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Does anyone have a problem with the CD? I'm looking at investing in it, but as you know, funds are tight everywhere, and I have other things I could spend my $90 on. Any clarity issues or dirty parts?

If I had $90 to spend on excerpt books/media, I would hold onto it and save up to buy The Great Big Book of Tuba Excerpts. More comprehensive, already printed out, etc. Those are my preferences, though.

I'm looking at making my way into the digital age - thinking about using a Kindle or maybe an iPad (if I can every find an excuse to spend that much money) as a sheet music library for my practicing. I want as many excerpts as I can get for the money, but I really, really don't want to scan all of them into PDFs once I get it.

Which brings up another point: someone with some software writing skills should develop an app for iPad that mirrors the Smartmusic program. Think about it: something that could show the music on the screen, automatically follow your progression through excerpts and solos, turn pages automatically, and maybe even play accompaniment along with the instrumentalist. (this paragraph is now copy-written by me, so when you write the app, send me my royalties!)

Mojo workin' wrote:I would hold onto it and save up to buy The Great Big Book of Tuba Excerpts. More comprehensive, already printed out, etc.

Obviously not what the OP is looking, but that has been by far the best investment in orchestral excerpts I have made. It is so handy having the music already printed and bound to play - and it is even more comprehensive - I use my virtually daily.

Although I earlier got the Cherry CD, nowadays I only use very occasionally - mostly to check a part when at my PC.

Homerun wrote:Does anyone have a problem with the CD? I'm looking at investing in it, but as you know, funds are tight everywhere, and I have other things I could spend my $90 on. Any clarity issues or dirty parts?

You did not say if you were a student majoring in music. If you are and you want an extensive collection of orchestral parts the Cherry CD is a great choice. Lots of important parts are included. It's not all you will need but it is a great start.

However, if you are not a student and it's more of a hobby and if money is an issue, there are other avenues. You could order ("cherry pick," if you will) parts from Kalmus and choose which music you want for a lot less money initially. You might even copy the parts out of the scores. That's where I got my first Mahler parts, it will give you a better insight into the the music, too.

A book of excerpts is nice but a serious student will need to own the complete parts eventually.

There is also "the orchestra musician's cd-rom library" that has the full parts for all lower brass as a group (1,2,3 tromb, tuba, and other low brass if scored) 12cds in total organized by groups of composers but each cd is about $20 a pop. There are also equivalent sets for the unimportant instruments (strings, clarinets, oboes, etc).

toobaa wrote: There are also equivalent sets for the unimportant instruments (strings, clarinets, oboes, etc).

Loved reading that!

Thanks to everyone for the info so far. To respond to a few:

I am no longer a student, though in the future I will be persuing a Masters in the future. I am with the Navy Band Southeast in Jacksonville, FL, and am somewhat embarrassed to say that I have a very small collection of parts already. (I do have some of the key essentials, but never invested in collections, and once you join a military band, there isn't a ton of Mahler and Berlioz to play) I have a few criteria: must be the full part, want to get as many different works as possible, would like to have all low brass parts, want to spend as little as possible (who doesn't?) and would prefer to be on CD. It looks as though the orchestra musician's cd-rom library would fit the bill, except I would have to pick and choose composer sets and work my way to purchasing all 12 CDs. Any other thoughts?

Homerun wrote:It looks as though the orchestra musician's cd-rom library would fit the bill, except I would have to pick and choose composer sets and work my way to purchasing all 12 CDs. Any other thoughts?

The Cherry CD has all of the trombone, tenor tuba and tuba parts as well.

Howdy,
I've owned the CD for almost 10 years and have found it VERY useful. I actually prefer the CD as opposed to an actual book for several reasons:
1.) You get the parts for the entire low brass section. This really helps compare your part to others in your section.
2.) You can print out what you need. Instead of carrying a complete book, you can print a few excerpts and never worry about a.) carrying around stuff you don't need, and b.) dirtying up an original or your only copy.
3.) In teaching situations, It's easier to print off a few pages from home than copy pages out of a bound book IMO.
4.) As far as durability is concerned, you can back up your copy on an external hard drive and never worry about wearing out your copy.
5.) Updates are sent out every so often. When music becomes public domain, you get updates which are usually pretty extensive.**

Hope this helps!
-CT

**For some reason, I've never automatically received ANY updates. What I've done in the past is contacted their website with whatever information they need and they send me a file or link to update my collection. Even though this is a little frustrating, the above reasons (again, IMO) outweigh this one small negative.