asked me what sort of playing I did and we got to talking about the band I play with. We're a five or six piece band playing all sorts of stuff---blues, early jazz, rock, fusion, popular and some stuff that defies description as we've done the arranging ourselves. The lineup is keyboard, drums, electric bass guitar, electric rythym guitar, electric or acoustic lead guitar, occasionally a sax and me on the horns. In a gig, I might use the trumpet, cornet or flugel horn several times over the space of a couple of hours. Of course, I usually 'mic' the horn to keep from being buried by the guitars.

We play local theatres, coffee shops, shool gyms, outdoors---whenever, where ever. We play in Reno, Carson City, Gardnerville and up the hill in Lake Tahoe.

So, Leigh asks me what I think of the Eclipse trumpets. I told him they were beautiful and played great----but it wasn't what I was lookiing for. Leigh asks 'so, what are you looking for?'. I told him about my dream for an electric horn. I wanted a horn I didn't have to 'mic'; a horn that could plug into the same 'stacks' as the guitars and keyboards. A horn that I could change the sound on to match the venues; change the key with a turn of the dial; even change the sound into a different instrument; a horn that would correct the sound coming out so that the notes would be perfectly in tune.

Leigh sits there with this stunned look on his face and says 'where did you get this idea from?'. I told him that the lead guitar player had a MIDI box that could do most of these things and that this guitar player could even make his ax sound like a trumpet. I told Leigh that I really hated competition like that and that I had been hoping to find an equalizer at the horn show. Leigh just shakes his head and laughs.

Anyway, we trade business cards and Leigh has to run to another appointment. It was a chance meeting and I had pretty much forgot about it after a few weeks.

Then, one cold snowy morning I'm rousted out of bed by somebody banging on my front door. I staggered sleepily out of bed, grabbing my terrycloth robe on the way to see who's at the door. There stands the UPS guy with a good sized box that he wants me to sign for---which I do even though I'm not expecting anything. Shoot, even that little 'Eclipse' logo in the top left hand corner of the box wasn't registering in my brain that morning.

I finally get the box open and out falls a note that reads 'Here's your 'Equalizer'----knock 'em dead' and it's signed 'Leigh@Eclipse trumpets'. I sat there in my kitchen in stunned amazement for a while and then carefully popped the latches on the case that had also been inside the box.

Inside the case was this pale blue horn with a plug in under the bell and something built inside the bell itself. Along with the horn was a small box with a couple of dials and switches on it. Yep, I was really grinning by now---Leigh had gone and done what I didn't think could be done. And boy, how that horn could play.

The look on my lead guitar players face was priceless when he saw me hooking into the amps at our next gig. He goes 'Hey, that isn't a horn because everybody knows there is no such thing as an electric trumpet!'. I laughed and said 'Just keep thinking it's not a horn while I blow you away!'.

By the end of the show at Comma's in Carson city he was a believer in what the odd looking horn could do. Best of all, the audience seemed pleased with the sound pouring out of the speakers. The show ran thirty minutes over its' alloted time because of the folks begging for more tunes.

Well, that's the story of this odd looking horn. It's not conventional and some trumpet players says it's not a 'real' horn. But, it does what I need it to do, audiences love it and that's what counts!


Why do I deserve to win?

Well, I'm currently unemployed. I'm also playing on a totally worn out Conn Director with leaky valves and slides so loose that I can blow the first slide out of the horn if I'm not careful. I'm a comebacker who's never had a pro-quality horn and right now the only way I'm going to be able to get one is to win a contest! I really need a new horn............

Friendly Horn Player

The Lunar Eclipse:
"Reach for the Moon!"

-1-
INTRODUCTION
*The Lunar Eclipse will have a large bore for a full and rich sound. The sound should be so sweet that the listener will find the slightest hint of sugar in their mouth while the Lunar is being played. The Lunar Eclipse will symbolize the accomplishment of reaching the moon. It will also inspire people to reach beyond the moon to the unknown; the Lunar Eclipse will be a beacon for the stars.

DESIGNS
*To give a more open feel and sound, the Eclipse novelty main tuning slide and the first curve after the lead pipe will not bend as suddenly as most trumpets but have a more gradual rounding.

