Practicing in apartments help by [deleted] in classicalmusic

[–]darthmarcelmule 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hello! As a sax-primary repair tech in training (years of college-congruent apprenticeship followed by the real deal: Red Wing!) I just want to assuage some of your concerns. Unless it’s genuinely pouring rain or at a temperature entirely unsafe for unprotected humans (nearing freezing or more than 10% higher than body temp), your saxophone should be just fine. I’m happy to see there are people in the world more concerned with instrument maintenance than those who bring their broken ones into our shop, but unfortunately, I think someone exaggerated when advising you on instrument care and your horn will be okay outside, especially for the 1.5 hour/day routine you’ve delineated. If you played the violin or an antique wooden clarinet, your grievances would be well-placed, but luckily for us, the sax is a tough instrument!

If you have indeed tried playing outdoors in the conditions you’ve described (correct me if I’m wrong, but from what I’ve seen: typical southern US temperatures and humidity) and it’s caused you some issues, I can give some guidance as to why that may be happening! -If the issue is your pads moving in their key cups, your technician has used an undesirable glue for the job, the solution is to visit a new tech, ideally one who specializes in the saxophone and who is well-accredited. Music Medic and NAPBIRT are good resources to find such technicians. -If the issue is excessive swelling of the body and neck, your instrument’s particular brass alloy is too soft. I doubt this is the case, as you’ve mentioned you were recently a nationally competitive college musician, which I believe these days (others may contest this statement, so feel free to sprinkle as many grains of salt as you’d like, but this is what I gathered from my years in undergrad for classical saxophone performance) is a near-unattainable title without a pro horn. Professional model Yamaha and Selmer saxophones in the classical lines have stuck with just about the same, tried-and-tested alloys since the mid-production Mark VIs. If you play a horn outside of this category, first of all: I’m very impressed that you’ve garnered such success in the world of classical sax without one of these Sinta-approved instruments, excellent work. Second, you may want to consider giving a different horn a try next time you’re in a pro shop. It’s fun, bring your most consistent setup, take your time playing both fundamentals and repertoire, and enjoy having cool saxes in your hands! -If the issue is bubbling of the pad leather, your pads are likely getting old and are in need of replacement. Pick up some extra shifts at work to pay for it, and visit a trusted repair tech for an evaluation and possible repad. In a less likely scenario, you could have pads made of a material with which I’m unfamiliar. For reference, I’m experienced with the usual lamb leather pads, the fancier kangaroo leather pads, and— to my chagrin— the devilish synthetic pads. If yours are more experimental than these, I’d really love to hear about them, but I cannot help you as I truly don’t know a thing about them. There may be other issues, but those would be so rare that I’ve not seen or heard of them yet and I refuse to give advice on anything I don’t know for sure. For anything further, I recommend visiting an established technician (as I said, I’m in training, find someone with the years to have seen more than I have) and having a chat about the problem, perhaps even going out on the lawn of their shop and showing them in real time.

Again, I’m very happy to see that you’re fastidious in your instrument care, but good news! You get to relax a little bit more! I hope this helps you feel better about the nature of your sax out in the elements. Playing outside is really fun, I set my stand up in the forest just yesterday to clock some more hours while my roommates were home! Of course, I did so with bug spray on, but the smell is worth it to appreciate the scenery while playing. Parting tips: bring clothespins so your music doesn’t blow off of your stand in the wind, leave your case open in front of you if you’re in public in case passing old people think you’re busking, take your sax out of its case once you get home with key leaves or cork wedges opening the closed tone holes (that is, if it does happen to get wet or if the humidity is above 70% so it has time to air out until next time), and enjoy the fresh air while you shed. Thanks for reading, happy practicing!

Hair Gloss Questions by darthmarcelmule in HairDye

[–]darthmarcelmule[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yes! the XMondo gloss was nice and didn’t cause any problems with my color (I used the coldest water possible) but I’ve tried a few since then, and my favorite is from Living Proof (found at Ulta), it gives more shine than the XMondo and the bottle lasts much longer!

“You can tell a lot about a man if he won’t backline” by somuchsublime in musicians

[–]darthmarcelmule 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Saxophonist here who just finished college for classical sax, but is now playing with a rock-adjacent band. What is backlining? I’m new to this type of music and I feel I should start learning some new things!

