Graduation typically means ordering an over-priced cap and gown, long ceremonies with longer speeches, open house celebrations, and more pictures than you may ever want to take. Thankfully musicians can enjoy a more pertinent graduation in the form of the Graduate to Yamaha promotion!
“To be the next great inventor of something we haven’t dreamed of yet, you need to have creative skills. Music really fosters those creative skills.”
We have all either seen, been, or wanted to be the person who has all of those little gadgets and gizmos plastered on to their trumpet. The cool leather valve guard… The hair tie to secure your 3rdvalve slide… The mouthpiece receiver-hugging BERP… All of these items, and many more, have amazing benefits and should be used to their full potential. However, let’s think for a second about how these additions may be affecting the sound of your instrument.
Every once in a while, we get in repairs that we just have to share. We recently had a trumpet brought in that the customer thought was possibly “beyond repair”. But we assured them that our shop has performed many “miracles” in the past and they might be surprised what we can do. Here is their review after receiving the instrument back…
“Music education opens doors that help children pass from school into the world around them – a world of work, culture, intellectual activity, and human involvement. The future of our nation depends on providing our children with a complete education that includes music.”
Here are some kids we talked to a few years ago from Noblesville. They gave some great insight on what it means to be a part of the band or orchestra at school!
Finding your next instrument can be a daunting task if you don’t have a game plan. The market is filled with a plethora of options, and sometimes it can be difficult to see the forest through the trees.From my time at Paige’s Music and my experience as a player, I can provide my thought process, and hopefully it will help with your future instrument selection.
Start by playing on your instrument.
Always, always, always limit the variables. Bring your current instrument and mouthpiece as well as familiar music. Warm up on your instrument and take note of how it sounds in the space around you. You need to have a control for the experiment, and your current instrument will provide that. Take out uncertainties like unfamiliar music, unfamiliar mouthpieces, and etc.
Being in your school band or orchestra is about more than just making music. Listen to how these students from Creekside Middle School describe their experience so far!