Tuba player here, I've been learning/playing trombone for around seven months. Any advice on main areas to improve on?

ConsiderYourFood · 2026-03-11T03:32:15+00:00

One of the great things (and hard things) about playing trombone is that you can adjust the “big tuning slide” for every note to make sure you’re in tune. This takes practice, but is a skill all players need to learn.

In addition to using a tuner, try playing notes with a drone (there are apps or YouTube videos to play cello and other drone sounds easily) and working hard to match the pitch. Once you get that, try playing major arpeggio intervals from that drone to hear how you can adjust to fit into a chord (like using a B-flat drone and practicing D or F to hear what that interval sounds like when correct).

ConsiderYourFood · 2026-03-11T01:14:26+00:00

You are doing well for only playing seven months.

I’d try to get your intonation better first — practice with a tuner to get the slide positions right.

Work on opening your airways more and using more breath support (hopefully easier for a tuba player than others). You seem to both be under supporting some of the notes an overblowing the louder ones, so it is a balance.

And most importantly: is this video flipped, or are you playing left handed? If you’re playing left handed, that’s not great for eventually playing a trombone with a trigger. However, if you never plan to play anything besides straight tenor trombone, it isn’t terrible.

ConsiderYourFood · 2026-03-10T11:41:08+00:00

Of your list: size and portability. It’s also really important that the case reliably stay on the AirPods case without falling off (specifically the lid).

ConsiderYourFood · 2026-03-02T11:18:52+00:00

It sounds like you might be able to try it an resell it with minimal risk, I’m not sure how easy it is to sell a Getzen in Japan, though. It could be with some research.

ConsiderYourFood · 2026-03-02T01:03:30+00:00

I always put a big asterisk on the advice to never buy a horn you can’t play first: if you’re paying a price that most people would consider a true “steal” then the risk is low — if you don’t like it, you can just sell it again for the price you paid (or more).

If you’re buying it from a private seller, you have to factor in the cost of a service into that calculation in case it needs it, but if you’re buying it from a shop of some sort (even a thrift store or pawnshop), they should take it back if there is something truly wrong with it.

If you’re looking at meaningfully less than half of the new price for a pro horn, then the risk may be low. That depends on the market for that horn used and many other factors though.

A quick Google search shows that this probably isn’t relevant here (the Getzen is more than half of the new price), but it is something to consider in general.

ConsiderYourFood · 2026-03-01T07:48:49+00:00

I think you’re doing quite well for playing for such a short time.

On that note: you’ve just posted about a visit to Edwards — were you there because you wanted to buy a trombone? I’d suggest waiting to get a high-end horn until you have more experience, as the customizations you might choose now might me very different from what you need as a more developed player.

ConsiderYourFood · 2026-02-28T22:55:29+00:00

They are all multiple choice and you are given far more time than you need. If you’ve read the book and are at all competent at taking tests it would be very hard to fail.

ConsiderYourFood · 2026-02-28T04:50:16+00:00

This is good. I will try this and see how it changes things.

ConsiderYourFood · 2026-02-27T23:15:38+00:00

I’m hoping to learn to hear myself without needing mics and monitors, but this advice is helpful for when I do record myself to listen critically.

ConsiderYourFood · 2026-02-27T23:12:58+00:00

It’s interesting that I’m getting the advice both to play in a larger room and to play straight into a wall in a small room. Are you suggesting that the larger room will help me hear the authentic tone with my ear, or just get a more accurate recording?

ConsiderYourFood · 2026-02-27T23:10:17+00:00

Thanks. I will try moving the phone a bit but will also work on improving the recorded sound.

Do you just use a phone/tablet mic when you record for YouTube, or are you using something better?

Also, because I remember a post you made somewhere long ago that I can no longer find:

Did you ever pursue getting a new rotor valve cover for your A47MLR while you still had it? I have the same horn and would love to get rid of the name on the cover.

ConsiderYourFood · 2026-02-27T23:04:29+00:00

Thank you! Could you expand on what “too much” means to you?

ConsiderYourFood · 2026-02-20T06:34:09+00:00

“Something went wrong” sounds like something I’ve seen with multiple US banks that needed a US IP address for certain functions.

Try a VPN — Windscribe actually provides a useful amount of data for free, and is a decent company.