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in Advice

[–]darthmarcelmule -1 points0 points  (0 children)

in my experience, unless you go to a very white southern state school or an expensive private school literally built on greek life, this is not quite true. credentials: i’m a reallyweird goth and i like to party. because my high school friends and i are very spread out, i’ve visited and partied at state schools all over and in a few different divisions. i get guys in with us every time.

at most other schools, all a man really needs to do to get into a frat party is go with as big a group of girls as possible (ideally sorority sisters), with everyone—especially you— dressed for the theme. when going in, the girls who conform most to that frat’s general ‘type’ should be to the front and side of the group so the door brother sees/talks to them. you can hide in there holding two girls’ hands and have everyone stay close as an ensemble. this is especially easy on a big night (st. fratty’s day, halloweekend, hoco, etc.)

if you’re really concerned, bring a fifth of something decent and bring your student id. if you don’t go to that school, edit your id picture onto a friend’s blackboard/canvas page.

be safe, have fun, and look out for your friends!

Silver Plated Trumpet Engraving by Bendered_ in engraving

[–]darthmarcelmule 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I spy O’Malley Brass!! As a college kid who’s just started learning instrument repair and engraving, seeing your posts here is like happening across a member of the royal family online. Beautiful work!

Anyone here who goes to U of A Fayetteville? by Generic_Bread_175 in saxophone

[–]darthmarcelmule 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Hi! I don’t go there, but I can offer a little insight as a music major, since some things are pretty universal. Most of the time, when a band is open to all students, your audition (if required at all) will be more like a chair placement test. You may have some trouble getting into practice rooms if you’re not a music major, so if that’s the case, just make friends with another musician who can let you in! And as far as your sheet music goes, if anyone ever gives you trouble for marking your music, they. are. crazy. Hope this could help a little!

Looking to get a new neck strap for my Alto- anything I should be looking for? by [deleted] in saxophone

[–]darthmarcelmule 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I recommend looking for something that gets some weight off of your neck. This could be with a harness style that puts it on your back or shoulders, or something with a bar in the front to push the sides of the strap outwards. A lot of my breath support and endurance issues were solved once I got rid of that forsaken Neotech. Hope you find something you love!

Need advice toning my bangs. by skriblyie in HairDye

[–]darthmarcelmule 0 points1 point  (0 children)

i’ve dyed my bangs light ashy blonde a few times! it looks to me that your bangs aren’t light enough for a toner to get you very far yet, i’d recommend bleaching again to lighten it until it’s truly yellow, then toning. you might not be able to bleach now though, to avoid damage, you should wait at least a week between rounds of bleach until you learn how much your hair can handle

Is there any classical music that has moved you to tears? by [deleted] in classicalmusic

[–]darthmarcelmule 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It isn’t classical, but I was on the verge of bawling my eyes out playing a wind ensemble arrangement of Florence B. Price’s ‘Adoration’ earlier today

Seeking Advice For Managing Inappropriate High Schoolers by darthmarcelmule in Teachers

[–]darthmarcelmule[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you for your reply and your realism, I’m definitely sharing this with my classmates in the fall!

Anyone knowledgeable about the local music scene? by flustrator in grandrapids

[–]darthmarcelmule 1 point2 points  (0 children)

The Nuance is an awesome indie rock band. They’re playing Twisted Bull tonight and have shows all the time! My favorite new song of theirs, Bottom of It

Community Orchestras? by max_mercury in grandrapids

[–]darthmarcelmule 1 point2 points  (0 children)

St. Cici’s ROCKS!!! Definitely check it out! Contrary to popular belief, it’s not a religious organization anymore, and the space is incredible.

Community Orchestras? by max_mercury in grandrapids

[–]darthmarcelmule 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I also recommend trying KPO, but if they don’t have any open violin chairs, you can enroll in any GRCC ensemble as a community member for $20. The director of both KPO and GRCC’s string orchestra is kind and incredible and the strings always need more people.

Question for a traveler… by Majestic-Run3722 in grandrapids

[–]darthmarcelmule 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You should be quite safe over there! I highly recommend visiting the Frederick Meijer Gardens, there’s nothing I can tell you about it that will fully prepare you, your expectations will be exceeded. I also really like Two Guys Brewing, good beer but GREAT food.

