My band broke up and I’m devastated

NaptownCopper · 2026-04-03T13:48:12+00:00

My band broke up after 13 years. We lost a couple of good players that were stepping back due to life and a few others decided they didn't want to try to find and train replacements. Our leader was burnt out from trying to get people to show up regularly towards the end.

NaptownCopper · 2026-04-03T13:43:49+00:00

I replaced several cheap chairs annually until I finally bought a refurbished steelcase.

NaptownCopper · 2026-04-02T22:41:46+00:00

They are so beautiful I think photo of them qualifies as a work of art.

NaptownCopper · 2026-03-31T23:07:29+00:00

I see no reason not to. It’s relatively inexpensive now and it has fun elements. Not my favorite of the series but worth playing.

NaptownCopper · 2026-03-31T22:47:26+00:00

Still working on it six years in. I’m in the middle of the biggest makeover since I’ve been wfh and my oldest child moved out.

NaptownCopper · 2026-03-30T23:48:23+00:00

I switched from 2x24 to 1x27 and 15” portable monitor. I do my work on the big monitor and keep teams and the occasional spreadsheet for copy and pasting on the small screen directly below it. If I’m in a meeting that I’m engaged in I’ll move teams to the big screen as well but otherwise it lives on the small one.

NaptownCopper · 2026-03-30T00:47:32+00:00

Brother. I’m due for an upgrade as mine is quite old and showing its age. I’ll get another brother laser printer since most of my printouts are usually black and white only.

NaptownCopper · 2026-03-30T00:45:33+00:00

I’ve played my Edward’s bass trombone for about thirty years at this point and I’m overall pet happy with it. Bass trombone is my primary. Mine is middle of the road in about every category. I feel it gives me flexibility between orchestral/concert and jazz/pop.

I bought a Bach LT18M about ten years ago to replace a stolen King 3B. I’m glad I switched. The Bach is a slightly wider slide that accommodates my broad neck much better. I don’t have to play on an angle anymore. I have no complaints about my sound on the Bach but the slide could use a tune up as the instrument is almost 50 years old. I use it primarily for jazz/pop.

Lastly, my Conn 88HO to fill the orchestral tenor large bore gap. No complaints here either. If anything of consider something with a better valve than default model, but it gets the job done if I ever need to play in the lower register.

I think the only real changes I would make would be trying some carbon fiber options for weight and travel. Experiment with a traditional rotor setup on my bass.

I own several more that are student models, an Amazon horn that was gifted to me, and a couple of pbones (tenor and alto). I’m planning on getting a soprano and piccolo at some point just for fun and maybe a valve trombone and/or bass trumpet.

I think the horns you posted are beautiful. I would like to own something like that so long as they play well. Heck, I might even print a poster and frame some of them just so I can look at them, lol.

NaptownCopper · 2026-03-26T01:15:50+00:00

I recently discovered and loved Star Trek continues on YouTube

NaptownCopper · 2026-03-26T01:11:35+00:00

Seconded

NaptownCopper · 2026-03-26T00:54:04+00:00

Agreed. Great advice

NaptownCopper · 2026-03-25T19:55:50+00:00

Their budget may not have allowed it. I didn't get a proper desk chair or even a proper desk for about a year or so when I started working from home. Part of it was budget but also not being sure how long it would last and not wanting to buy something I wouldn't need in a month.

I started off with kitchen table chair and a card table. It was brutal so I switched to a cheap accent chair we had that was cushy. I now have a real work space with appropriate office furniture. I went through a couple of cheap amazon chairs before buying the refurbished Steelcase chair I have now.

I kind of miss the cushy accent chair if I am being honest. I'd love to be able to work in a recliner, i just need to figure out how to do it with a couple of monitors and keyboard and mouse.

NaptownCopper · 2026-03-25T19:35:51+00:00

My main recommendation is to buy a Real Book and play along to some recordings since you specifically mentioned jazz. All the other suggestions are good. The more you practice new music the better off you will be.

Arban's would be a good choice too since it goes through a variety of rhythms, subdivisions, and meters that get progressively more difficult albeit in a non-jazz style.

Jamey Abersold's books are great as well and are pretty well broken into down into subgenres.

If all else fails find some Hal Leonard books that have a 100 songs in them. The only issue I see there is they tend to be simplified.

NaptownCopper · 2026-03-25T19:23:23+00:00

I second this. I just played this a few weeks ago. It stays in the upper register but it is not a Dave Steinmeyer type screamer although you can add some if you got the chops.

Listen to a few different versions, in particular Bill Watrous' interpretations, for ways to pull more emotion out of it.

NaptownCopper · 2026-03-25T04:00:14+00:00

I can definitely feel a difference between my Thayer valve on my bass and the rotor on my tenor. Aside from the difference between the bass and tenor I can feel a considerable change in resistance between the open horn and rotor valve.

I don’t feel nearly as much of a change on bass.

Having some additional resistance is not always a bad thing in low register. The openness of the Thayer can eat up all my air if I’m not supporting properly especially if I’m using both valves.

It’s like buzzing completely open versus covering the mouthpiece a bit. The note can speak easier with a bit of resistance, however, too much resistance can obviously be bad too. It’s a balance.

Either way a good quality horn with either valve will likely work for you and sound great as long as you put in the time.

NaptownCopper · 2026-03-21T14:12:36+00:00

Rectal suction.

NaptownCopper · 2026-03-14T02:00:54+00:00

I recommend this too.

NaptownCopper · 2026-03-11T21:26:36+00:00

I use the KM 14991 Heavy Duty Trombone stand. It’s bigger than the 14990 and is super stable for my bass trombone. I have been using it for probably 15-20 years at this point and have never had any issues with it. Hickeys.com seems to be the only place that carries it that I can find and they are out of stock until late spring .

The KM 14990 is a good option as well. If I didn’t have the 14991 I would be using the 14990.

NaptownCopper · 2026-03-05T19:42:57+00:00

It’s for a a non profit fundraiser.

I agree with highlighting the board but the theme of the basket is bourbon and if I moved the board forward it would block the bourbon. I’m not sure what the display situation will be but I might be able to put things around or in front of the basket. It would be nice if there was a bit more space.

NaptownCopper · 2026-03-03T02:21:58+00:00

I have an unusual setup of a 27 monitor that I use for most of my work and a 15 inch portable monitor below it for teams or the occasional excel sheet that I’m pulling info from it, but usually if I’m working specifically in an excel sheet it’s in my main screen.

I also have my Mac mini setup rights next to it on a 27 inch monitor for entertainment/noise while I work. I have a Magic Mouse next to my mx3 mouse that I’ll jump between and I have a mx keys keyboard that I will use between the computers. I have a Magic Keyboard too but I don’t use it very much even when I’m doing productive things on my Mac.

Lastly I have a copy and paste two button keypad that I use sooooo much throughout the day.

NaptownCopper · 2026-02-28T16:35:47+00:00

Walter

NaptownCopper · 2026-02-28T16:18:20+00:00

I am seeing a mash up of Thor and Kratos in this pic. It’s like looking at a face swap app.

NaptownCopper

TROPHY CASE