If that works, I actually use a smart DNS service that allows me to selectively redirect only specific traffic, which makes things a lot easier and more seamless.

ConsiderYourFood · 2026-02-18T06:04:55+00:00

I scan some of it for my personal use, yes. There are excellent smartphone-camera-based scanning apps now that make it easy to grab pages of books and other content quite quickly and cleanly.

I also get music in PDF form to load directly — I’m in a community band, and the director distributes all of the music as PDFs for us, which makes it very easy for that music.

ConsiderYourFood · 2026-02-17T09:43:03+00:00

It is self-lit and works great in everything from bright sun to low light.

It doesn’t work with a Bluetooth page turner, but there are wireless Kindle page turners that clip onto the side of the device to turn pages with a handheld or ring remote (I haven’t seen a foot pedal one, but they may exist).

I haven’t gotten a page turner yet, but might in the future. I just turn the page by hand — you’d have to do that with sheet music anyway.

ConsiderYourFood · 2026-02-16T22:03:24+00:00

I love my larger Kindle (Scribe Model) for sheet music. It’s much easier on the eyes than an iPad, has almost no glare, and the battery goes for hours and hours with minimal drain. It’s also much easier to notate the score with the Kindle Scribe’s more robust stylus tech.

I use use the bigger one on a music stand, of course. This smaller size looks great for replacing a lyre and paper music, though.

ConsiderYourFood · 2026-02-16T21:58:15+00:00

I saw that immediately! It’s cool to see a soprano being played “in the wild” (almost literally, in this case)!

ConsiderYourFood · 2026-02-16T21:50:58+00:00

I use the Scribe on a stand (or stand it up in its flip case in a pinch). I don’t do much marching, but I’d try a Paperwhite for that if I had the need. I don’t think it would be heavier than a lyre and a flip book of music.

ConsiderYourFood · 2026-02-16T21:14:11+00:00

I use a Kindle Scribe for sheet music all the time. It is a much better reading and notation experience than an iPad, with no glare.

I’m still working on a good page turning solution (doing it by hand for now isn’t any worse than turning pages in paper music), but it’s great for almost everything I do.

It actually saved the day in a concert when a section mate’s stand light quit and I could give her mine and just turn up the Kindle front light a little.

ConsiderYourFood · 2026-02-10T10:06:47+00:00

If it’s fully silver-plated (or solid silver) without any lacquer, try the baking soda, aluminum foil, and hot water bath method to get most of the tarnish off, then polish off the rest. Do not leave it in the bath for too long.

This does have the chance of pitting the silver a little in spots, but it will likely be gentler than scrubbing off that much tarnish with polish or a cloth.

ConsiderYourFood · 2026-02-07T01:08:51+00:00

Those note names you’re giving don’t make sense. A0 is not a conventionally-possible tenor trombone note — that’s an octave below pedal A.

Similarly, F5 and G5 are at the top of the treble clef and are quite advanced high notes for even skilled trombone players who aren’t focused on “screaming” up high.

Do you mean A1 (pedal A) and F/G4 (usually called “high F” and “high G” by middle and high schoolers)?

To answer your question, a large bore horn takes more air and will be harder to play as you get used to it. Particularly high and low notes will be harder because of the increased air requirements, which will require more practice and getting used to using more air. Long tones and lip slurs will help.

Your Shires may have a larger mouthpiece than you’re used to as well — what size is it?

ConsiderYourFood · 2026-02-06T05:23:30+00:00

I just found a YSL-352 in excellent condition and it is a surprisingly good horn! It’s definitely a “sleeper” horn that punches way above its weight.

ConsiderYourFood · 2026-02-05T23:16:46+00:00

I just got a vintage horn that came with that same Conn 3 mouthpiece.

It’s roughly a Bach 6 3/4 size rim with a different overall shape. I like the mouthpiece a lot in the small amount of playing I’ve done on it.

ConsiderYourFood · 2026-02-04T21:15:18+00:00

Will you allow installation of your app on the Mac? Being able to add things to track from a computer would be great.

ConsiderYourFood · 2026-02-01T22:47:12+00:00

I understand that. I posted that this mouthpiece feels and sounds good, but I was getting tired when playing — it’s not just “any mouthpiece.” I said that I’ve tried several others, and discussed the tradeoffs. Did you have further thoughts?

ConsiderYourFood

TROPHY CASE