Alien Jazz Monkey
(Gloucester)
Wednesday 2 Jun 2021, 10:26am
I’ve scanned these pages for years in the hopes of finding a band in need of a permanently intermediate trumpet player. For lack of any such vacancy, I feel I have no choice but to take the initiative.
By trade I am a guitar teacher and player, but I’ve played trumpet in a couple of intermediate big bands, and various other outfits including my current band where I predominantly play guitar but use the trumpet on a few numbers.
The truth is, the mechanics of playing a wind instrument remain largely a mystery to me. No matter the practice regime, my range and tone seem to remain consistently, er, intermediate. While part of the responsibility for this can be down to my own shortcomings as a musician, the issue is not helped by having to practise with a mute and practising alone. On the many occasions when I’ve played full blast with other horn players, it seems to me that the collective effort is enough to raise everyone’s game.
My proposal is for a handful of like-minded horn players to get together for 2-3 hours once a week (or fortnight), with no ambition beyond working out and making a collective noise. No fame, no fortune—guaranteed. However, such sessions would provide ample opportunity to exercise diaphragms, increase lung capacities, strengthen embouchures, develop listening skills, share knowledge of the arcane mysteries of wind instruments, and goodness knows what else.
I’ve been playing guitar for over 4 decades and trumpet for one and a bit. I’m tolerant of a wide range of human behaviour. I find it easier to write dots than read them. I’ve written horn parts for small sections, as well as for one of the above-mentioned big bands. I have nowhere to rehearse.
If you're interested, please PM me. I will furnish you with details of material and similar ventures.
Thank you for your attention.