| Warburton & Gerry Lopez
Living in Florida made it easy to go to the Warburton factory/shop. And not far from them is a very nice little trumpet shop owned by Gerry Lopez. Terry Warburton wasn't at the factory but Ken his general manager and kick ass trumpet player gave me his undivided attention. Being an advanced beginner(my appraisal), and a "returning" old dude at that(a universal appraisal), I found myself tense when I played. I didn't buy a mouthpiece but Ken modified my Marcinkiewicz Flugelhorn mouthpiece to feel closer to my Conn 3C rim. I intend to try their wide rim models at another time. I spent $25.00 for the visit which included a good lesson about breathing from Ken. Then I went to Gerry Lopez's shop. Gerry is a great guy and must be a hell of a player. He's personal friends with Bobby Shew and our own Ray Vega. If you're ever in Oviedo Florida stop in and see him. He's got a nice collection of used horns and mouthpieces. I got to play a lot of horns I've been curious about, including his own Gerry Lopez Kanstul model. I know he sells new horns also. What a great trip! On the way out of town I hit the Pawn shops along the way and picked up a Selmer Bundy Designed by Vincent Bach. After cleaning it I found myslef with an impressive playing horn. I thought I'd share this experience for what it's worth. Just contributing an unsolicited "What I did on my Summer vaction" paper..................crow |