Shofarguy

Into the Wild…Thing

One Day in a Lifetime

In the years when my family was new, I lived in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada in the town of Sonora, which for those of you who are not familiar with California history, is pretty much the heart of Gold Rush country. I worked every day as a carpenter in those oak and pine covered hills admiring the vast beauty that surrounded me. There is something special about the way the grass meadows are dotted with stands of oak trees and groups of boulders, which I used to call “petrified cows” just to make my kids laugh.

On some weekends, we’d take a long drive into the high country. Highway 108 climbs from the town, at 2000’ elevation, all the way to Sonora pass which is a bit above 10,000’. On the way, we would enjoy endless views stretching out far to the north toward Lake Tahoe. The Dardanelles were particularly captivating with their three flat plateaus standing bleak against deep gray thunderheads in an achingly blue sky.

Those were marvelous years. And while a few days might have gone by now and again where I didn’t really notice the beauty of my surroundings, it was never long before some new discovery reminded me that the foxtails and burrs of life were little deterrent from the joy that filled my heart living in that magnificent place.

Playing my Benge has always been like that. It is truly a beautiful horn. Eldon loved his trumpets and it shows. They were not perfect, most of them, but they stand as a unique testimony to a man who obviously was
a good, sensitive player who built some of the world’s best trumpets.


My 1976 5X Benge

Now, a few times in our lives, there come milestone events that define us. We call them “paradigm shifts”. Such was the day my wife asked if we could take a drive south to Yosemite Valley. I’m a native Californian, so I’ve seen many, many pictures of those iconic monuments. From the stark drama of Ansel Adam’s world famous black and white images to great murals in full, vivid color, the shapes of Half Dome and El Capitan were part of the heritage we Californians tend to take for granted. So, as we began our trip, I was smugly satisfied that I knew what I was in for.
After an hour of winding road, the hills, valleys and streams dropped away behind us as we climbed into the mountains forested with tall Ponderosa Pine and Cedar. There were still snow patches in the shadows, cooling the spring-time grottos of wildflower and fern. The entrance gate to Yosemite Park told us that the Valley was near. Just a few more miles of climbing brought us to one last descending corner and a short tunnel. Then, my whole world changed…

Is That My Voice?

It’s all about the sound, really. We search for the perfect trumpet that will help us to get out sounds we hold in our hearts. The pure expression of our trumpeting soul is the experience we crave. In our struggle to get ourselves out, we tinker with the horn we have, trying to overcome the shortcomings that distract us from that pristine artistry. Or, we throw the one aside and delve into the next, pursuing the ideal conduit that will shout to the world, “Here I am!”

We journey into the minutiae of acoustics and metallurgy, of embouchures and heightened spiritual awareness. “Is it me that is holding me back?” we wonder. “I must practice more,” we chide, or “I should get a good (better) teacher.” Certainly, the next mouthpiece will satisfy us! Or, is it the next band director/worship leader/orchestra conductor? “Maybe, I should play Jazz,” we might muse, “but improvisation… I don’t know.” What does it mean to find one’s “voice”? How does one find it?

The Invitation

It happened, along my own such journey, that an invitation arrived as a Personal Message in my Inbox. “I really would like you to come down to Oceanside and see my operation. I’d like to show you some things,” he wrote. “Bring whatever horns you wish. If you want to play any of my horns, that would be okay, too.” A time was arranged and I made my first trip down to see Flip Oakes and his Wild Thing trumpets.


Flip Oakes

Flip is an ordinary man. Well, that’s not entirely accurate, as most of us didn’t know at 8 years old that we wanted to be a trumpet player and there sure aren’t many of us that began a profession as a trumpet player at age 13.


Flip does a precision valve alignment on each and every horn he sells. The service is available for other horns, as well.

Most of us haven’t spent years repairing instruments as Flip has, either. And I dare say most of us haven’t been responsible for even one iconic horn design of world renown, while Flip has given us at least two.


Valve parts are marked to ensure proper alignment after reassembly

His rather ordinary looking garage is stuffed with non-automotive things, like many of ours, but his benches and machines are known to turn out extraordinary instruments played by the likes of Arturo Sandoval and others; thousands of others.


Ultra-sonic cleaning assures terrific valve action out-of-the-box.

His wife, Joyce, is just as “ordinary” as Flip. She chooses to spend her time venturing out into her community serving the elderly and shut-ins with her mobile hair-dressing business. And she can cook! I can attest to that. Shyly, she corrects Flip as he recounts how they first met.


Joyce Oakes

It was at a Holiday Inn in New York. Flip was playing in a band there. She had told her boyfriend (of one year) that, no, she didn’t want to “go see the ground hog come out and look at his shadow.” Her eyes roll back even now. Instead, she went to the hotel with her friend. During a break between band sets, they met Flip in a hallway.

