tips on making a cheap mute

[elimia]

I have upstairs neighbors now who's idea of music is the latest P-dippywad album (or whatever rap garbage they listen to). I have a Humes and Berg practice mute in but it still causes lots of childish stomping. I have agreed to practice between 7-8:30 but these people are schumcks. They just are pricks. I kind of need to resolve this as they get up early for work (5:30 a.m.) and have made a point occasionally to walk around a little too loud and wake us up if the playing is too loud.

I would love a Silent Brass system doohickie for euphonium but can't afford to shell out $150. My Humes and Berg mute isn't working. Sound I just go ahead and exile myself to the year-round cold cellar and pin up a blanket in the little storage room? That would be big enough to practice in, I would just be perpertually flat, and during the low single digit Pittsburgh winters, REALLY flat. I'm tired of playing pianissimo muted.

Any tips for a cheap silent euphonium mute practice or a used $20 silent brass system for sale. Saving up a security deposit/first month rent is quickly looking appealing for another apt, but I could encounter uncultured idiots just about anywhere these days. We have to do the apt. thing for another 3-4 yrs as we are not staying in Pittsburgh and buying a house.

Man I miss my old neighbor, who never had the first issue with the playing and was so nice.

Sigh...

[windshieldbug]

I found that using a modified (with scissors) Kentucy Fried Chichen bucket worked fine (really!) And I worked up the nerve to ask, and got one previously unused (without grease!).

You'll never have the bad luck a principal trombone player I played with had. He was doing Mahler excerpts, and heard a bang! above him and then a thud. The guy above him was having a bad day, took too many of the wrong kind of illegal substances, and offed himself. I never had the nerve to ask him if trombone players consider that a successful practice...

[Joe Baker]

First of all, I would be cautious about assuming that anyone who doesn't want to listen to low-brass practice -- EVERY DAY -- is deficient in "nice-ness". When you make sounds that are audible in someone else's home -- and make them for an hour and a half every day, during their after-work unwind time -- I think it perfectly reasonable that they demand you stop (and they obviously CAN hear you, or they wouldn't be stomping on the floor/ceiling). Now, playing rap music where YOU can hear it, THAT's also a problem -- one you'll be in a much better position to deal with when you aren't creating your own objectionable (to them) sound problem.

But why should the basement have to be so cold? Build yourself a little "cell" down there and drag a space heater in with you. If you always practice 7-8:30, get a timer to turn on the heater at 6:30 and turn it off at 8:45. You'll have a nice roasty-toasty area to practice in, without disturbing the neighbors. Or start putting $20 a month into a "silent brass" account -- you'll have your silent brass before the first frost next winter.

FWIW, I don't know that I'd be any more tolerant than your neighbors are, and I LOVE hearing good low brass -- I just want to decide WHEN I hear it!
________________________________
Joe Baker, who will take a crappy house over a nice apartment for JUST this reason!

[Biggs]

Sound I just go ahead and exile myself to the year-round cold cellar and pin up a blanket in the little storage room?

Yes, by all means! Although I can't speak for your situation, I know from experience that practicing in the basement is actually one of the best possible set-ups (for me anyway...). Just leave your horn upstairs to keep it at room temperature (so that you don't have to warm up a cold instrument) and descend into the basement whenever you need to. There's zero distractions and decent acoustics.

[tubeast]

Elimia,
that sure is an uncomfortable situation. In Germany, we have the right to play a musical instrument for a certain time each day, provided by law.
There may be further options, though. I, for example, can use the community band practise room whenever I choose to, (like, say, from 11:30 pm till 2 am) and have the benefits of large room acoustics. It´s not used at all except for lessons and band practise.
A little chat with the high-school band director down the road may result in a gentleman-agreement: trade in practise time in band room against occasional low-brass section sessions.
At one time I just asked the priest of the catholic church down the road (catholic churches are open all day over here) if he´d mind me practising IN CHURCH. It was fine with him as long as I took a break when people came to pray. So I went there every night for two hours. I did volunteer to play on the service of first communion that year, of course.
Just use your imagination. There are lots of friendly people out there who are glad to help if it doesn´t require their effort or money.

Hans

[elimia]

I should qualify. I only practice for about 45 m - 1 hr, but I do it somewhere between 7:30-9:00. And only about 3 times a week, with 1 of those coming on Saturdays.

I think I'll just go down to the creepy basement storage room and hope the roaches and mice are bigger fans!

[Carroll]

Most practice mutes differ from regular mutes in that the corks go all the way around (rather than just three spots) and this "seals" the bell much more effectively. Most of these mutes also have a very small vent hole to let some air pressure escape. You could experiment with removable (Velcro(TM), double faced tape, etc.) ways to attach the cork ring to your mute and sse if it helps.

[elimia]

the Humes and Berg practice mute isn't ringed by cork but a dense layer of foam. It's pretty good but I need something even quieter.

I moved into the basement storage room w/ the practice mute tonight and it worked ok. A little spooky though. I have one of those basements in my apt. that looks like they could have used in Silence of the Lambs, with the lights out, whoo...

[dave]

I have a Silent Brass mute that I use daily for the same reason. You can save some $ by not buying the electronics. I think my mute was slightly over $100 buying it that way. I also have a Dennis Wicke practice mute for my Engl. baritone, and it is not nearly as quiet as the Yamaha.

-Dave