WTB: Student Trombone

ai698 · Post by **ai698** » Fri Dec 15, 2006 12:04 am

Just a little off topic. My daughter has decided (at my leading of the witness) to play trombone next year. I'm looking for a decent trombone for her to start on. Anyone have one that they're willing to part with?

Alex F · Post by **Alex F** » Fri Dec 15, 2006 12:09 am

Steve,

Check the ads at www.tromboneforum.org. Look for a used Yamaha YSL-354 or a King 606. Great student horns and widely available used. Also check the used 'bones at Dillon Music.

ai698 · Post by **ai698** » Fri Dec 15, 2006 12:39 am

Thanks, it's a little hard to weed through the trombone lingo (we have such a superior forum). I'm also looking for a good double french horn for my son. I know finding a good trombone for around $100-150 will be easy, but find a good french horn that will last him up to college will be more difficult.

Alex F · Post by **Alex F** » Fri Dec 15, 2006 1:52 pm

Any quality .500 - .508 bore tenor trombone should be fine. An F attachment is not required and a waste of time for a beginner. The Yamaha YSL-354 is great as are a number of horns made by King, Bach and others. A good number of pros keep a 354 around as a backup/jazz horn.

Used bones are widely available. The key thing to watch for is that it has a good slide. That's why I would recommend dealing with a place like Dillon's, BBC, or Hornguys.

That applies more so to horns, which are a bit more complicated. You might get a decent one from Heave-Bay but . . .

MartyNeilan · Post by **MartyNeilan** » Sat Dec 16, 2006 1:14 am

I just ordered this for my son to learn on (and really for me to goof on). He is totally obsessed with the color red, and I even ordered a crystal red Kelly 12c to go with it. BBC says the slide is decent, and the few people that have picked up this horn have sounded good on it. If it ever leaves the house I will put it in my Gig brand bag that I dent my bass trombone in.

quinterbourne · Post by **quinterbourne** » Sat Dec 16, 2006 1:47 am

I just wanted to add on to the comment about not getting an F attachment. I find trombone one of the most awkward instruments to hold... almost as awkward as bassoon, but keep in mind bassoonists use two straps to hold the weight of their bassoon.

That being said, smaller children have a very difficult time holding the trombone. I teach at a Summer music festival and I've had beginning kids about 10-12 years old on trombone and it seems as though manufacturers of student trombones have them geared more towards highschool students (15 year olds).

One thing you should be looking for is an instrument that is very easy for your daughter to hold. Obviously you don't want an F attachment, but you should also look at weight as well as the general layout of the instrument.

One of the biggest problems is that younger children do not have large enough hands to hold the instrument properly. I'm talking specifically about the left hand. The left hand is usually stretched beyond reason and is extremely tense. The student will then often use the right hand to help balance the weight of the trombone... which is a very bad habit to develop at such an early stage.

Tubageek · Post by **Tubageek** » Sat Dec 16, 2006 12:05 pm

I have a student trombone, a trombone with F attachment, and a double french horn for sale. Here's a link for further information:

http://banddoctor.promessage.com/instruments.html

Feel free to e-mail me with any questions you might have.

Scott

MaryAnn · Post by **MaryAnn** » Thu Dec 21, 2006 3:55 pm

I am the size of a lot of grade school kids (5'3", 100 #) and I fully understand the trombone problem. My right arm is not long enough to reach 7th position, either.

What I do, and frankly I don't see a problem with it:
1. I hold the bone with the fist of my left hand; no pointing that index finger upwards. It keeps my pro-level violin left hand still functional for its violin purpose. I have no need of using the right hand to help balance the bone, and the fist is plenty strong enough to hold it in place. If people don't like how it looks...well, too bad. If she gets big enough so that she can use her left hand "properly" it won't be that big a deal to change it.

2. for 7th position, I use the advice I got from Doug Yeo, which is to aim the bone off to the right, which allows more length for my right arm to reach out for that 7th position. Yeah I have to play with my head pointed to the right a little bit, but that's better than not having 7th position.

What works for me, should work for any other small person. I haven't tried to play one with an F attachement on it, yet.

MA