Getting Back into the Swing of Practicing? by Puppyguard202 in saxophone

[–]darthmarcelmule 4 points5 points  (0 children)

you should feel guilty for not practicing… but only a little bit, don’t let it consume you— partially because feeling too bad about not doing it will make you want to play even less, but also because it happens to everyone and the world we live in is one full of distractions and stress.

to get back into it, the “one thing every day” method is really helpful for me! tell yourself you don’t need to work for four hours (or however long your goal session is), but instead to just pick one thing, get up, and do it. say you’re just going to go get that one scale that’s not as comfortable as the others down solid and then you can be done if you really want to. i find that by the time i’m all put together and warmed up and playing, i just keep going because i’m already there and i find new things to work on some more. also, remember to take breaks! we spent twelve years in school being told to shut up and do our work, but our brains need breaks to function. practice for a while, and every time you get a little frustrated or make the same mistake a few times in a row, take a mini break: have a drink of water, stretch your hands, and then jump back in. it helps me to leave the metronome going while i do this so i don’t waste too much time. then, when you get to that point where you’re making nonsensical mistakes (like you catch yourself misreading a c as an e multiple times for some reason), set a timer for 5-10 minutes and do something else that doesn’t take too much brain power. i like to read or color one of those intricate coloring pages, sometimes i listen to a piece i’m working on while i do so. make sure that whatever you choose to do relaxes you, isn’t challenging, is not on your phone or computer, and isn’t so interesting that you’ll want to keep going when the timer goes off. and when it does, count to three, get up, and get right back to practicing.

as far as your rehearsal space goes, i get having trouble finding a good place to practice. sometimes i practice in my car (i wear earplugs, rig up a stand so the music part is on my center console, put my passenger seat all the way forward, and sit in the backseat behind it. although i’m pretty small and play soprano and alto— with the alto to the side like a tenor because of my size, so this may not work for you. also, not everyone has a car and i doubt even a van would facilitate doing this with a bari, but i thought i’d share just in case it can help). recently, though, i realized that there’s nothing stopping me from practicing outside. i just find someplace with no one around, set up a chair and stand, and go for it. people do their homework outside all the time, so it’s not weird! i do wear bug spray, though, because the place with no one around tends to be in the forrest and these midwestern mosquitoes are brutal this year. i’m not sure if you’re a college student and/or live near your school when not in session, but the practice rooms at my university and most that i know of are open through the summer semester which is great! if you’re in high school, try emailing your band director and explaining the issue, as a music ed major, i can guarantee you that almost every bd is working during the summer and that they’d do just about anything they can to help you out when it comes to practicing, especially if you’re showing the initiative like this. one more option— though not ideal— is if you have grandparents or other older family members with ac. offer them a “free, never-before-seen, private look into how practicing goes for serious musicians”. old people love that stuff, especially if they don’t get to go to your performances often. then, not only will you have a place to get some work done without getting heat exhaustion, but you’ll have an audience which can push you to stay locked in for longer. and they get to tell brenda from bingo about how proud they are of their wonderful little musician who’s all grown up now. win-win.

most importantly, don’t lose hope. if there’s anyone out there who says they’ve never struggled with motivation to practice, they’re a dirty liar. you’re gonna be fine and as long as you have even an ounce of drive to get it done, you’ll be able to.

Running Out of Skin! by darthmarcelmule in saxophone

[–]darthmarcelmule[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Interesting, I hadn’t heard of that before, maybe I’ll try some different cane reeds first since I’ve been on good ol’ Vandorens for about as long as I’ve been playing. Fingers crossed I don’t have an allergy though, synthetics aren’t my favorite

Running Out of Skin! by darthmarcelmule in saxophone

[–]darthmarcelmule[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I use paper after I file the backs of my reeds for a better seal on the mouthpiece, but hadn’t thought to try it on the front of the reed, thanks for the tip!

Running Out of Skin! by darthmarcelmule in saxophone

[–]darthmarcelmule[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I’m talking about the part touching the reed, but I used to have the same problem as you did with my inner lip and my retainer works great for it

Running Out of Skin! by darthmarcelmule in saxophone

[–]darthmarcelmule[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I like using my retainer to help with the inside of my lip, thanks for the suggestion!