*I would like the bracings to be a bit different than normal. The bracings will be bent as if they were shaped like large U's on their sides. This "U" bracing design will replace the "Z" bracing system. The main, large bracing will be installed in this way (there will be two large "U" bracings): one side of each bracing will be connected to the leadpipe while the other side is connected to the tube leading up to the bell. Important: The curve of each bracing should always be facing outwards. On the bell side of the Lunar, the curve will be pointed towards the bell like an arrow. On the mouthpiece side of the Lunar, the curve will be pointed towards the mouthpiece like an arrow.
-The smaller bracing (all the bracing besides the main two) will be just like the larger bracing, only smaller with the exception that the curve does not have to be so precise in the shape of a "U." It may look like half of a circle if need be.
-This design will look magnificent and the sound will not be restricted. The bracing will be very lightweight but very strong. The "U" shape is an arch, which is the strongest round shape you can use as bracing (besides a circle, which is a full fleged arch gone overboard .)

*A medium classic bell will be used for better projection (it must be heard from the moon, remember :wink: .) This bell will also help support the upper register, this is needed because it is a large bore instrument. And if possible, I would like the Lunar's bell to not flare out until slightly later than normal, to give the tiniest indication of a Herald trumpet. The tube leading up to the bell will broaden slightly slower than normal but I do not want the bell tubing to be any longer than a regular Eclipse model. The whole idea of the late flare of the bell can be discussed furthur at a later time.

FEATURES
*The valves will be lightning quick but silent. I would like the Lunar's valves to be so fast that I am startled when I see them pop back up after being suppressed for the first time. The finger button tops will have smooth, slightly concave tips (indented down, not flat) for a comfortable feel (and less chance of slipping!)

*The Lunar Eclipse will have a standard weight mouthpiece receiver with the inscription of the name of the client on one side (i.e. "Tim Steiner"), with "Lunar Eclipse" on the adjacent side. This is similar to how the Eclipse logo is placed on the mouthpiece receiver already. If the name of the client is too long, the last name can be used instead, as could either just "Eclipse"or "Lunar" be used instead of "Lunar Eclipse."

*The third valve slide ring should be measured and soldered precisely to fit my (or another client's) hands. There should be various sizes of rings, i.e. larger diameter for larger fingers and smaller diameter for smaller fingers; this will insure a comfortable fit and make it truly a custom trumpet. Sizes may be numbered, for example: 1, 2, 3, ect.. The ring will be made smoother all around the sides (as should the first valve slide crook,) not biting off on each side like a normal ring.

*The pinky ring should not be so harshly bent. It will, infact, not look like a ring at all. It should bend and slightly flatten out like a crescent moon, with a little of the ring, at the top of the bend, curving over the top ever so slightly.

FINISH
*All tubing is scratch white gold (if possible) or scratch silver to symbolize the moon (If you decide to make my trumpet, we can discuss whether scratch white gold or silver would be better.) The white gold will mystically sound warm and soothing while the silver will give a more commanding sound as if to summon the people to the stars. Whether the finish is scratch white gold or scratch silver, there will be highlights of scratch (yellow) gold on:

• -The Inside of the bell
  
  -The Valve casing
  
  -The Finger button tops
  
  -The Mouthpiece receiver
  
  -The Pinky ring (crescent)
  
  -The Third valve slide ring
  
  -The First valve slide crook
  
  -The Bracing

Set up overview:


*Large bore
*More gradual than normal main tuning slide and first turn bends
* "U" shaped bracings
*Medium classic bell; flare begins later than normal
*Indented finger button tops
*Standard weight, engraved mouthpiece receiver
*Custom fit third valve slide ring
*Pinky hook bent like a crescent moon
*Scratch silver finish or scratch white gold finish
*Scratch yellow gold highlights


Note: I feel that the scratch white gold finish would be an innovative eye-popper as opposed to other finishes, even the scratch silver.
Also, the special bell flare, if it seems to be a deterent, is not essential for the Lunar. However, I feel that if we could get the bell flare to work right, it would be all the more better!

