Some neat mutes, and what is a Mica mute?

[BandTeacher]

Hi everyone. As I mentioned in a few of my other posts, my high school trumpet teacher passed away recently and left me all of his horns, etc.

Here is a shot of all his various mutes. In addition to the usual Tom Crowns, H&B, etc. there are a few neat ones in the front. I love the little picc mute! The one on the far left with the little pickelhaub spike is neat, some kind of straight mute I assume? It is marked "Inez del Milan" and "Made in Italy."

I was wondering about the second one from the left. It's labeled "Mica Mute" and it looks like a H&B cup mute, but the actual cup is much thicker. Does anyone know what that one is, or used for? Here is the picture

[nltrumpet]

It looks like the straight you mentioned is what some people call a nipple mute. They’re a type of pixie mute (designed for use with a plunger), and these specific ones are EXTREMELY sought after. Looking at it again, it might be a little big to be the real thing...?

The mic a mute is what some people consider H&B’s response to the old Ray Robinson Cups with the felt on the inside.

[BandTeacher]

When I get home I can post a few more pictures. I'll shoot it alongside one of the Tom Crowns for size/perspective.

[Crazy Finn]

Mic-a-Mute is basically a variation or version of a cup mute. It's got a rubber (?) lip and the inside of the cup is felt lined. As mentioned, with the felt lining, it's similar to the famous Ray Robinson cup mute. The Robinson didn't have the rubber lip, but that's easy to remove (and put back on).

H&B still makes the Mic-a-Mute. I have a new one I ordered within the last year. It took about 9-10 months for H&B to get it to me, but it looks nice. I haven't played it much, gotta file the corks properly, but I think I like it better than my Wick, sound-wise.
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