Aid for the Visually Impaired

mitchkill · New Member Joined: 10 Aug 2006 Posts: 9

I am trying to get back into playing the trumpet after about seven years of not having used it. I played the trumpet through middle school and much of high school, and although I never developed into a great player, I did enjoy it. One of the difficulties I had, however, is the inability to see the music at a normal distance. I was born with low vision and even corrected, it is only about 20/200 in both eyes. In order to see the music I had to bring the stand very close to my face and turn the stand a bit to the side. Anyway, you can imagine the difficulty that this produced. Obviously, having a stand that close to you keeps you from sitting in the proper position and thus keeps you from being able to breathe properly.

Now that I am trying to return to the trumpet, I am curious what kind of supplements are available that I can get that will help me practice. These don't necessarily need to be usable in a performance because I can memorize music as I practice. Anyone have any thoughts on this?

Thanks for any suggestions!
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Mitchell Killian (II Cor. 12:9)
www.IntegrityDC.net
"Except a man be born again, he cannot enter into the kingdom of heaven." John 3:3

AverageJoe · Posted: Thu Aug 10, 2006 10:32 am Post subject:

There is a French horn player here in ATL that is legally blind, and he uses a set of clip-on magnifiers (like a jeweler) to see music until he can memorize it. Of course, the horn does not protrude from your face in the same way the trumpet does, but worth a shot, maybe...

Good luck, Mitch, and welcome to TH!

Paul Poovey
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"Every time I hear you play, you sound better than the next..."

skuni · Posted: Thu Aug 10, 2006 10:52 am Post subject:

If you can read Braille, check the library of Congress for a Brailled edition of the Arbans book. They several beginning band books Brailled for clarinet. It would be worth a shot. Good Luck with everything!!

baysidepete · Posted: Thu Aug 10, 2006 12:02 pm Post subject:

Have you ever thought of using a video camera and large monitor or projector to zoom in on the music and project it in a larget format? Decent B/W cameras a fairly cheap these days. A 17 or 20" lcd monitor isn't too bad either, a lot more than the camera, but a hell of a lot cheaper that they were a few years ago.
An uncle who had macular degeneration had a device for reading which was essentially the same thing. He'd place the reading material on a bed which had a camera mounted to it, much like a copy stand, and a monitor on which to read the enlarged text. Just a thought.
I can see the music fine, I just have trouble playing it!

peter

mitchkill · New Member Joined: 10 Aug 2006 Posts: 9

I really am considering getting a projector that I can hook up to my computer. I then can simply scan the music and project it on the wall. It would also be handy in marketing meetings for my web site design company (IntegrityDC.net <-- Shameless plug!!). That is just quite a bit of money for me to spend right now. However just putting it on my 19" flat screen might be sufficient for a while. Thanks for the advice!
_________________
Mitchell Killian (II Cor. 12:9)
www.IntegrityDC.net
"Except a man be born again, he cannot enter into the kingdom of heaven." John 3:3

rjn-jazz · Posted: Thu Aug 10, 2006 12:11 pm Post subject:

This suggestion might be considered old school... but how about an old fashioned transparency projector... you know, the kind we used before LCD projectors... you could just project it onto an inexpensive screen or even a white/light colored wall. I'm thinking you could find one used and fairly inexpensive somewhere...
Just thinking...

Rod
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Don Herman rev2 · Posted: Thu Aug 10, 2006 6:39 pm Post subject:

Could you scan (or copy) the music and simply enlarge it? Say, take e.g. an 8 1/2" x 11" sheet, blow it up 2x, and print on two pages in landscape mode, or something like that? Lot cheaper than a projector...
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"After silence, that which best expresses the inexpressible, is music" - Aldous Huxley

mitchkill · New Member Joined: 10 Aug 2006 Posts: 9

I appreciate the help. Right now I am experimenting with a twist on something that baysidepete suggested. I am scanning the music into my computer, enlarging it. and displaying it on my 19" monitor. I can see it well enough to practice now. The big problem with this is displaying multipage scores. Anyway, this arrangement is working so far. If anyone else has suggestions, I would love to hear them. Thanks!
_________________
Mitchell Killian (II Cor. 12:9)
www.IntegrityDC.net
"Except a man be born again, he cannot enter into the kingdom of heaven." John 3:3