[Dixielandjazz] left Handed Trombones and mouthpiece mania

[Don Ingle]

Stephen G Barbone wrote:
> Slide Hampton quote"
> "They gave me the trombone left-handed and I played it that way. It's 
> the only thing I do with my left hand. I did study with a few 
> different teachers, but they never tried to influence me to play 
> right-handed. "
>
>
>
Don Ingle wrote:

As a southpaw I make note that I swing a ball bat right handed and a 
golf club right handed. As a kid playing sand lot ball, a big kid put 
the bat in my hands and said "hold it like this kid and swing it at the 
ball." I did. So when a friend tried to convert me to golf it seemeed 
natural to hold the club right handed. ( both cases it proved a wasted 
use of time
and no end of embarassment.)  In short, if you don't know any better, 
you just do what they tell you.
I play trumpet/cornet  the normal holding manner - right hand fingers 
working the valves. However, unlike several of my cornet picker friends, 
I can play the valves with equal dexterity with the left hand fingers 
pushing the valve pistons. My friend and former Sons of Bix cohort Tom 
Pletcher used to get brain-blown when
I would swap hands and play with either hand. I have mirror finger 
reflexes and could play it that way all the time except that the horn 
itself is hard to hold because of the tuning valve positions - awkward 
an painful to hold for long time.

On a post about mouthpieces, and the writer's comment about the small 
hole the air goes through, as a trap and skeet shooter I automatically 
thought "bore" - the manner in which small but subtle compressions in 
the end of the barrel makes the shot go out in narrow or wider spread 
patterns. That same principal is also at work in passing the "Buzz" and 
air through to the tubing. The mouthpiece also has a bore effect and it 
helps explain why some players get a wide fat sound and others a 
compressed and thinner tone playing on identical horns. As a youngster 
learning to play I first used a Bach 10 1/2 C mouthpiece. Over the years 
I moved to a 7 C, and finally a 3 C. Sound changed more to my liking 
with each change of "bore."

Hope I haven't "bored" you with this pair of esoteric tvivium.  But it's 
a slow day in North Michigan and the grouse season still a week ahead - 
so what the hell!!
Don - remembering the Lefty's Credo:  *"Most people are born 
right-handed, but the truly gifted overcome it!" *