No Cornets for Beginners?

[Comeback]

My local grandson could scarcely contain himself last night at his cross country meet. He could not wait to get home so he could show me his new-to-him rental trumpet, a Bach TR300H2 with Bach 7C mouthpiece. As soon as we all arrived at his house he ran upstairs, fetched his trumpet, and down to the basement he and I went. We had a wonderful time as I showed him some things and coached him on producing good sound. His trumpet seems entirely serviceable and looks good too. The 7C mouthpiece seems to suit him for now. We’ll see how much depth of commitment he develops for the trumpet, but for now he is one happy and enthusiastic 10 year old, and grandpa could not be more pleased! Cornet or trumpet, if an instrument excites the musical imagination and interest of a youngster, it is just right.

[chef8489]

I started on the trumpet around 8 or 9 years old. When II got to High school in west Texas in the 90s they wanted us to play cornets for Symphonic band. It seems like most people there started on cornet so it was not an issue. I stuck to my trumpet and used it for marching and Jazz and used a Bach strad cornet for symphonic band. To this day I still prefer the trumpet over the cornet.

[gstump]

Well, I basically screwed up regarding the cornet trumpet thing. I gave my 2nd oldest granddaughter a professional King trumpet with a Reunion Blues gig bag with all access back stage stickers from shows I played. She was stylin'! But she was very small for her age and the bore size and trumpet size was too big for her. She gave up trumpet and went into color guard. The good news from that is she became a state champ in color guard and is still spinning as a junior in college.

So I went to a pawn shop and bought 2 student cornets for my next 2 granddaughters. A made in USA Bach and a made in Japan Yamaha. Good student cornets. Almost immediately the other kids and band directors made fun of the cornets. By the time the 3rds oldest entered middle school most of the kids had silver bach trumpets. All had trumpets and not cornets.

My daughter-in-law bought her a professional silver trumpet when she made the Detroit Symphony Youth Band in 7th grade. The pressure from her band director to buy a $3000 bach was ridiculous.

The influence and control by Marshal Music here in Michigan is huge.

Anyway, I was a total failure given the reality on the ground here.
_________________
Schilke B5
Couesnon Flug (1967)
Funk Brothers Horn Section/Caruso Student

[spitvalve]

[Ed Kennedy]

https://archives.library.illinois.edu/archon/?p=digitallibrary/digitalcontent&id=164


Herbert L. Clarke, Conductor
Anglo Canadian Leather Co. Band
Huntsville, Ontario, Canada
Jan. 13th, 1921.

Mr. Eldon R. Benge
Winterset, Ia.

My dear Mr. Benge:-

Replying to yours of the 19th just received, would not advise you to change from Cornet to Trumpet, as the latter instrument is only a foreign fad for the time present, and is only used properly in large orchestras of 60 or more, for dynamic effects, and was never intended as a solo instrument.

I never heard of a real soloist playing before the public on a Trumpet. Once cannot play a decent song even, properly, on it, and it has sprung up in the last few years like "jaz" music, which is the nearest Hell, or the Devil, in music. It polutes [sic] the art of Music.

Am pleased that you are making improvements in your playing. Keep it up, and become a great Cornet Player. You have an equal chance with all the rest, but you must work for it yourself.

Wishing you all the best of success, I remain.

Sincerely yours,

Herbert L. Clarke

[chef8489]

[Ed Kennedy]

I started on cornet about 1958, a used Olds Special. Most of the kids in the elementary band played (rented) cornet.

Jazz greats preferring cornet: Nat Adderly, Warren Vache, Thad Jones.

Phil Smith, raised in the Salvation Army tradition, didn't get off cornet until he went to Juliard. I think that cornets, with the smaller venturi and longer leadpipe, are easier to play and get a good sound on than trumpet. They are ergonomically better for kids because, as has been mentioned, the center of gravity is closer to the body. Just saying.

[trumpet2012fhl]

As a Middle School band director, we deal with this quite often. The current district I am in has a strict No Cornet policy. The idea being is that for marching band, concert band, etc. we want them to have trumpets. Then parents dish out all this money for a cornet, supplies, etc. Then a year or two later and we are asking them to buy a trumpet. Many don't want to do this.

We even suggest to many of our parents to go ahead and buy an intermediate model so they can play it all the way through High school. It is just one way to keep retention up, because a lot of times when you tell parents to spend more money, the kids start to drop.

