| Maynard's "voice" is one that served as a great inspiration to trumpet players throughout the world. Whenever Maynard was in town, going to see him was a given. What an incredible performer he was!
What has also been mentioned about Maynard is his wonderful smile, and his great sense of humor. While today has been a sad day for the trumpet world, I'd like to share a memory that I have from a clinic that Maynard did quite a few years ago. I should preface my story by giving Maynard the highest praise for all of his years of contributing to music education, by performing so many of his concerts in school auditoriums, and for giving so much encouragement to trumpet players, of all ages, for so long.
The event that I attended was held in a high school auditorium. There was a clinic in the afternoon, where we had the opportunity to hear the band rehearse prior to the evening performance. After the rehearsal, Maynard took questions from the audience. Part way through this Q&A session, a kid raised his hand, and Maynard addressed him.
The kid in the audience said, "Maynard, I think that I'm better than you."
Maynard's reply... "Kid... just the fact that you said the work "think" ... tells me that you don't have your sh*t together!"
"The Boss" received some well-deserved applause, as well as some well-deserved laughter, for "educating" that young man.
Needless to say, that evening's performance was just as stellar as all of the many other Maynard Ferguson performances that I had the privilege of attending throughout the years. Here's to the life of a great man!
R.I.P. Maynard
Bruce |