[Dixielandjazz] Baritone as Trombone?

[Elazar Brandt]

Hi Pam,

Interesting question. I am a trombone player who has taken up trumpet and
tuba and other brass valve instruments rather late in the game. Local
necessities have me fronting my band alternating between trumpet and tuba.
(I play Bb treble clef tuba so the fingerings are the same as trumpet.) We
have a bone player but he's not always with us. So sometimes I do triple
duty. I found it difficult to switch in mid song or mid gig between the
valve Bb horns and the concert key bone. Then I discovered the "marching
trombone", which looks and plays like a fat trumpet, and sounds like a bone,
without the glissandos. It's smaller and easier to carry than a trombone,
and I can use the same keys and fingerings on all three horns. Recently I
acquired a marching baritone, essentially the same thing but somewhat larger
and fatter, giving a more full baritone sound. I tried using that as a sub
for the tuba. Shall we say, you can also use polyester as a substitute for
silk! It can sort of do the job if you play it right, but it's not the same.
Tempting for street playing and marching when a lighter horn is useful.

I have done the same with an upright baritone. It's OK, but something felt a
little amiss. I don't know if it's my imagination, but the "marching horn"
orientation rather than upright looks more jazzy, and you can use a mute,
and I think the sound was subtly more appropriate too.

But in the final analysis, as you say, a fine musician can play good jazz
with almost anything, and if that's what you got, I wouldn't be afraid to go
with it. My band had a viola for awhile until we had enough horns to do the
job.

The Gospel truth from Jerusalem,

Elazar
Dr. Jazz Dixieland Band
Tekiya Trumpet Ensemble
Jerusalem, Israel
www.israel.net/ministry-of-jazz
+972-2-679-2537


-----Original Message-----
From: Pam Munter [mailto:pam at pammunter.com]
Sent: Tuesday, November 22, 2005 10:38 PM
To: dixielandjazz at ml.islandnet.com
Subject: [Dixielandjazz] Baritone as Trombone?


... Anyone else have any experience with a baritone in a Dixieland band?