I don't know if I fully agree with this policy, but we hardly ever have an issue with the supply cost being a deciding factor except in the first year.

[nieuwguyski]

When I joined the grade school band 45 years ago, the band director stipulated that he wanted trumpets, not cornets. When my parents took me to the local band instrument dealer (a counter in the basement of the Woolworth's department store) the employee there insisted that I try out both a Conn Director cornet as well as a Director trumpet, pooh-poohing the band director's instructions.

For the record, I clearly remember stating that I thought the cornet was easier to play (ie "make a sound on"), but I thought the trumpet sounded better. We went home with the trumpet.

...Less than a week later we returned it for a Conn Director trombone, and it took me 20 years to get over that moment of madness.
_________________
J. Notso Nieuwguyski

[Philip Smith]

I played a Salvation Army "Bandmaster" cornet exclusively until my senior year in high school. No problem from any of my school band directors. Perhaps my Dad intervened, I'm not sure. But I played in marching band, dance band, orchestra, school shows, band, etc, on cornet. In my senior year, my band director suggested that I start to play trumpet if I was going to pursue Music Ed in college. It was then that my folks bought me a Bach 37 Bb, which is still my Bb today, the same horn!! I ended up getting into Juilliard and Manhattan, playing my trumpet but with a cornet concept. I remember Broiles asking me at my audition, "Is that as loud as you can play boy?" I continued and have continued to play cornet very much! The rest is history. My advice to all music educators is "back off." If a kid comes in playing cornet, so be it. I would wholeheartedly recommend kids starting on cornet. It didn't do me, or Philip Cobb, or Maurice Murphy, or Bill Scarlet, or Mark Ridenour, or a host of other famous trumpet players, any harm. And in fact, in my humble opinion, it does a world of good!!

[JorgePD]

When I started playing 50 years I didn’t even know the cornet existed. No one in our junior or high school bands played one. I don’t think I ever saw a cornet played in any of the many bands I’ve seen until I started playing again 2 years ago. And I still haven’t heard a cornet solo played live, but I plan on hearing one soon.

One of my friends just started playing tenor horn in the Orchid City Brass Band in West Palm Beach, FL. It’s composed of professional musicians and educators and play in the British Brass Band tradition, which I didn't realize is all cornets, no trumpets. I’m planning on attending their concert in December and I understand their cornet soloist is outstanding.

After reading the comments here, I think it’s time for me to get my hands on a cornet. Great thread.
_________________
Trumpet practice can drive me crazy, but playing keeps me sane.

[Comeback]

[Fgonzales2]

I always felt like cornets had just a bit of a brighter sound and can cause some balance issues when trying to learn the instrument

[dacapo742]

For whatever reason (and there could be many), trumpet has become the standard instrument for HS band. If a student is fortunate enough to be a part of a "complete" band program with equal emphasis on marching, jazz, concert, orchestra winds, small ensemble/solo; a trumpet is the best choice for most of those situations. Knowing many students will only own one instrument, I would encourage beginners to start on trumpet. (side note - I was fortunate to have school owned cornets to be used when parts called for it.)

DH
Retired Band Director

[Balio,thedogyeller]

Cornet should be encouraged as it is ergonomically better for youngsters and has a richer sound in bands!

[MrClean]

[bunny]

Wow! Are we lucky to have so many great artists post on this forum!
I was physically fairly small at 10 years old. I am sure I was more successful on the cornet than I would have been on trumpet.
The cornet is my first love and I use it whenever I can!
Even in the 60s in the U.S. I think the preference was moving to trumpets for everything. The fact that cornet parts played on an american long model cornet with a "c" cup mouthpiece didn't sound much different from the trumpet didn't help.
Thankfully there seems to be a renewal of interest in the British brass band sound. Personally, I love playing my antique french cornets- a unique tonal palette!

[Comeback]

I wonder if there might be a general resurgence of interest in cornets, especially among older players. There are two players in my community band section that prefer playing their cornets. One, who stands about 6’-2” tall, recently spent pretty good money for a new cornet - a Getzen, I think. The other player is a husky 6 footer, and he plays a fairly new cornet too.

During a recent trip I played my old Holton Galaxy cornet and found myself longing for my Severinsen. My community band directors express no preference one way or the other. In our section we freely play cornet parts on trumpet and vice versa.

[JayKosta]

[spitvalve]