Manny Laureano

Well, Nick, rather than compare one horn to another (I don't feel comfortable doing that publicly), I'll just tell you my experiences with my horns.

I finger all my E's open on all my horns irrespective of pitch (C's, Eb's, etc.).

I finger Eb's 2nd valve as well.

I notice that for low D and C# I don't have to pull out as far as I used to.

The 6th partials (high G and F#) are still a little sharp but much easier to deal with.

The middle G and F are not flat and the low C is not sharp.

When I play something like Academische Fest Overture I can play and just forget about it, I know that it'll be in tune and focused. Not so in the past with other horns.

All of this is very dependent on the proper mouthpiece, of course.

The other day, coincidentally, I was writing to Bugle75 about mouthpieces and things and she asked for advice. Okay, I gave her my opinions and that was that. Well, I was having a practice session and started thinking about what she asked a little bit more, so, I grabbed the mouthpiece I used to play and went back and forth with my Monette mouthpiece.

Oh, my G-d!

I have become accustomed to playing right down the middle of the tone without lipping notes. When I went back to my mouthpiece from 20 years ago I could not believe how bad the intonation was. It was atrocious and that was on my Bb! Can you believe it? I couldn't believe how MUCH I used to adjust without realizing it.

Of course, come the comments of "Well, So and So has been playing that equipment and they sound great!"

Goody for them.

I'm only writing about MY experiences not about someone else's. Everyone has a different way of playing, a different expectation, and different philosophy about intonation. My boss, Osmo, is a pain in the neck about intonation and you can't get away with anything, so, I have to feel comfortable and happy when I play (you know how I like to smile!).

Too much talk, yikes, sorry.

Hope that answers your question.

ML