JeffBanyots Posted December 20, 2009 Share Posted December 20, 2009 ...I like to think that...Sopranos are the MEAT...Bari's are the Potatoes and Mello's are the GRAVEY that makes it all work. Just sayin........ That being said, the contras are the god**mn bedrock of the entire activity. Recognize. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
randomnoise Posted December 21, 2009 Share Posted December 21, 2009 The reason folks will advocate trumpet playing is due in large part to the mouthpiece - a Mellophone mouthpiece is very similar to a Mello mouthpiece. If you are able to get a good sound on a trumpet in the first hour, chances are good that you will be able to get a good sound out of a mellophone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AZFan Posted December 21, 2009 Share Posted December 21, 2009 Like going from Gran Prix racing, to driving in a demolition derby. I don't think i could love this comment more. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kauliflower Posted December 21, 2009 Author Share Posted December 21, 2009 I've borrowed a trumpet now and managed to get a good sound out of it in two hours (rather than one), but it feels really varied as well. It's as though it sometimes wants to plays and other times doesn't. Horn angles? 2/3 vs 1/2 in the upper lip? I'm pretty scared about ruining my french horn embouchure at this stage though. The comment on the variability of tone was interesting though. I've noticed that some players manage to make the trumpet sound almost warm enough to be like a french horn. I'm guessing the mello is a bit like that. Is it really an octave higher? That would explain the high notes I've seen I guess. In terms of stability of notes, is it much better than the french horn? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AZFan Posted December 22, 2009 Share Posted December 22, 2009 I've borrowed a trumpet now and managed to get a good sound out of it in two hours (rather than one), but it feels really varied as well. It's as though it sometimes wants to plays and other times doesn't. Horn angles? 2/3 vs 1/2 in the upper lip? I'm pretty scared about ruining my french horn embouchure at this stage though. The comment on the variability of tone was interesting though. I've noticed that some players manage to make the trumpet sound almost warm enough to be like a french horn. I'm guessing the mello is a bit like that. Is it really an octave higher? That would explain the high notes I've seen I guess. In terms of stability of notes, is it much better than the french horn? Really, the embouchure is going to be ruined no matter what you do if you don't keep up on your horn playing for tour. I would suggest 1/2 and 1/2, since that's what i use, but its a personal preference. When practicing you should get comfortable with holding it at parallel and 10 degrees above parallel. It's an octave higher in the sense that the pipes are half the length of the F side of the horn. If you have ever played on a descant horn (or the high F side of a triple horn), it will be very similar to that. The high notes still will take work, but they will be much easier to have sound stable. Since its a smaller instrument it's going to be easier. Honestly, if you are a good horn player, you won't have much trouble with note stabilization after a day or two of mellophone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G-horns Posted December 22, 2009 Share Posted December 22, 2009 From where I sit, going from horn to mellophone is a bit more than just embouchure concerns. When you're in the upper range of a horn you really have to control the air in order to keep from sliding all over the place between partials. On most mellophones my experience has been that if you DON'T control the air as much you will be more successful. Of course all mellos are to some extent beasts that require taming. No two pieces of plumbing are completely identical even within the same make and model. Knowing your particular axe is most of the challenge. Of course, if you were in one of the few alumni corps that uses frenchies, you could pony up the cash for a Kanstul G frenchie with the bent lead pipe which allows you to essentially use a horn embouchure. They tend to be a bit stuffy, but overall not a bad performer. P.S. If you're really that worried about messing with your horn embouchure you might want to re-consider the thought of playing a brass instrument on a football field. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FHdork Posted December 23, 2009 Share Posted December 23, 2009 Check out these podcasts - which for a number of years have covered 100 different topics, most all of which relate directly (or closely...) to the mellophone. See specifically episode 15: http://www.mellocast.com/1-20.html One of the posters to this particular thread is a regular on this show - Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlanAndreasen Posted December 24, 2009 Share Posted December 24, 2009 Interesting thread. My middle child, Thomas, is a french horn player and is dead set on marching Madison Scouts. (He decided this at age 2 - Ha!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BMBob Posted December 26, 2009 Share Posted December 26, 2009 Like going from Gran Prix racing, to driving in a demolition derby. Very nicely done! The reason folks will advocate trumpet playing is due in large part to the mouthpiece - a Mellophone mouthpiece is very similar to a Mello mouthpiece. If you are able to get a good sound on a trumpet in the first hour, chances are good that you will be able to get a good sound out of a mellophone. I think this is correct. I am a horn player who marched mellophone for seven years (high school/drum corps). I think of mellophone as a variation on alto trumpet. My biggest piece of advice is to make sure that you don't try to make the mello sound like your concert horn. It's not supposed to. Make a good MELLOPHONE sound, not a bad HORN sound. That being said, I enjoy both instruments, and love mello on the field, but I have to say that I will ALWAYS be a HORN PLAYER. Good luck to you! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ussglassman Posted December 26, 2009 Share Posted December 26, 2009 May be a poor analogy but, I like to think that...Sopranos are the MEAT...Bari's are the Potatoes and Mello's are the GRAVEY that makes it all work. Just sayin........ Yeah, and Contras are the plate they all sit on (either that or the vegetables...:-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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