Originally Posted by bandman

I have a 6th grader that walked in one day with a Bach trumpet. He told me it was his father's horn. I looked at the bell and sure enough it was a Mt. Vernon. I called the father and found out that it was his father's trumpet (grandfather of my student).

This child plays it everyday. He never lets anyone else hold it, and takes fantastic care of this horn. My point is that the child you asked about might also take better care of his horn than an adult.

My young student found out that his horn was special. I really think that this helped him to progress better because he loves to play the horn -- because it is special and because of the family history. I say let the kid play it!