Dave Mickley

my wife is a much better trumpet player than I am and she started taking lessons when she was 5. She played Carn. of Ven. in the 6th grade and Napoli by the 8th grade. Her high school band director didn't think girls should play the trumpet so her main job was to teach the section leader his part and work with him on the solos until he could do it correctly. When ever she would challenge for chair she would win but the director over rode the decision. She played lead in a dance band for 16 years and now just plays community band, quintet and church. even to this day she gets flack from other trumpet players, it goes to show how small minded a lot of people are.we joined a new com. band last year and was thought of as just a "girl" trumpet player until she played Bride of the Waves as solo with the band. all but one trumpet player really thought that was great but that one player didn't think it was right that she got the attention. she did not ask to play a solo because she knows the reaction of some people but the director heard about her asked if she would do it. I am really proud of my wife and have to set a few guys straight about comments made about her when they didn't know we were married. be careful when you make comments people - you just don't know who all is listening. lol Dave

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formerly known as old geezer Dave
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Solar Bell

Great story Dave!

You sound like you're proud of her, and you should be.

I'd like to hear her play sometime, or maybe a duet with both of you!

Take care,

-cw-

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Chuck Willard
The Willard of Oz

"Don't be afraid to see what you see."
Ronald Reagan

tromj

I remember going to a lesson with Carmine Caruso as a young guy, and while waiting for my turn listening to a refined guy, (turned out to be Marvin Stamm) complaining to Carmine about how a female friend of theirs was still getting hassled by a contractor in NYC and how he was looking forward to the day when gender was a non issue. The friend was Laurie Frink.
Can you imagine the nerve of some contrator deciding that Laurie couldn't cut it?

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bandman

I have been teaching middle school band for what seems to be forever -- I bet I have taught 500+ trumpet players over the years. If I had to list the top 10 best players I have ever taught I bet at least 7 or 8 would be female. I have no idea why, but I have had much more success with females on trumpet than males.

Strange thing is that I have had the opposite experieince with clarinet players -- the guys were the minority overall, but produced by far the best players.

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rowuk

We have forgotten Carol Dawn Reinhart! What a trumpet player she was! I have a record of her playing the Goedicke Concert Etude - good stuff!

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Whenever I feel blue, I start breathing again.

Khora

As another female trumpet player, I have been hesitant to jump into this. I'm old enough to have been taught to hide my gender whenever possible to avoid being discriminated against. But I'll risk it, because the world Is changing, and it is important to hear from some women too. ANd may your daughters never be told that they can't do something because they're a girl.

That is part of the problem! We forget the women who have succeeded. Carole made many recordings - but many were on smaller labels, because the big labels didn't want a woman trumpeter.

Has anyone forgotten Maurice Andre? Of course not - he was everywhere. But women have been excluded from a great many arenas (not just in the trumpet world either), and have a much harder time getting publicity for what they have done. (That IS changing now, since self-promotion is much easier with the Internet).

It is really a double-edged sword. First, girls were much more likely to be told from an early age not to brag about themselves - it is "unbecoming". Women who really push themselves are frequently called rather unsavory names - "aggressive" is one of the kindest. Men who do exactly the same or even to a greater degree are called "assertive".

Second, since women have been excluded from many areas, they don't get the exposure from someone else. Falls into the same category as "you can't get a job without experience, and you can't get experience without a job."
It can be a real dead-end - and incredibly frustrating way to make a living.

Then add into that attitudes like:
"why should I hire a woman when the guys I know have to support a family". Like some women aren't supporting families!? And certainly themselves?

"I can't hire a woman -a woman wouldn't look right on stage."

"You can be anything you want to be when you grow up. Just don't show you are better than the boys."

"Well, she's not really talented. She just slept with someone to get where she is."

And there is very little recourse for this. If you complain about discrimination, you get black-listed as being hard to work with. If you stand up for yourself too much, some men (those really insecure ones) don't want to work with you.

As parents begin to see successful women trumpet players as role models for their daughters, it becomes a little easier to let them play trumpet. In another generation or so, it might not be an issue.

And may your daughters never be told that they can't do something because they're a girl.

Veldkamp

I play once and a while with prof. female trumpetplayers. I even play more often with very good (prof.) female baritone sax players (I know 4 of them). They are not complaining about lacking physical strength.

So it's not discrimation or physical streng what's the deciding factor (nowadays) but if they can play their instrument. Heck, even my first teacher at the Conservatorium was a female trumpetplayer and a very good pianist too!

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Khora

Ideally, it is just about how well you play. In reality, there are still a lot of biases out there, especially among older players. Attitudes can die pretty hard.

There are still too many instances where a woman will play much better than a man, but the man gets the job - usually accompanied by the "he has a family to support" comment. Or a woman won't even be considered (particularly in the freelance world).

Yes, discrimination is far less than it used to be, but believe me, it is still out there.

rowuk

When trying to imagine a truely "equal" opportunity, I see many things that have nothing to do with trumpet. Many of them have to do with role model when children are involved. With a working mom, and hubby at home, there are many stereotypes about his being a wimp - even if he is a model father. Khora presented the "female" issues very well.
To make this really work, a lot is required of society in general - not just for the ladies! The blown out of proportion "investigations" on Clinton and other politicians on both sides of the aisle, only serve to fuel this fire - even although it has nothing to do with the issue. As long as gender is commonly used as a political/social weapon, the ladies will continue to have to work harder to get ahead. How many managers that couldn't control THEMSELVES have lost their jobs because of an affair. These are not reasons to not hire women, but examples of other social issues that hinder equality.
Imagining a society with equality as a basis brings all sorts of questions up. Would the hubby at home also play with Barbie dolls?

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Whenever I feel blue, I start breathing again.

trumpetdiva1

Why if I weren't a women (actually a girl at that time), I would have decked him for Laurie's sake. Nobody does that to Laurie and gets away with it. They will have to go to me first. And I'm a peace keeper, too.

Janell

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Janell Carter