He suggested that the three of them go to breakfast after he got through playing. She says that both girls came back, but Flip insists he only remembers Joyce. Slyly, he tells how he took her to restaurants that he knew were closing, so that they would have to keep going from one to the next. Finally, they parked at the curb outside of her apartment and talked until morning when Joyce had to go to work. Right there, he proposed. Right then, she accepted. It was love at first sight, going on 38 years now.


Still crazy after all these years!

A Wild Thing is Born

Most of us have something of a vague idea of our perfect trumpet. We imagine its sound and how it blows. It would perfectly unlock the music inside of us, if only we could build it. Flip Oakes is one of a very few players who have become knowledgeable enough to actually design and build the trumpet of his dreams. After several tries, he found all the right pieces, the combination of just the right elements that answered his desires in full.


Flip's personal Wild Thing shown with new accessory valve caps, stems and buttons developed with the help of Arturo Sandoval. They add heat to the already tremendous upper register.

It was never intended to be for sale. He didn’t start out to build a business around his design, let alone sell hundreds of trumpets world wide. But every time he let another player try it out, the response was, “This thing is WILD!” So, the trumpet named itself and an icon, the “Wild Thing”, was born.

The most unusual attribute, indeed the most “wild” thing about his horn is that, while it was uniquely designed to match Flip’s playing style, it has the ability to match the style of almost every trumpet player that tries it. Countless customers have proclaimed this in letters, emails and phone calls ever since Flip introduced them for sale back in 1997.


Flip Oakes Wild Thing shown in its deluxe case (incl.) with my two mouthpieces (not incl.)

In the five years since beginning my own comeback, I too have developed my own dream of the perfect trumpet. I have been fortunate to meet several people in the musical instrument industry who have been willing to work with me in pursuit of my dream. I have also found quality advice and information on web forums like Trumpet Master. The sound concept grew ever clearer in my mind with each step toward realizing my dream. Then, I played the Wild Thing…

Paradigm Shift

I was stunned. “This is it,” I thought. “It has the timbre, the response, intonation and even a linear blow that I’ve only ever imagined. And the sound presence…” I looked at the horn in my hand and thought that my trumpet world had changed forever.

Just as that first sight of Yosemite Valley had done, the Wild Thing made me realize that all the hyperbole and every adjective I knew was already spent on lesser things. I found myself unable to find words to speak, as I tried to comprehend what had happened. The only thing to form on my lips might have been a whispered, “Oh, my…”

In the past, I’d read posts from Wild Thing players that pronounced the end of their horn searches. What had once seemed to be grossly overstated silliness now seems like reasonable and sound thinking. But, I would describe my own reaction to Flip’s masterpiece as that of a doorway into another world of possibilities as a trumpet player and musician, one where the horn is a partner and guide, instead of a collection of compromises and liabilities holding me back.

I have work to do to adjust and develop as a player, because it is obvious now that I am the limitation to my abilities, not this new trumpet. Yet, it is uncanny how the Wild Thing urges me on, assuring me that I’ll improve if I stay with it. I have to stop trying to wrestle the horn, like I’ve learned to do with my Benge. Hmm, I didn’t realize just how much I have had to wrestle it. Oh, yes, I did too realize it. I just thought that it was part of being a trumpet player. Now I know better, and my excitement for playing is renewed and rejuvenated. I find I can hardly wait to play and explore. It looks like it’s going to be an adventure as I journey “Into the Wild…Thing!”


This one's mine!

CHAMP

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POW!!!

Shofarguy

It's an article.
I wrote it.

Brian

derekkress

Quite the write up! But I will second that. I was very well served by Flip. We corresponded by e-mail for about 2 months. I tried all the Yamaha's, Shilke's and a few others and had him describe what I could expect from his horn. Remember I couldn't try his horns because of distance so by understanding what I was looking for he was able to clearly explain what I would expect. Finally we decided on The Celebration a horn which is a little more "conventional" compared to The Wild Thing but still has that wonderful core sound and ease. I am a very satisfied consumer!! I still try other horns, a Jupiter just last night(great horn!) but there was still something a little more special in my Celebration!

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Celebration Bflat by Flip Oakes
Early Yamaha Flugel prototype(Guido Basso)
GR and Stork mouthpieces

Shofarguy

Derek,

There are few people who have such a passion for what they do as Flip Oakes. His horns reflect his philosophy of horn playing, ethics and attention to detail.

I have found his product line to be unique (meaning better) in how each horn plays, and also the adaptability and adjustability they have. When one considers the multiple tuning slides available (4 braced and 4 unbraced "J" slides) to taylor the blow and response of either the Celebration or Wild Thing, and the two included with the C trumpet and also both cornet models, it is hard to think of a more versatile lineup.

I have an article written about the Celebration that I can post, and also another recent one about the heavy stems and caps seen above in the photo of Flip's personal trumpet. The caps and stems are now available for order and fit all of Flips horns, the exception being the flugelhorn which cannot use the stems and top caps.

Thank you for your comments,
Brian