-2-
*The theme for my trumpet is the Lunar Eclipse. Bringing a catchy name and a unique design into the trumpet world, the Lunar Eclipse will be a great instrument. I chose the name, "Lunar" because it fits into the high-class, mystique trumpet company of Eclipse. *Please note that I have not written a large amount in this catagory because I have incorporated the theme into my whole entry.*

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-3-
Sam sat alone in class. While gazing out the window he wondered what it would be like to have no ties or responsibilities, to be free to do whatever he wanted. At that time two classmates, larger than him, started harassing Sam. Startled by being brought out of his daydream, Sam looked over at the two abruptly, although he had not heard what they said. Sam said, “Huh?”
The bullies laughed and repeated the remarks about him being short and not athletic.
Sam ignored what they said and focused on what the teacher was saying, “As a reminder, your final paper on current economics in the USA will be due on Friday. Everyone got that? I will not accept anything late this time.”
“Don’t ignore me, pork chop!” One bully whispered to Sam.
“I’m trying to listen, be quiet!” Sam replied, but Sam was angry so his voice lifted. It was just loud enough to be heard by everyone, but not loud enough to be actually understood by people that weren’t immediately around him.
“Sam, is there a problem? You know I do not accept talking while I am talking. It is disrespectful.” His teacher said as if very disapointed.
Sam was hurt by this. He respected his teacher quite well, and it brought tears of sadness and anger that he would be corrected for something he was not guilty of by his favorite teacher.

On the way home on the bus Sam was losing it. His shirt was annoying him, he couldn’t get the tag to stop itching. The bus was too noisy, it was giving him a headache. Fumes from the truck in front of the bus were seeping in through the windows. The sun was shining directly on him, causing him to squint. Sam was starting to sweat profusely.
Finally, Sam was home. He quickly went to his room, shut the door, and cried. Everything was too overwhelming. Sam didn't want to do anything anymore. He wanted to be free. Free from school, free from bullies, and free from himself, his own short and unathletic body. There was only one thing he did feel like doing.

Sam opened up his trumpet case and pulled out his old junker trumpet that his neighbor had given him because his family had no money to buy him anything better. Sam looked over the trumpet with love and care, it was his. Although it was badly dented on the bell, he played it as if there was nothing wrong; nothing wrong with the trumpet or the world: nothing wrong like nations going to war, nothing wrong with his grades declining because he couldn’t focus, nothing wrong with the fact that many kids make fun of him. When Sam played his trumpet, he didn’t have to daydream about being free, he was!

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Astounding Model

*The Lunar Eclipse will not only be a great contest winning trumpet, but a great Eclipse model to be sold to many clients. It will start out like the Equinox, a custom trumpet for one person. But over time it will gain popularity, as did/is the Equinox, and become a prominent Eclipse model which people will be asking for!

*The Lunar can be the first model of many in this series! Here are some ideas for the trumpets following the Lunar:

• -Eclipse Lunar - "Reach for the moon, then reach for the stars, with a Lunar Eclipse!"
  -Eclipse Thunder - "Be THUNDERSTRUCK after playing the Eclipse Thunder!"
  -Eclipse Galaxy - "Make music among the stars with the Eclipse Galaxy!"
  -Eclipse Guardian - "Play the Eclipse Guardian with your heavenly host!"
  -Eclipse White Lightning - (done already!)

Divine Instrument

*In its' elegance, the Lunar will complement the Eclipse company and look different than the run of the mill trumpet without being outrageous. The Lunar will be different because of its' exquisite and majestic qualities; so many trumpets today are focused on being an in-your-face screamer. I hope you are anxious to start creating this instrument because you can't wait to hear what it will sound like and you can't wait to see what it will look like.

Humble Recipient

-4-
*Music is a wonderful outlet for me. I go to school everyday looking forward to playing in my three bands (Jazz before school (6:30 AM!), symphonic band and wind ensemble during school,) and then my Youth Symphony after school. I used to do every sport a kid could hope for, but then I quit them all to have more time to play music, I love it that much. I have put A LOT of time into this idea, it is not just a random thought. I have thought through many different themes and variations to the Eclipse trumpets and I feel that is the best one. I aspire to possibly be an instrument technician as a full time or side job when I grow up, winning the Lunar would help boost me that much further in my reach for the moon (theoretically speaking that is :) .) But whether I win or lose, I will continue to dream big.

Leigh,
When I first emailed you about the Equinox pictures, I was taken back by how promptly and generously you responded. I respect you and whatever decision you make.

"Reach for the moon, then reach for the stars, with a Lunar Eclipse!"

Happy Canuck

1. & 2.
The Eclipse Northern Lights trumpet has the following characteristics that highlight the beauty, warmth and brilliance of the Northern Lights and the fit, feel and quality of a hand built instrument:
• Lightweight medium large bore construction with Medium Red bell;
• Scratch silver plate with 24kt gold plated button tops, valve bottoms and slides that flash in the light;
• ‘balanced’ valve cluster location, similar to the Olds Recording, with offset middle valve;
• Saturn water keys vs. Amado;
• Semi-Precious Gemstone Finger Buttons of Picture Jasper, reminiscent of the flashes of earth tones in the Northern Lights;
• Custom Maple Leaf shaped brace on the leadpipe crook with a semi-precious clear gemstone mounted at the top, pointing up, to the North.

