[Dixielandjazz] Laying off & bad horns

[Larry Walton Entertainment - St. Louis]

My first instrument was a C sax that an Aunt sent from Pennsylvania.  My 
teacher used a bunch of rubber bands to hold keys shut and bent things 
around till everything worked.  He wrapped the cork with paper.

No one in their right mind would have a kid try to play on that horn today 
but beggars can't be choosers and the thing worked.  A few more rubber bands 
and more adjustment kept it going.  It never saw a shop because there wasn't 
one where I lived and my parents didn't have the money anyway at that time.

It was pretty much like that for three years until my dad bought me a new 
Buscher Aristocrat alto (abt. 1951 or 52)  which I still play on.  I was 
going in the 7th grade.

You know I didn't care because I was so excited to have an instrument to 
play on.    When I got that new horn it might as well been solid gold.  I 
used to sit and just run my hand over the plush inside of the case.  You 
know I still do that sometimes.  Occasionally I wish that they could have 
afforded a 400 top hat model (my dream horn) but I know they did without to 
get me that one.

I really felt special because other kids in my neighborhood and most at my 
school didn't have a horn and I did.

I guess times have changed.
Larry
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Russ Guarino" <russg at redshift.com>
To: "Larry Walton Entertainment - St. Louis" <larrys.bands at charter.net>
Cc: <Cebuisle2 at aol.com>; <dixielandjazz at ml.islandnet.com>
Sent: Thursday, October 26, 2006 11:10 AM
Subject: Re: [Dixielandjazz] Laying off & bad horns


> To all the world of reed teachers:
>
> Frankly, the first job for the teacher of saxophones/clarinets and other 
> reeds is be
> sure the student horn actually plays.
>
> Nothing could be worst than for an enthusiastic student than to be given 
> a horn that
> has leaking pads.  No matter how good the instruction or how talented the 
> student, the
> horn wont play and the student will assume he [ generic "he" ] is at fault 
> &  will not
> be able to master the instrument.
>
> I have had the experience of putting my mouthpiece on a student's horn and
> experiencing the shock of a bad horn.  It's embarrassing, so, check it out 
> first
> lesson.
>
> Russ Guarino

>