[Dixielandjazz] the trombone as an orthodontic tool

[Cebuisle2 at aol.com]

Hello all-
 
Enjoyed the various presentations of the problems of  "tromboning."   Hear is 
a different slant on the instrument. 
Years ago I had a high school beginner in band who played alto sax. The  
rental was running out and the kid didn't like the instrument. I managed to keep  
him in the program by switching him to trombone and finding him an inexpensive 
 used instrument for him. he played it through the remaining three years of 
high  school. I should mention here he had a bad case of buck teeth when I 
first met  him, and wore braces to correct the problem. Some time after graduation 
I met  his dad on the street, and he told me that the trombone switch has 
saved a full  year of orthodontal expense whereas the alto sax would have 
prolonged it one  more year. 
 
Pressure of the mouthpiece helped force the teeth back, but the reed  
instrument worked against the braces and forced the teeth out. 
 
Guess this might be a good reason to check out the beginner's mouth  before 
starting him/her on a horn. Or so I was told! Of course, the kid has to  
practice a lot-
                                                                          ted