New Video, Cerveny 4 valve Bass Bone in F

[MackBrass]

This is a horn I picked up about a year ago but have not had a chance to really play it until tonight. Big reason for this was the mouthpiece it came with, it was a small medium shank bass bone mouthpiece and it was just too small for me. I had a custom combination of the DE parts put together and now I feel like i have a horn that actually works. This is a great bass bone alternative for the tuba player like me who just doesn't was to develope slide technique. Being in the key of F makes for a fun horn, a 5th valve would be nice but not needed for now.

Would have made the video in the recital hall but it was closed tonight so the small stairwell worked out, also it hides my mistakes better.

Video
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2MVnHAUQ ... e=youtu.be" target="_blank

[MackBrass]

Tom,
I don't want to make an *** of myself here, I just haven’t watched that many of your videos.
What I want to comment on is the excellent recording equipment / acoustics shown on that video.
If you don't already, you should record everything in that room with that same microphone.
As to the trombone, I thought it would sound darker, but it sounds very good to me none the less.

PS I just re read your post........NO THAT STAIRWAY IS HIDEING NOTHING...........that's why I like it.
Keep up the good work !

Thanks, the recording equipment I use is a Zoom Q3 video recorder set with the mic gain on high, then I use the Zoom H1 as the mic set between 40 and 45 on the mic gain. The hall I usually use is nicer but playing in a stairwell reminded me of my college days when there was no practice room available.

[Bob Kolada]

Cool horn, thanks for posting! That's the first full on video I've seen of one. They look more compact than I thought.

Josef Klier makes bass, and possibly contrabass, trombone mouthpieces in medium shank. The bass ones get pretty big and have a bunch of different depths. I have a similar, though wildly different looking, horn and find contra mouthpieces to work best.

[MackBrass]

Cool horn, thanks for posting! That's the first full on video I've seen of one. They look more compact than I thought.

Josef Klier makes bass, and possibly contrabass, trombone mouthpieces in medium shank. The bass ones get pretty big and have a bunch of different depths. I have a similar, though wildly different looking, horn and find contra mouthpieces to work best.

Doug Elliott hooked me up with exactly what fit the horn and me.

[Mark]

It looks really front heavy. How is the weight balanced? Is it hard to hold for long periods of time?

[The Big Ben]

Is the trombone in the video this instrument?

http://www.cerveny.biz/ventilposaune/cvt_576_4.php" target="_blank

[MackBrass]

It looks really front heavy. How is the weight balanced? Is it hard to hold for long periods of time?

Yes, is heavy and after about 40 minutes of playing it last night I am feeling the pain today. One thing I noticed is sustaining the upper register was much more difficult than a regular F tuba, I blew my chops out withing 15 minutes playing some Berlioz on it thinking that I would just record something I already new.

Is the trombone in the video this instrument?

http://www.cerveny.biz/ventilposaune/cvt_576_4.php" target="_blank" target="_blank

That is the same horn. I think mine needs something to help support it. Also, standing and playing while holding was difficult for getting good breaths, the last note of the piece is only a low FF, that note by itself is one full breath and as you can hear it did not last long.

Regards,

[Conn 2J CC]

Tom - I was thinking the same thing as Ian. Try using an ErgoBrass Trombone stand with it. I use one with our Bass Trombone, since I had to have my left rotator cuff completely sewn up in 2006. It helps me a lot. And nice video - thanks for posting it. Enjoy your horn.

[The Big Ben]

It appears that if this horn was bent 90 deg. just behind the valves, it would be called a cimbasso. Other than the configuration, how is this different from the typical cimbasso? It really would seem to be easier to use this instrument if it could have a pogo stick like the cimbassos I've seen.

[Ace]

Good playing, Tom. Interesting post.

I played one of those bass trombones for about 10 years and made quite a bit of money doing it. The work venue usually was in local Catholic churches wherein the orchestra and large chorus performed sacred works such as masses, oratorios, requiems, etc. That horn gave me pains in my back because of the frontal weight. I had to devise a hook to hang the front of the main tuning slide from the lip of the music stand. It worked fine. The timbre you produce on your recording is pleasant but markedly different from what I preferred on my horn. The horn is cylindrical, and I wanted my sound to be more trombonish with good but dark projection. To achieve this I used only Schilke 57's and 58's with shaved shanks to fit the mouthpiece receiver. At 77, I no longer am strong enough the play that horn. It's a heavy beast that requires an almost unlimited air supply. I remember the four rotary valves were really smooth, quiet and reliable. All in all, it's an excellent well-made horn.

Ace

[MackBrass]

It appears that if this horn was bent 90 deg. just behind the valves, it would be called a cimbasso. Other than the configuration, how is this different from the typical cimbasso? It really would seem to be easier to use this instrument if it could have a pogo stick like the cimbassos I've seen.

It is something I have been thinking about.

Tom - I was thinking the same thing as Ian. Try using an ErgoBrass Trombone stand with it. I use one with our Bass Trombone, since I had to have my left rotator cuff completely sewn up in 2006. It helps me a lot. And nice video - thanks for posting it. Enjoy your horn.

I just checked out the ErgoBrass site and that does look cool. I do know that to play one of these for any length of time, it will need something.

[MackBrass]

Good playing, Tom. Interesting post.

I played one of those bass trombones for about 10 years and made quite a bit of money doing it. The work venue usually was in local Catholic churches wherein the orchestra and large chorus performed sacred works such as masses, oratorios, requiems, etc. That horn gave me pains in my back because of the frontal weight. I had to devise a hook to hang the front of the main tuning slide from the lip of the music stand. It worked fine. The timbre you produce on your recording is pleasant but markedly different from what I preferred on my horn. The horn is cylindrical, and I wanted my sound to be more trombonish with good but dark projection. To achieve this I used only Schilke 57's and 58's with shaved shanks to fit the mouthpiece receiver. At 77, I no longer am strong enough the play that horn. It's a heavy beast that requires an almost unlimited air supply. I remember the four rotary valves were really smooth, quiet and reliable. All in all, it's an excellent well-made horn.

Ace

I could note imagine playing one of these for that long without altering it somehow and you are right, in the low reg, it is an air hog. I mentioned in an earlier post, the last note I played in the video was one full breath and it only lasted about 4 seconds.

[Bob Kolada]

Fwiw, Cerveny also has these bent and with five valves (big upcharge for both) and a bigger bore F. Dillon's used to have all of them but isn't listing then anymore.

[MackBrass]

Not to diminish the player's chops at all, because it takes a lot to play these contraptions and make music, but the DE mpc really seems to do the trick. Finding a friendly modern fit for that horn has to be pretty challenging.

I do understand what Ace is saying, too. The context of sound has be the right match. He also mentions hanging the horn off the music stand. That's exactly what I saw in Germany about 25-30 years ago. A player had a specially adapted stand to use with one of these. At the time, I thought the same thing could be achieved with a trombone stand base and a hook adapted to replace the rubber cap at the top of the stand. It would be independently adjustable for the music stand. For me, that would be preferable...

You gave me a great idea about a support stand. I have an older adjustable crutch from having knee surgery that fits nicely on a trumpet stand and the width of the crutch at the top matches the width of the main tunning slide. I am going to try to fit it to the horn for better support.

Regards,

Tom

[MackBrass]

I
I am going to post another video with the new support device this weekend.