3.
When you farmed on the Canadian plains in 1939 you had to know the seasons and watch the skies. By the spring equinox the winter wheat you planted should be pushing through, and when the fall equinox was celebrated and the Thanksgiving Turkey eaten all the grain should be harvested and sold or in the granary. You learned to watch the sky at dawn and dusk; it would help you understand how your labours would be focused. You’d observed how the animals went silent during a solar eclipse; you’d seen the nervous actions of the chickens before a major thunderstorm. But you were always amazed at the beauty and the magnitude of the Northern Lights. Standing on your land and looking North the lights would dance and play over your head, and fill you with peace.

Bill Knight was proud of his family farm; they had been growing wheat for over 30 years. He looked forward to building his own house on the land, getting married and raising the next generation of grain farmers. But just after the harvest of 1939 he read in the paper that the South Saskatchewan Regiment was being mobilized to prepare for the war in Europe. Dressed in a shirt and tie his parents drove him into town where he joined up behind the bugle band. Bill marched to headquarters, passed his medical and soon was in uniform. Training started in Weyburn, moved on to Shilo, Manitoba and by December 1940 the regiment was boarding the troopship “Pennland” on its way to England.

The SSR trained in earnest, and in May 1942 moved to the Isle of Wight to prepare for Operation Jubilee, a raid on Dieppe, France. Bill enjoyed the training and the friendship of his comrades, he was prepared for battle! On August 18, 1942 the Regiment received its orders to board landing craft. As they approached the coast of France an unexpected sea battle erupted on the left flank. The glow and flashing to the North reminded Bill of the Northern Lights he had loved at home; he prayed he’d see them from that vantage again.

The landing point was Pourville, a village West of Dieppe, near a ‘secret’ German radar site. Bill ran off the landing craft and onto the beach; his platoon came under fire. They fought well but as they were crossing the bridge over the River Scie Bill was fatally hit by a sniper. The South Saskatchewan lost 84 men in the battle, had 167 wounded and 89 taken as prisoners of war.


A. A TYPE OF MUSICAL INSTRUMENT Bugle
B. A COUNTRY OR CITY England/France, Weyburn, Shilo, Dieppe, Pourville
C. A FORM OF TRANSPORT Troopship/Landing Craft
D. AN ITEM OF CLOTHING Shirt and Tie/uniform
E. A FOOD Turkey/wheat



4.
The Happy Canuck will fly Air Canada into Paris Charles de Gaulle, rent a car and head NW towards Dieppe. When the Brighton/Newhaven-Dieppe ferry docks Bill will watch for a walk-off passenger with an overnight bag and a trumpet case, that would be Leigh. After a quick lunch they will drive south to Pourville to see the beach and the South Sask. Regt memorial at the church. As the time for sunset approaches they will drive to the Canadian War Cemetery outside of Dieppe.

At the cemetery entrance they will pause. Leigh will open the trumpet case, “Bill, I present to you the Eclipse Northern Lights trumpet. Play it with pride”. Bill will respond “Leigh, I accept this trumpet with the understanding that one of its uses will be to play the Last Post to celebrate the sacrifice our soldiers endured serving so that we may be free. I play with the East York Concert Band in Toronto, Ontario and we will publish to all Legion Branches and funeral homes in the Greater Toronto area that if they need the Last Post, we will proudly supply it!”

Bill will then insert his mouthpiece, and after a pause, play the Last Post for the prairie soldiers buried there. After the last note a quiet peace will settle over the headstones, the Northern Lights will have played over their heads again.

Rob Jokinen

The Eclipse Lunar Module: The ultimate modular adjustable trumpet.

Four things I would do to improve the design of the trumpet.
There are limited items to work with when considering upon improving the design. I have yet to hear or see of a completely EASY trumpet to try stuff out on. You have screw bells, backbores, but try to change leadpipe and you have to attach one of those things in your receiver.

The Eclipse has already made huge innovative strides by having the tuning slide at the bell section to improve everything (so I hear, haven't tried one). It seems natural that Eclipse trumpets has the guts to actually try new stuff. In order to improve it even more I would like to see 4 things.

