How a murder mystery inspired a comeback.

[Mmmatt]

Hey guys. I’m Matt and after about 30 years I have decided to start playing again. Partially as a distraction as I was closing up my business (brewery) that I had be slaving over for 5+ years, and partially because of a murder mystery party I was invited to.

If you guys have never done one of these before, it was arguably the most fun I have ever had! Of course, it doesn’t work unless the people playing are cut-ups or have big personalities, and our group was great. My charactor was a New Orleans street musician, and in lieu of wrapping some tinfoil around a cardboard cut out for my costume, I rented a student trumpet from the local shop and spent a week practicing every crappy tune I could remember. Most of the people there had no idea I could play so it was really cool to say the least. So of course I have refallen in love with playing trumpet, and 2 eBay trumpets later I am quickly tumbling down the rabbit hole! Now that my business is closed, I actually have time for me and a really enjoying myself.

For anyone who wants to hear the rest of my story, read on but I won’t be hurt if you don’t! I started in 6th grade in Kenosha, WI where there was a very progressive music program. Jr High Jazz band, Sumer jazz and marching band, and moved to Clearwater FL in 84 before 9th grade. I was told I couldn’t be in wind ensemble, jazz band, or marching band as a freshman so I swallowed my pride and signed up for concert band. 2nd semester I was in Jazz, wind, and marching band Ha ha! I was even soloing which pissed off some of the older guys. Band director took a shine to me and that helped. This was Robert W Smith who many of you may know as a composer or for his involvement in drum and bugle corps. What a great guy he was (is), and way too talented to be a band director so he left at the end of my freshman year to work for Columbia music I believe.

Next guy through the door was Gerry Kelsey who is a friend of Roberts and also a name in the drum and bugle corps world. Literally everything I have retained about music I learned from Gerry. Things like intonation, balance, how to listen, and how to swing. During my senior year Gerry took me asside and told me I should try out for all-county jazz band. I didn’t have a private instructor so he personally worked with me on the audition material after school and over lunch. I went to the audition and nailed it landing first chair and got to play for Ray Smith who ended up being my band director after Gerry left shortly before the end of my senior year.

I had been planning my whole life to be a musician from the first time I realized I could make music with that Conn Director cornet in the 6th grade, but hadn’t landed on a college. I had been accepted to Berkelee in Boston with a $1000 scholarship, but my parents just couldn’t swing the rest of tuition or the cost of living out east and I hadn’t applied anywhere else. Ray found this out and said he could help, and the next week he told me he got me a full ride at University of North Florida where Richmond Matteson (formally of North Texas State) was starting a new music program.

At UNF I was first chair in the 2nd band and the opportunities were endless for me. During the first semester at UNF, I met Dizzy Gillespie, Maynard Ferguson, and Al Hirt. Phil Wilson also popped in at one point to play trombone at one of our concerts.

Sadly, I got cold feet and my frustration with all the work, self imposed limitations, and a lack of maturity caused me to walk away before the second semester. That was pretty much the end of my playing days. A few weeks of not having the trumpet on my lips was enough to frustrate me further and it rarely if at all ever came out f the case again. I finally sold my last trumpet about 15 years later, which I now regret for obvious reasons.

As for my trumpets, I started on. Conn Director Cornet, then to. Selmer K-modified, sold that for a LA Benge 2x, then sold that for a Benge Claud Gordon which I now think may have been a UMI Benge, but I can’t remember for certain. I bought it new in the mid 80’s on clearance from WWBW, so it could have been either I guess. I also had a 4 valve Couesnon flugelhorn I bought new in 87, but sold that to fund a car right after dropping out of college. At some point in HS I switched from a 3c to a Schilke 18, and still have that and an 18F which both feel sorta like playing into a soup bowl without any strength in my embouchure.

Biggest surprises now are that you can’t buy a Benge for half the price of a Bach anymore, that crappy old K-modified that I couldn’t wait to ditch for $50 to some poor sucker is actually sought after now, and the biggest surprise is that somehow my fingers magically know where to go when reading music. Can’t necessarily tell you what the notes are, but the brain still manages to work it out with the fingers.

Hey, that’s it! Sorry such a long intro but I felt the need to let it out.

Matt

[cbtj51]

Welcome back to the Trumpet World Matt!

If your comeback experience is anything like mine, you'll find that many things trumpet have evolved (advanced) such as great horn selection and of course, seemingly infinite trumpet related info resources on the internet. Other aspects, however, are still recognizable, such as many opinions regarding every aspect of trumpet, possibly even more prevalent due to those same internet resources, requiring a lot of personal filtering. TH is a great source for both.

Keep an open mind regarding change, but be discerning (edit: spelling correction). Hope to see your presence on TH often!

Kind regards,

Mike
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'71 LA Benge 5X Bb
'72 LA Benge D/Eb
'76 Bach CL 229/25A C
‘92 Bach 37 Bb
'98 Getzen 895S Flugelhorn
'00 Bach 184 Cornet
'02 Yamaha 8335RGS
'16 Bach NY 7
'16 XO 1700RS Piccolo
Reeves 41 Rimmed Mouthpieces

[WxJeff]

Great introduction and thanks for the details. Welcome to the party. Somewhere along the way I inherited a UNF big band CD (late '90s with Marcus Printup, I think.) I will have to dig it out of my digitized files.
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Kanstul F Besson International 800 Bb
Jupiter SCR-520

[Mmmatt]

Thanks guys. Happy to be getting back in the groove.

[JetJaguar]

Thanks for introducing yourself and I and many others welcome you!
_________________
1938 Martin Handcraft Imperial #2 bore, 38 bell
Bach 7C mouthpiece

I'm looking for a Connstellation 5C-N or 5B-N mouthpiece
www.jazzscales.org
The Coady Strengthening Exercises: http://coady.coolwarm.com

[WxJeff]

[Mmmatt]