Posted by Todd on July 27, 2001 at 17:36:35:
**********WARNING***********
DO NOT TRY THIS AT HOME KIDS!
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I overheard a trumpet playing colleage of mine talking to a fellow trumpeter about a "fad" that he remembered back "some years ago" in his career. I quickly joined the conversation and he told me the following. He said that it used to me a brass player "fad" to put an apropriate sized paper clip in the shank of a mouthpiece and then play. I asked him WHY and WHAT it did, but he said with a sly grin "just try it." He said that the fad last about 3 years and that everyone he knew (trombone and trumpeters alike) were doing this. I kept asking him what it did to affect the sound and all he told me was "why do we tweak and modify horns? So they play better." He also hinted that it had something to do with the divided airflow that is created by the paperclip causing a distruption in the air stream.
Now...I'm afraid to try this technique because I am afraid of getting the paper clip lodged in the leadpipe. He swore that it wouldn't happen, but I am not taking any chances.
Can ANYONE fill me in on this "technique."
Thanks,
Todd "puzzled" Morgan