Larry Gianni

Toots,

I think I’ll try to explain what I mean a little different way. Let me give you a few hypothetical scenarios and ask yourself if you would choose a certain mouthpiece/ trumpet combination based on a consideration of style of music, players you be playing with or type of venue you’re playing in. One more thing, this really goes for pros, semi-pro, semi-amateurs, amateurs and college students. The only pre-request is you have a couple different trumpets you feel comfortable on and a couple of mouthpieces, with say, different cups or backbores that will change your sound quality.

OK, here we go.

You’ve been hired to play the musical “ Les Miserable “ ( this can be pro or amateur ) and you know who your fellow section mates with be, and you are told they will be using “ C” trumpets thru-out the run , even thou the parts are written in Bb. What trumpet would you choose?

You’re playing Fri and Sat. night in a rock/pop band at a local club, but Sunday you have an Easter presentation with two other players. Would you choose the same trumpet that you played Fri and Sat. night for the resevered Easter presentation?

You are higherd to play on a movie soundtrack and the principal player will be Malcolm McNabb who’s usual arsenal , that he brings to any recording , is 8 trumpets – 2 Bb, 2C's, 1 Eb/D , 1 A/Bb pic. 1 cornet and a flugelhorn. Even if the parts are written in Bb, Malcolm prefers his Eb/D because of its quick response and even scale and how it warms up fast.(the part about Malcolm is actually true)

You are called to sub on a Big Band job and you’re told Chuck Findley will be playing lead trumpet. You really know nothing else, except you will be in the section and your sound will have to support Chuck’s volume and intensity thru-out the night.

Sat. and Sun afternoon you have an outdoor concert with the concert band you usually play with but Fri and Sat night, you been hired to play a very “hot “Salsa band, that’s traveling from NY and they wanted to augment there usually horn section with a couple more brass players for a 3 big concerts in your area.

Ok, I could go on an on, but what I’m trying to get at is – is it the music that dictates what instrument you bring and play, or is it the players your playing with dictate this, or is it the acoustics’ of the venue dictate what equipment you ultimately bring and play.

It’s not all that uncommon to see 2 Bb’s on a trumpet stand in front of a player when in one performance or even rehearsal. the player can then and there decide if a different trumpet would better suite what they have to play next.( plus 2 -3 mouthpieces on the rim of the stand as well) in one particularly performance.

John Madrid, former lead player for Buddy Rich and then for Wayne Newton in Las Vegas for a number of years, actually had to different trumpet/ mouthpiece set-ups in front of him on the stand and played each one according to how high ( range wise ) the parts would take him. At certain range of the part (I think Hi G), if the parts went higher, or he felt like really letting loose, which was not uncommon, if he could physically manage it, he would pick up a change of equipment and play what that set-up was best sooted for in his eyes.

This also is not only a commercial trumpet player’s dilemma/routine in dealing with gear. Classical players, at any level, are notorious for changing instruments in the middle of a performance or even single piece to try to get the right sound. timber that’s right for the particular situation. Even to the point of having the exact same model instrument, but just in a different bore size.

I imagine this type of “band hopping “is more a part of living in or close to a bigger metropolitan center, but could also ring true for a player at a large college campus.

By the way, Malcolm does bring 8 trumpets minimum to a film scoring session ( remember any other trumpet he’s required to play at a session will give him a “ double “ on his paycheck ) and Lew Soloff , who is reported to be the ultimate gearhead, might bring even more equipment to an engagement. The other side of the coin is if you are more of a ” name “ player like a Bobby Shew, Chuck Findley , Arturo Sandoval, etc. were you can usually control the environment of your playing situation, or are a featured attraction, usually don’t change equipment at all , and for long periods of time, because your sound is very self evident and individual to their playing and style and they are not being asked to mold to any other style of situation. See what I mean.

Also, you don"t always have to change your trumpet to feel more comfortable in your sound .Sometimes, just a change of mouthpiece with the same rim and different cup or backbore will do the trick.

Larry