1.) Different shaped tuning bell crook(s). Add different options for a little more square shaped crook. I know how the tuning slides affect things on the leadpipe, but I'd like to try out different combos on the bell crooks.

2.) Screw bell system
This is not new technology, but many people find it very useful into tuning the trumpets to their sound concept.
An idea to integrate the screw bell into the Eclipse existing technology and strategy would be: Where the bell currently meets the last brace (by the tuning slide), have a thread at that point integrated into the brace to make a very stable attach point. To attach the bell to the valve block, have a sliding interlock that would fit into the current brace system, or perhaps have an ornate type clamp that would go around the bell and secure there. I don't know how the clamp would affect the nodal response but the clamp would be a 'new' type improvement if it happens to make the horn have more core sound. If it doesn't work out, then the sliding interlock type brace would still allow the great flexibility of having interchangeable bells.

3.) A screw leadpipe option.
It seems that the Eclipse design could accomodate a carefully designed flawless thread option on the leadpipe (as to not interrupt airflow). Again, the attachment of the leadpipe to the horn would have to be experimental to see what works, but I would like to see a 'clamp' type of twin tube technology that is seen on the Selmer Concept TT applied only at the braces (not full length of pipe). That way you could have a floating type screw in leadpipe. This would allow great resonance and exceptional amount of experimentation possibilities for the player (provided Eclipse makes different taper screw in leadpipes). If the twin tube did not work out, then the same interlocking brace type would work too.

4.) Gap adjuster on the leadpipe receiver
With all of these options available on one horn, and you will have the ultimate adjustable trumpet, that would be the utmost in versatility for the player.

I did not include anything on the 'looks' or 'style' because the question was how to improve the 'design'.


Theme
The Eclipse Lunar Module: Since this is a modular trumpet in all aspects, and it also ties into the product brand name.

This theme would be very space looking: For the styling of the core valve block and tubing, I think it would be cool to see a graded blue lacquer with star shapes stamped into the valve block and then silver plated the stampings inside for that exceptional twinkle twinkle... (or inside the valve numbers and SN).

The graded blue lacquer would be a light blue at the front end 1st valve side, and gradually get darker as it moves towards the 3rd valve side of things until it is eventually nearly all black. Then it would be very cool to have a moon sliver shaped leadpipe brace that is stunning sterling silver with black edge to replicate the Eclipse (tm) kind of like the logo on the home page, and it would fit well with the space theme. I have two choices for the screw on bell...

a.) do the lacquer thing and engrave the Eclipse logo and have stars engraved with plated silver or
b.) have a plain sterling silver bell with engraving.

Going with the Lunar Module theme, you think of the Lunar Module as this gadget looking thing, and the brace designs and/or clamps would fit well into that. All of those would be silver.

The exploratory nature of the possible modifications to this horn ties the theme and into the curious human nature of the space missions of which I am very fond of.

I'll take a look at that software and see if I can't describe some of this visually.


Story

"Tripel C"

One time in a musical land far far away there lived a note named "C".
C had been a legit note all of his natural life, round, jolly and soft on the edges. C had made an appearance at small halls throughout the world to great acclaim, particularly in Europe.

On a particular tour of Belgium with a brass quintet (C's favorite place was to come out of the trumpet you know, 2 leger lines above the staff), the lead trumpet player for a local jazz club was ill. C's player, having been an acquaintance of the ailing Belgian lead player, was asked to fill in on a big band gig at a local pub on very short notice. C's player agreed.

C's player, a typical trumpet ego, had no reservations about subbing lead, having not played in that style for a few years. He started preparing for the gig that night. He ate a big steak so his stomach would be full and he would have lots of energy, and some fullness to pressurize up some air for some real high notes. C's player also changed his shirt to put on his silver shirt with the collar two sizes too big (to accomodate all that neck expansion).

At the gig, C was excited as it was his first time being a jazz note. Things were going fine most of the first set. C was riding the airstream 20 feet all night, he was a little beat up from hitting the corners so much, but he was surviving. At last it was almost time for a break, one more tune to go. C's player had been having a blast all night as well. This tune had not too many C's in it as well due to the key signature, except for the last note on the page, a Kenton-ish chord of high dissonance, a note one octave higher. C had never taken an air ride an octave higher before. C's player had been schooled in the methods of airspeed to hit higher notes, having studied with Don Jacoby in Texas. As a result, C was always mentally instructed to transport himself on the airstream out about 20 ft from the bell. So the moment was coming to try this new air ride...C watched and watched, and was sub-dividing me